The Trail Conservancy and Austin Parks and Recreation explored various options to restore the infrastructure and settled on a combination of stone slab steps and steel retaining walls. This system balanced long-term durability and maintenance with minimal impact on the hillside. In addition to the steps and wall, TTC invested significantly in tree care for this large Cypress tree and in adding stabilizing plants to the hillside. The project was started in early 2026 and took roughly one month to complete.

Meet “Big Cy”

While not an official name, through working on this project and caring for the Trail’s natural areas, TTC’s team came to know and refer to this historic Bald Cypress as “Big Cy.” The revitalization of Big Cy’s home was a reminder of the history the Butler Trail holds and the importance of protecting it for future generations.

“I am a Bald Cypress tree, Taxodium distichum, with a 101-inch trunk diameter, lovingly known by some as “Big Cy”. I’m likely a couple hundred years old, standing on a special section of the Lady Bird Lake shoreline that was spared from clear-cutting long ago. Today, I play an important role in our ecosystem—providing flood control, critical wildlife habitat, and natural erosion defense.

If I could talk, the stories I could tell! I was here in the 1800s when the Butler brick company mined clay from Zilker Park and transported it to kilns at the location of Austin High. I saw the twinkling lights go up in 1965 for Yule Fest—the beginning of today’s Trail of Lights. In the 1970s, I watched Lady Bird Johnson and Ann Butler walk together, envisioning the Trail and planting trees for future generations, and I witnessed the very first Austin City Limits Music Festival in 2002. Over the decades, countless visitors have sat beneath my branches to rest, share secrets, laugh, cry, and connect.”