Visiting Northern Alabama

Alabama is home to Tim and my favorite stops during our first year on the road. Tim’s favorite was Noccalula Falls in Gadsden, AL and mine was Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, AL. Since we enjoyed Alabama so much last year, we decided to spend 4 weeks here this year. I picked two different spots so we could visit different parts of the state to see if we liked them as much. 

We spent our first two weeks in Arley, in Northern Alabama at Hidden Cove RV Resort.  This was our third Thousand Trails park and the nicest of the three. It sits on a bluff above Lewis Smith Lake and offers lake views from some sites, most of which were seasonal sites. Lewis Smith Lake is a three-fingered reservoir with over 500 miles of shoreline in three Alabama counties so it is popular area for camping and boating. 

Satellite image of the lake

Even though we couldn’t get a lake view site, we stayed in a new section of the campground that had large level sites. The campground had 3 sections spread out over a large area so it was great for morning and evening walks. The clubhouse had a decent deck over looking the lake from the bluff and in another area, the lake observation deck provided a view at water level. I stopped and took in both viewpoints on most of my walks. The campground also has a boat ramp and dock area, for those who bring their boats.

Our site at Hidden Cove

View of the lake from below the clubhouse

Lake Observation Deck

Lake Access from the observation deck

Loved the sunshine glistening on the lake

The only downfall to this campground is that it is off the beaten path in a very small town.  Everything seemed to be at least an hour’s drive away, probably because the lake creates a driving obstacle.   Great place to go if you want to get away from it all and just enjoy nature. We just stayed at the campground to do just that most of the time, although we ventured out a little.  The countryside was very pretty and made for some scenic drives as we explored.

Grocery shopping is a necessity and the small store in town didn’t offer much. So we decided to visit a few sites the campground recommended on our way to Walmart which was located in Cullman, AL almost an hour drive away. Our first stop was to the Clarkson Covered Bridge which is the second longest covered bridge in Alabama and one of the longest in the United States. The park by the bridge also included an old mill and picnic area by the stream. We didn’t venture too far down the path though after we saw the sign warning of snakes. I went close enough to get a few pictures of the bridge and mill. 

Entrance to the bridge

You could really see how long the bridge was from below

The mill was really pretty. I loved the red wheel.

Our next stop was to the Ave Maria Grotto which we both highly enjoyed. Located at St. Bernard Abbey, the grotto is a beautifully landscaped park that features the life work of Brother Joseph Zoetti. Brother Joseph built the 125 miniature replicas of some of the most famous buildings and shrines of the world from 1912 to 1958. He started it as a hobby and used whatever materials he could find or were donated for his construction. What amazed me the most is how closely the replicas resembled the actual buildings and Brother Joseph had never visited most of them. He created them from extensive readings of history and the Bible. His work is impressive. We also visited the cemetery and stopped to pray at the chapel.  If you are ever in Northern Alabama, we recommend you take the time to visit the Ave Maria Grotto. Eventually we made it to Walmart and got our groceries. It was a long day with the stops but well worth it. 

Some of the miniatures were large and displayed by themselves

Others were displayed in groupings and in some cases represented an entire city.

St. Peter’s Square

The details of each building was amazing.

We had seen signs for the Natural Bridge of Alabama on our way into the campground so we decided drive there another day. At 148 feet long and 60 ft high, it is the longest natural bridge east of the Rockies. There is a small fee to visit and the park includes a hiking trail through the woods and around large boulders in addition to the natural bridge. Definitely a good place to visit. 

The natural bridge

From underneath you could tell how massive it is

I loved this view from underneath.

When we left there, we tried to find a waterfall that I had read about. The trailhead turned out to be on private property without any parking or an easy way to access it so we had to turn around. By the time I researched a better way access it, it was too late in the day to get there and hike 1.5 miles to the waterfall.  Although we took a few drives on other days, we never made it to the waterfall.  Perhaps another time. 

We have now moved to Gunter Hill Campground, an Army Core of Engineers Park located outside of Montgomery, AL. We have only been here a couple days and so far, I think it tops all of the other campgrounds we have visited. More on our stay here in the next blog post.