Redbud Valley Nature Preserve - Catoosa, OK
The Redbud Valley Nature Preserve is a place of quiet beauty and rugged scenery. Here are plants and animals found nowhere else in northeastern Oklahoma. It is a very special habitat, preserved for all of us to enjoy. The trail will take you to some of the most interesting parts of the Preserve. Go slowly, open your senses, enjoy the wonders of this unique place.
Redbud Valley was originally purchased by The Nature Conservancy in the late 1960s. Dr. Harriet Barclay was a professor at TU, and she spearheaded the effort to have it acquired, then worked with the Tulsa Tribune on a fund drive to raise the necessary money to repay The Nature Conservancy. TU maintained the property until the area was transferred to the City of Tulsa in 1990, and it is now managed as a part of Oxley Nature Center in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy. Under guidance from The Friends of Oxley Nature Center, the caretaker's house was renovated and the Barclay Visitor's Center was created.
Purpose
The primary management focus at Redbud Valley is to preserve and protect the unique plant and animal life that is found here. The area is also used for environmental education and for public enjoyment, but only when these activities coincide with our main focus, protection.
Why is Redbud only open on weekends?
The primary management focus at Redbud Valley is to preserve and protect the unique plant and animal life that is found here. We are able to use the area for environmental education and public enjoyment but need to limit these activities to coincide with our main focus of protection. We all love Redbud Valley, but we can't let it be loved to death!
TO RESPECT THE PRESERVE PLEASE…
- DO NOT ride your bike on the trails
- DO NOT Walk your dog or other pet
- DO NOT Play a radio
- DO NOT Have a picnic outside of the picnic area
- DO NOT Go fishing
- DO NOT Go hunting
- DO NOT Target practice with gun, bow, or air rifle
- DO NOT Make a fire
- DO NOT Go swimming
- DO NOT Camp overnight
- DO NOT Use fireworks
- DO NOT Rock climb
- DO NOT Hike off trail
- DO NOT Take or collect things such as fossils, plants, or animals
Trails
Redbud Valley offers a rugged one-mile trail that takes hikers through a variety of habitats, ranging from flood-plain forest and shady north-facing slopes to limestone bluffs and dry upland forest.