TVA Rockpile Trail Wildflower Hike

Please note: This meets at the Nature Trails Parking Lot.

Led by Charles Rose. Sponsored by Fresh Air Family.

This outing is free to the public, but you should register. Registering ensures you will be notified of any last-minute changes or cancellation, due to weather, the leader's work schedule, etc.

To register or get more info, contact Charles Rose at [chuckrivers@comcast.net](mailto:chuckrivers@comcast.net) or 256-366-1937.

Registering is easy; all we need is:
1. Your name.
2. The number of people in your party.
3. A contact phone number, preferably a cell phone.

Meet: 10:00pm at the Nature Trails parking lot at the TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation.

We will leave some cars here and then carpool the short distance to the Rockpile Recreation Area, just below historic Wilson Dam.

We will hike one-way on the historic Rockpile Trail from the Recreation Area to Southport, the site of a 19th Century steamboat port and town.

Description: Moderately-rigorous, with many steep uphills and downhills. I estimate this hike to be 4 to 4 ½ miles long.
Bring lunch, snacks and water. Wear sturdy footwear. A hiking pole and insect spray are recommended.
On this hike the emphasis will be on spring wildflowers and local history.

Wildflowers of interest will include Red Buckeye, Dutchman’s Breeches, Wild Blue Phlox, Rue Anemone, Jacob’s Ladder, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, False Rue Anemone, Cut-leaf Toothwort, Yellow Woodlands Violet, Dwarf larkspur and many more.

The Rockpile Trail features many scenic vistas of the Tennessee River (Pickwick Lake).
Eagles, Great Blue Heron and Osprey are regularly spotted in the vicinity of the TVA Rockpile, so bring your binoculars.

As we hike westward from the Rockpile, we will pass several historic spots, including the foundations of the old Wilson Steam Plant (once the largest facility of its kind in the world), the infamous TVA "Slag Pile" and the stone CCC Picnic Pavilion, built during the Great Depression by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Stone steps, bridge foundations, check dams, and other erosion abatements, all built in the 1930’s by the CCC, will also be of interest.

We will also cross Pond Creek, which originally ended in a sinkhole south of the TVA Reservation. In the 1930’s it was diverted so that it would flow into the Tennessee River, just a few yards below our crossing.

After resting at the historic CCC Picnic Pavilion on a bluff overlooking the river, we will continue on into the Small Wild Area, also known as the First Quarters Ravine, chock-full of blooming spring wildflowers.

We will then travel further on the Rockpile Trail to Southport, site of an old 19th Century steamboat port and the town of South Florence.

Next, we will visit a Civil War earthworks site on a wildflower strewn hill above Southport, then take Gunnery Hill Trail to the Hall Memorial Native Plant Garden, which was once the site of the historic First Quarters, originally built as officers’ quarters while Wilson Dam was being constructed during World War I.

Google Map, showing the location of the TVA Nature Trails Parking Lot
https://goo.gl/maps/RiSrfc772Eq

Directions: The Nature Trails parking lot is just off Reservation Road on TVA’s Muscle Shoals Reservation.

From Wilson Dam: Go south on Reservation Road for app. 2.5 miles. At the “Nature Trails” sign, turn right into the parking lot.

From Hatch Blvd. (US-43) in Sheffield: Turn at the TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation sign (¼ mile north of the Clarion Inn) and go app. 1.5 miles. At the “Nature Trails” sign, turn left into the parking lot.

From Birmingham: Take I-65 N for app. 50 miles to Cullman. Take the AL-157 exit (Exit 310). At the end of the ramp, turn left onto AL-157 N (toward Moulton). Continue on AL-157 for app. 55 miles, passing through Moulton on the way. Merging with AL-20 W (alt US-72 W), continue for another 4.3 miles into Muscle Shoals, AL. Turn right onto US-43 N. Go 4.5 miles. Soon after passing the Clarion Inn (on the left), turn right onto the TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation. (This is Reservation Road.) Go 1.5 miles and turn left at the “Nature Trails” sign into the parking lot.

From Huntsville: Take I-565 W. I-565 will become AL-20 W. Continue on AL-20 W, as it crosses the Tennessee River into Decatur. On the other side of the bridge, AL-20 immediately turns right at the light. Continue app. 40 miles more on AL-20 W to Muscle Shoals, AL. Turn right on US-43 N. Continue on US-43 N for app. 4.5 miles. Soon after passing the Clarion Inn (on the left), turn right onto the TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation. (This is Reservation Road.) Go 1.5 miles and turn left at the “Nature Trails” sign into the parking lot.
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