I grew up on a little creek in Alabama

 I grew up on a little creek in Alabama

Way out in the country, far from the town

Nothing but family & farmland around

Crickets & mourning doves make their sound

The best people I knew were called Maw & Paw

They owned this land & farmed it all

Paw had a pet goose & rooster named Clyde

Maw taught me not to cuss or ever tell a lie

When I think back only happiness inside

We called them Maw and Paw

Come inside and sit a spell y’all 

Make yourself a plate & some sweet iced tea

Turnip greens, pinto beans, Maw smiles at me 

If I could go back there just one last time 

I would eat from paws Muscadine vine 

Paw was a veteran, who served in World War II

Was by far the smartest man I ever knew 

Now Maw loved to needle crochet & sew 

I believe she could do it with her eyes closed 

A horse named Cricket and a catfish pond

Apple trees, watermelons, and far beyond 

How they did it all I will never comprehend 

They fed family, animals, and friends 

We called them Maw and Paw

The best people I ever knew

Cold Banana banana pudding & warm chicken stew

If I could go back there just one last time

I would eat from paws red grapevine 

Blueberries, strawberries, beans & potatoes 

Cherry trees, peach trees, plums & tomatoes

Oh if I could go back there just one more time

Written by my daughter about her grandparents

🚗2018 July 31, Adventures trails that lead to Pulaski, Tennessee

Hubby and I rode north along the 101 highway and took Highway 64 east in Lexington. 

We turned left onto Alabama County Road 89 which took us into Tennessee. 

In Tennessee, we followed County Road 98 also called Rabbit Trail Road.

We turned left at Bonnertown Deli, Gas Station, and Lottery Store onto Appleton Road. 

Bonnertown Deli, Gas Station, and Lottery Store

We stopped at the Big Red Store (closed except for 4 days a year) to take pictures. 

This is where we saw a historic marker telling about the Confederate leader Forrest and his troops that camped along Sugar Creek in Giles County preparing for a Federal attack. 

We continued on Appleton Road which dead-ended at Sugar Creek. 

We took Blooming Grove Road, a narrow two-lane, rough, snake road for several miles. Along the way, we passed the Appleton Church of Christ, goats, turkeys, horses, cows, and a flock of vultures. 

Once again we encountered Sugar Creek where we saw a family with two little boys wearing life jackets and two girls swimming.

They scurried out of the creek as we proceeded to cross.

The cross-over was concreted with water flowing over the top. 

Nestled on top of a hill across Sugar Creek stood Mount Zion Cemetery, and Church with Sugar Creek flowing from two sides. 

We continued along Blooming Grover Road where we saw fields of Corn, Black-eyed Susan, and a barn full of hay.

We saw a John Deer Mail Box at 8125 waiting for the mail carrier. 

We stopped in front of a white wooden farmhouse that had a red tin roof, in the front yard was a row of pink Lilies in full bloom. 

After many turns and twists, we arrived at Minor Hill Highway. 

Narrow Roads

Farm House

The Yellow Deli with a beautiful garden caught my eye so we decided to stop for lunch.  

I took pictures of the garden as we approached the entrance.

We were greeted by the owner and told the upstairs was closed.

The owner said you are welcome to go upstairs and look around while you are waiting for your food. 

I ordered the Cranberry Cashew Salad with Mixed greens, cashews, craisins, Havarti cheese, peppers, and tomatoes with house dressing and cranberry bread.

Hubby ordered Deli Rose Roast Beef Sandwich with Pepper Jack Cheese, Provolone Cheese, Onions, Tomatoes, Mayo, Mustard, and special sauce on an onion roll served with chips and a pickle.

We finished the meal with Carrot Cake topped with Cream Cheese icing topped with nuts.

Cranberry Cashew Salad 

The Inside of the Deli was as beautiful as the outside. Murals dotted the walls, and Common Sense Soaps and Body Care lined the entranceway Way, leading to the hosted area, cashier, and bar. 

Plants were everywhere including the window seals, and the windows were dressed in tied-back yellow and white check curtains.

Half-bushel baskets were used as light fixtures.

Wooden Tables, iron back chairs, and wooden booths were throughout the lower and top levels of the deli. 

The top level had an enclosed garden where you could enjoy dining outside. 

This beautiful building was built around 1900 called the HGH Gladish Heritage House. 

Inside The Yellow Deli 

Inside The Yellow Deli 

Outside the Yellow Deli 

We rode to the Trail of Tears Interruptive Center the museum was closed

We walked around outside looking at the markers, benches, statues, dog fountains, and beautiful plants. 

We stopped at Home Depot for a few items.

We ran into a patch of rain traveling home. 

The days' adventure included traveling on narrow, winding back roads, with one a dead end. 

Traveling across water-covered roadways along Sugar Creek and people enjoying a swim. 

Enjoyed lunch at The Yellow Deli and Gardens and a stop at the Trail of Tears Interruptive Center. 

Sugar Creek 

Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge at Flint Creek

National Wildlife Refuge
Wheeler 
How Can You Help?

1. Dispose of fishing lines, hooks, and trash in the bins and containers provided. 

2. Pick up any trash you see. 

3. If you pack it in, you can pack it out.

4. Volunteer with the Wildlife Refuge for clean-up events. 

Reminder: artifact collecting is not permitted.

Contact Information 
Refuge Headquarters
256-353-7243
Visitor Center - 256-350-6639
In case of an emergency, call 911

Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
Refuge Lands Within Redstone Arsenal
Highways
Roads
Refuge Boundary
Visitor Center
Wildlife Observation
Boating
Flint Creek Environmental 
Area & Universally Accessible Fishing PierU. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Our History 
1838
Trail of Tears: The discovery of gold in Georgia and thirst for land expansion prompted the U.S. Government and white communities to force the Cherokee nation from their ancestral lands. During the summer and winter of 1838, the first three detachments driven west traveled by water on the Tennessee River from Ross's Landing near present-day Chattanooga. They followed the river through Alabama and West Tennessee before merging with other rivers and eventually arriving in Oklahoma.

1933
TVA ACT: In May of 1933, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Tennessee Valley Authority Act creating the TVA. The Tennessee Valley Authority was designed to modernize the region, using experts and electricity to combat problems in the area. A primary part of the plan was to produce electricity and provide flood relief by constructing a series of dams along the Tennessee River and its tributaries.

1934
TVA COMES TO Town TVA acquired land in the middle third of the valley in 1934-35 to serve as a bed for and buffer around Wheeler Reservoir. Interested individuals and organizations urged that the government take advantage of the newly constructed reservoir to replace the waterfowl habitat.

1938 
AN EXPERIMENT: On July 7, 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt set aside the middle third of the new reservoir as an experimental national wildlife refuge to see if multi-purpose reservoirs could be made attractive to waterfowl. The reservoir and new refuge were named for General Joseph Wheeler who lived near Decatur.

1950 
POLLUTION: Rachel Carson's 1962 classic, Silent Spring, documented the serious environmental problems caused by pesticide pollution, including those in the Flint Creek Watershed. In the late summer of 1950, farmers experiencing a very wet season, reapplied pesticides to their crops multiple times because they kept washing off in the frequent rains. These high volumes of pesticides washed into Flint Creek, killing most of the fish.

Present 
HERE AND NOW Impacted greatly by its controversial history, this section of the Tennessee River and Flint Creek is vastly different from what they were over 170 years ago when the Cherokee traveled west. Industries have sprung up, dams have been built, commercial water traffic is considerable, and recreational boating facilities have developed. Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge is one of the few areas remaining along the river that is dedicated to conserving the character of our wild and natural heritage.
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Flint Creek 
Flint Creek is a slow-flowing, meandering stream influenced by the fluctuating water levels of Wheeler Reservoir. The creek and its tributaries are comprised of 150 miles of streams that drain over 291,000 acres of land in Morgan, Lawrence, and Cullman counties. Its headwaters are in northern Cullman County, and the creek flows into Morgan County where it converges with West Flint Creek near US Highway 31. As it confluence with the Tennessee River at mile 308.5

Fishing and Land 
the Flint Creek shoreline offers a wide variety of hardwoods, bluffs, farms, and wildlife while the stream itself is home to crappie, bream, bass, catfish, and a few yellow perch. Much of the land surrounding the creek is within the TVA Reservation and Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, making it accessible to the public. Improved boat launching areas are available at Hickory Hills and Hwy 31 South. There is an improved launch area suitable for small boats and canoes located south of US Highway 67. This universally accessible pier was built so everyone can enjoy what the watershed has to offer.

Watershed Project 
The Flint Creek Watershed Project is a multiagency cooperative led by local leaders and watershed residents. In 1996, a Watershed Conservatory District was established and plans were developed with the assistance of two federal agencies, five Alabama state agencies, and three local soil and water conservation districts. A variety of projects including agricultural demonstrations, well sampling programs, on-site wastewater demonstrations, and riparian zone management efforts have been implemented by this project. Public outreach activities include household hazardous waste days, pesticide

2017 July 22, Events of the W. C. Handy Festival Saturday

I went to Visitor Center to listen to Tom McDonald talk about three of the books that he wrote and had for sale. 

1. Promises to Keep

2. Dirt Road Memories 

3. When Memories Come Calling

I should have bought one. 

I stopped to talk to Tom for a few minutes about growing up in East Florence. 

Tom said that he grew up on Sweetwater Avenue.

I live in East Florence but our paths never crossed. 

Tom went to Brandon School from the first to the sixth grades.

When we moved to Florence I was already passed the sixth grade.

Tom's family moved to the Central area around the time we moved to East Florence. 

We talked about Sweet Water Creek and walking along the old railroad tracks down by the canal on the bank of the Tennessee River. 

When we lived in East Florence my sisters and I would walk to McFarland Park to swim in the Tennessee River.

We also swam in the canal which was not far from our home. 

Tom, said once that he had tried floating down the Sweet Water Creek in a washtub and that he had hoped to make it to the Tennessee River in that tub, but it turns over and he never made it. 

What sweet childhood memories we both could recall.

Then I went to Florence Library to Watermelon Wine the Poetry of American Music. 

Where I listened to Anne E, DeChant sing and play on her guitar some of her storytelling songs (she was very good)

 I left the library and rode to Jack's for lunch. There I ordered a kids' Chicken Finger Meal which consisted of two Chicken fingers, green beans, Rice Kirby and Diet Coke. I also ordered an Apple Pie. 
I still had time to kill before returning to the Visitor Center so I went back to the Library.
There was a car show that was about to end so I stopped to take a few pictures. It was going to be long with walking so I just took several long-distance pictures. I walked back thru the Library and saw Anne DeChant and Frye Gilard standing at the counter in the Library so I walked up to them.
I told Anne DeChant that I loved her singing and playing, that her music reminded me of the storyteller and singer Tom T. Hall. 
She thanked me and said she appreciated the compliment. 
They were getting directions to Legends, where they were going to eat lunch. I said they have good food. 

 Then back to the visitors center for Swampfest Songwriter showcase series #2 to listen to Buzz Cason and Russell Medford sing and play. 
The audience sang along with Buzz in a couple of his songs. "Hank Williams Christian songs. One way I saw the light. Russell talked about meeting a couple of songwriters at Killen Diner (which has since burnt down) to write a song. 
The fun show ended around 3:30PM.

I rode to Taco Bell to get supper there was a line of cars all the way to the stop sign. 
When I got up to the window I said, you have been busy today. The girl at the window said we have been like this since 11AM today because we had four people to call in. What a bummer!!

After my busy day, all I wanted to do was eat my Taco Salad,  prop my feet up, and watch TV.

2017 April 18, Tuesday, Day Trip to Cullman, Alabama (Ava's First Trip with us)🍓🍓🍓

We rode past the Paper Mill in Town Creek (that is being torn down) to Highway 31 to Decatur.
Ava ate half a banana, and crackers and drank some milk before we stopped for lunch.
We stopped at Logan's Roadhouse in Decatur for lunch.
Hubby ordered a hamburger and fries. 
Ava and I shared ALASKAN cod, fried to perfection in a Samuel Adams Boston Lager batter. 
Served with crispy house-made potato chips.

Ava eating lunch

Fried Cod and chips 

Fried Cod and chips

Ava watched Kong Fu Panda, Little Mermaid, and Dory on the TV screen in our van

Our first stop was the Decatur Train Depot 309 1st Street Cullman there we saw several train benches, a miniature train, a light, and a couple of cases of artifacts.

Train Depot 

We walked across the parking lot to Depot Park where Ava enjoyed stretching her legs after the long ride.

Ava enjoying the fountain at Depot Park 

We saw a farmer's market across the street so we took Ava by the hand and entered the crosswalk that leads to the farmer's market.
At the farmer's market, they were selling fresh homegrown strawberries.

Cullman's Farmers Market

Fresh Strawberries

We bought a gallon and before we knew it Ava was filling up on strawberries.
I had a baby wipe ready as the red juice flowed down her sweet face.
As soon as she finished one berry she was saying more.
I sat next to her in the back seat so I could feed her and clean her up.
Our next stop was the dollar store where hubby bought him a diet Mt. Dew and Ava a bottle of Apple Juice.

Clarkson Covered Bridge

Finally, we arrived at the Clarkson Covered Bridge.
We were all ready to get out of the van. 

I said that we should all walk across the bridge but Ava said scared so she and hubby walked to the cabin that had a swing, while I walked across the bridge.

Some kind of animal jumped out at me when I started back across the bridge.

I walked  back to the cabin where Ava and hubby were looking at a green lizard

Green Lizard

Me and Ava on the Clarkson Covered Bridge 

Cabin and Mill

We walked to the creek across a smaller bridge and took a few pictures.
It was awful muggy and by the time we arrived at the van, we were all sweating.
We were relieved to feel the cool air from the air conditioner.

Clarkson Covered Bridge
Sometimes called Legg Bridge
this 270-footbridge was constructed in 1904, destroyed by a flood in 1921, and rebuilt the following year. The only remaining covered bridge is Cullman County. it was restored by the Cullman County Commission in 1975 as an American Revolution Bicentennial Project. Named to National Register of Historic Places on 6~25~74.
Alabama Historical Association 1975

Side view of Clarkson Covered Bridge 

A smaller bridge that crossed the creek 

Ava with only a few strains of strawberries on her dress 

Snowball bush at the cabin

There were signs all throughout the park 

1. What is Water Pollution? #1

2. Where does your drinking water come from? #5

3. What Happens to my wastewater? #6

4. Monitoring Watershed Health #8

5. What's the Big Deal about Litter?! #9

6. Birds of Alabama #12

7. Alabama's Aquatic Biodiversity #13

8. Alabama's Physical Diversity#14

9. Land Use and Water Quality #15

We rode past the Civil War Museum we did not stop because we were all too hot and tired.

We came back on Highway 157 through Moulton.
We stopped at a local nursery for some tomatoes and peppers.
We dropped Ava off at her house and came home.
Too tired to get off the couch.
After resting for a couple hours we took the time to plant our vegetables in our garden box.

Waterfalls in Alabama

Cheaha State Park Falls
The three best waterfalls to see near Cheaha State Park are Cheaha Falls, Devils Den, and High Falls.

Secret Falls Phil Campbell, Alabama
Secret Falls is one of two falls located in the Dismals, Phil Campbell.
Tucked deep within the foothills of the Appalachians Mountains, Dismals Canyon is 85 acres of nature. 

 The canyon is home to two waterfalls, Secret Falls and Rainbow Falls, and six natural bridges.

Waterfall on Shoals Creek, Killen, Al 

Noccalula Falls 1500 Noccaluala Park Gadsden
Named after a Creek Indian princess, Noccalula Falls stands 90, feet tall and is one of the most visited natural attractions in the state.
When rain conditions are normal the waterfall is around 20 feet with a smaller one located a little to the right of the higher fall. While heavy rains cause the two falls to merge into one wider waterfall.

Noccalula falls during a drought.

Noccalula falls during normal rainfall, Gadsden, Alabama

Man-Made Waterfall at UNA, Florence, Alabama

Man-Made Waterfall at Marriott Hotel Florence, Alabama 

Waterfall at Shoals Creek Preserve Track Hiking Trail 

Coldwater Falls Tuscumbia Spring Park 2009

Coldwater Falls Spring Park Tuscumbia

The man-made Coldwater Falls was constructed with over 2,000 tons of sandstone and today sees more than 4.3 million gallons of water flow each day.

Desota Falls Menton Alabama 

The concrete dam above one of North Alabama's tallest falls, Desota Falls was built in 1925 for Alabama's first hydroelectric power plant

Wilson Dam Falls Florence, Alabama

The Wilson Dam is the only neoclassical-style dam in the Tennessee Valley Authority System, integrating themes of Ancient Roman and Greek architecture into the modern structure.