Carson Village, Birmingham, Alabama
The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart. ~ Proverbs 17:3
Incredibly, Blaine managed to find a Park close by that David had never visited, so we checked it out today.
Ruffner Mountain Nature Center and Preserve. Encompassing more than 1,000 acres, it’s one of the largest urban nature preserves in the nation. There’s more than 12 miles of trails (of which we covered about 5-6) and a Visitor Center with critters that’s also an award-winning educational center.
Here’s a bit of their history:
The origins of the preserve lie in the region’s mining history. It is named for William Henry Ruffner, a noted educator and geologist from Virginia who in 1882 mapped the geologic features of the mountain, including the iron ore and other resources valued by iron and steel companies. In the late 1880s, Sloss Iron and Steel Company established mining operations on the mountain that ran until 1953; iron ore was sent directly to Sloss Furnaces by railcar from the Ruffner Mines. The site was then abandoned, and plant and animal communities began to re-establish themselves on the landscape. In the 1970s, a public-private partnership of citizen groups representing local residents and civic leaders were able to secure 28 acres of land that were threatened with development. In 1977, they formed the nonprofit Ruffner Mountain Nature Coalition Inc. to manage the property and opened the first nature center in the state.
It was another really nice Park, and we had wonderful weather to enjoy it in! There’s an abandoned quarry which closed in the 70’s, so that was something different to look down on and then walk around in.
I took the picture before the guys changed their minds. : )
If this is the winter view, you wouldn’t see anything the rest of the year . . . .
that those are dirt bike trails from before the Park took over.
This was a very large hole in the ground! Bigger than you’d think!
Did you spot Blaine?
Then a guy who comes to the Park all the time . . . no one knows what it was used for. : (
But the guy was certainly talkative. : )
Nice sign, but there was absolutely nothing around where the sign was planted. Weird!
But then, once we were inside the quarry area, there were a couple more of them.
he wrapped it around a tree branch so others could ooh and ahhh over it. : )
The Visitor Center was pretty nice too!
Isn’t he gorgeous?!?!?!?
They had aquariums scattered about, but most of them didn’t have anything in them,
or the critters were hiding out.
I put my phone up, and voila!!
But it’s interesting, and had pretty scenery so I took a picture.
Lucky us! And lucky you! They’d just fed a snake when we walked in! I know you must think I’m the strangest woman you’ve ever known, but it was sooo interesting to watch that snake eat his meal. Maybe because the mousey was already dead, but it didn’t bother me at all. Scroll through the pictures quick if you don’t want to see it. It’s a beautiful snake though. Never seen one that color before!
Dinner was at our place tonight. My Cuban dishes – pork tenderloin, potatoes and 1905 salad. Scrumptious! Except the quality of the pork wasn’t up to our standards. It was a little dry and tough. ☹ But the guys got to have a small tailgate party! 😊
This Month In History: (from campground newsletter)
1981: Paul “Bear” Bryant, football coach of the University of Alabama, wins the 315th game of his career. It set the record for most wins of any NCAA head coach at the time.
1995: “Toy Story”, the first feature film created by Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios, premieres to rave reviews.