Every Wednesday in July, Wild South led hikes for children and families to some of the coolest and wettest creeks and canyons in the Bankhead National Forest and Sipsey Wilderness in northwest Alabama. On these days, our hikes were as much in the water as on a trail.

When we are outside in nature, in a forest, on a river or creek, a hiking trail, and especially in a wilderness, we put ourselves in a place where our connection to all other living things is most direct. In a mature forest, we breathe air that is more pure, more oxygenated than air in any building. When we stand or wade in a creek we think about how ancient the water is, and how, through water possibly more than any other single element, we are profoundly connected to our earth. When we spend time outside, all of our senses are engaged and we are most fully alive.

Ready! Set! Stand still.

By Janice Barrett

Our March 7th hike began on the western edge of the Sipsey Wilderness in the Kinlock Historic District. In this part of the Bankhead National Forest, there is a lot to miss if you rush through it. At first appearance, our gathering place at the gated Forest Service road just off Kinlock Road looks like nothing more than a wide spot in the road in the middle of the forest. But standing and facing Kinlock Road and taking a look around tells another story.

By Janice Barrett, Outreach Coordinator

The Stories in the Rocks

Whoever first used the expression “as old as the hills” might have been referring to the Appalachian Mountains, which are over a billion years old. Before the continents drifted apart, our Appalachians were part of a mountain range that went from Morocco in northern Africa all the way up into Scotland. The Warrior Mountains in northwest Alabama are the tail-end of the Appalachians, and therein lies the Bankhead National Forest.

The Warrior Mountains of the Bankhead National Forest are not very tall, but the canyons are deep. Consider that the Appalachians were once taller than the Himalayas, now the tallest mountains in the world. Over millions of years, water and wind have eroded the Warrior Mountains to their lowly height and gouged deep canyons out of the sandstone.

by Ben Prater

Spring is certainly one of the most colorful seasons.  Have you ever looked outside to see how many different colors of flowers you can find?  If not, this is the best time of year to go look for wildflowers. 

Wildflowers come in an amazing variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and even smells.  Flowers are very pretty and make people happy.  But flowers aren't out there just for you and me.  Plants use flowers to attract animals to their pollen.