could start this page with a statement like, “Wow. Today was a fun trip beginning to end.” But all of our day trips are a lot of fun, and like many others, this one didn’t turn out exactly like we planned. Not a problem, of course. The trip really was fun. Just not exactly what we had planned.
Noccalula Falls Park
Soon after we got back home from our trip to Old Cahawba, we started talking about where we would go next. We had traveled south last week, and we had plans to go even farther south in two weeks, so we looked around for a place to vist north of Birmingham. We had heard about Noccalula Falls, and we had seen signs often enough driving north on I-59, so that seemed like a good choice. When the day arrived, off we went.
The falls themselves won’t really win any prizes for drama or anything like that. In late July, we saw more of a trickle than a torrent, but the sight was impressive enough in its 90-foot height. But to go along with the natural falls and all the rocky beauty that gave birth to them, there is a really nice city park that includes more than you might expect in a city park.
We paid our fee and decided first to take the little train around the grounds, just to get the lay of the land, so to speak. Jimmy Lay, our conductor, offered good commentary along the way, and we were able to make mental notes of what we wanted to come back to on foot after our ride. We got a distant look at the petting zoo, the lion house, pioneer village, and covered bridge. One of the things I particularly noticed was the start of the gorge trail. I thought that would be a fun thing to do later, until I noticed the steep slope and the high temperature we were “enjoying” on the train.
We got off the train at the only other stop so we could walk over to the rim of the gorge and get a closer look at the falls. The site is beautiful. In spite of the campgrounds and even homes in the background, the site of the falls, with the overhanging rock ledge, is really beautiful. The weather we’ve had this summer, with frequent rainfall, helped, because all the trees were still a bright healthy green. They didn’t yet have the tired look of late summer.
After the ride, Judy went to the gift shop while I wandered around a little. The heat soon drove me back to the entrance, and we decided to move on. You see, we had seen a sign about a winery when we got off the interstate. It was still a little early for lunch, so we headed back along Highway 211, not really knowing what we were looking for or getting into.
Wills Creek Winery
We struck off for parts unknown, heading north on Highway 211 and following the occasional signs we saw along the way. Eventually, we turned right on Duck Springs Road, and started another short drive through some really beautiful countryside. We were basically in a flat broad valley between two lines of “pea shell hills” at the end of the Appalachian chain. Not a bad drive at all.
At the winery, we enjoyed talking to John Coppey almost as much as we enjoyed tasting the wines. You could really put each of their wines into one of two categories: those made from indigenous grapes (muscadines and scuppernongs) and those made from grapes that were grown out of state and made into wine on the premises. The second category isn’t unusual at all for wineries in this climate. Even in the higher elevations of northeast Alabama, our summers are too hot to keep those imported vines happy over the long haul.
Judy and I both thought the scuppernong wines tasted like the wine my mother used to make, so I guess it’s not surprising that we brought back a couple of bottles. While we were there we picked up a North Alabama Wine Trail Passport, so we’ll no doubt come back this way when the weather cools off a bit. After all, while we’re in the area, we can visit Tigers for Tomorrow, more wineries, and the Alabama Antique Trail.
There’s something for everybody in this valley!
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