created the Greenbelt when he settled on its banks in 1837. On September 7, 1974, Bradfield, Cummins sold 132.34 acres to the City of Austin for parkland. Another 0.88 acre parcel was purchased July 24, 1982. The trail running along the Greenbelt has an interesting history. For example, the last section, called "The Hill of Life" used to be closed. John Hartman orchestrated a meeting with the Parks and Rec board to get the trail on it opened. The residents in the subdivision at the top of the hill had cut a deal with Parks & Rec to keep it closed; Hartman turned up at least 10 major neighborhood groups to argue against the special deal and prevailed. During the 1970s and 1980s, hikers had to find ways over, under and around the fences placed to keep them from accessing the creek's cool clear water and free swimming holes. The initial Greenbelt "River Rats" made it clear to all users: "you carried the trash in...you carry the trash out! Don't let your trash mess up our clear creeks and rivers!" In March 2009, The Trust for Public Land donated of land to the Greenbelt, in addition to the they donated in early 2007. Previously, between 1992 and 1999, TPL purchased nearly 1,000 acres of land in the Barton Creek watershed and donated it to the city, transforming a thin stretch of public land into a major metropolitan park. The organization hoped to continue expansion of the trail network in the area in coming years. Recent maintenance In 2011, the City of Austin's maintenance team was assisted by five AmeriCorps members from American YouthWorks Texas Conservation Corps. The crew completed over 100 projects throughout the Greenbelt in the form of erosion control, habitat restoration and GIS mapping. The crew was funded through donations by Impact Austin, Austin Parks Foundation, and Hill Country Conservancy. Other nonprofits, including Greenbelt Guardians, Central Texas Mountaineers and the Austin Ridgeriders also play a big role in volunteer maintenance. Many of these agencies come together to organize a major volunteer day, National Trails Day, every year on the first Saturday in June. Locations Popular Barton Creek Greenbelt locations include: Twin Falls, Campbell's Hole, The Flats, Gus Fruh, and Sculpture Falls. References External links City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department: Greenbelts Forests of Texas Urban forests in the United States Parks in Austin, Texas Green belts Protected