Auburn's New Nature Trail
While I was out on a campus run, I decided to diverge from my regular path and go another route. I took a right off South Donahue and found a beautiful trail that I never knew was there.
In fact, this trail took me through a beautiful nature scene that I didn’t even know existed on campus. Later I found out that this scenic route was the recently expanded Parkerson Mill Creek Greenway!
The Parkerson Mill Creek Greenway has been a long-anticipated project for more than 20 years! The idea has been to construct a trail that will run alongside the Parkerson Mill Creek, which runs through Auburn’s campus and carries most of Auburn’s run-off water. The long-term goal is to eventually connect the trail to the nearby Chewacla State Park. In the past couple of years, Auburn University has made significant progress towards this with the recent completion of Phase 3, which connects the small lake off Woodfield Extension to the trail that runs along the intramural fields. In fact, Auburn has now completed 1 mile of trail that extends from the Coliseum to south of campus.
Beginning at the Coliseum, the trail starts heading south by brushing past the trees in front of the Woltosz Football Performance Center and then crosses East Samford Ave. After crossing, the trail passes the women’s soccer field and runs between the intramural fields and Parkerson Mill Creek. This is where the trail begins to get more and more immersed in nature as the tree line slowly begins to cover the trail. The trail continues south as it crosses Lem Morrison Drive. After crossing, the trail runs by the retention pond next to the Sportsplex until it goes fully into the woods. Here the trail curves through the shade of the trees with flowering grass sprouting on both sides. Finally, the trail ends with a loop around a beautiful lake housing several baby turtles.
We all know Auburn’s beauty is the crown jewel of the south, but this greenway is a great way to showcase beautiful parts of campus you may not have ever seen. Whether you need to take your dog on a walk, go for a run, or take a nice stroll through nature with your friend, I highly recommend taking an hour to frolic along the Parkerson Mill Creek Greenway!
Get outside, enjoy the scenery, and
Be Well, Auburn.
Writer
Being raised in a certified War Eagle family, Beau has been bound for Auburn, AL since he was born. The people, campus, sports, and southern climate are all pieces of Auburn that Beau fell in love with.
Beau is an electrical engineering major and is in class or doing work quite often. However, this doesn’t stop him from being very active outside of class. You can find him working out at The Rec, hanging out or eating with friends, going to church, playing Xbox at home, or making stuff in the Auburn Makerspace. He enjoys meeting new people and being social. He also loves to exercise his creativity. Whether it be 3D printing, photoshop, or woodworking, Beau loves to create!
Beau seeks to graduate from Auburn with a degree in electrical engineering and pursue a career where he can lead a great team to create new products/innovations. In the meantime, he is getting as heavily involved during his time at Auburn as he can!
