You want mountains? You like the beach? You like caves? You like water falls? Then come on over and visit us in Alabama. I have lived in Alabama most of my life and have seen a lot of the beautiful places my home state has to offer. But I still have a lot of spots my kids haven’t been to, and if they haven’t been I don’t feel like I have properly crossed it off my list yet. So this year I have an Alabama State Park Bucket List and will have an Alabama Bucket List.
When you think of Alabama I hope you think of our southern hospitality and the kindness we show one another. I hope you will experience some delicious sweet tea, and some fried green tomatoes. If you haven’t been, we want you to come on over and visit. If you have come we would love to have you back to see more of our great state.
Alabama State Parks
Alabama has 22 state parks, stretching from the beautiful mountains in North Alabama to the beaches down in South Alabama (sometimes referred to as LA, Lower Alabama). If you love being out in nature our state parks are just what you are looking for. My family and I have a love for Cheaha State Park most of all as it is just down the road and has plenty of trails to hike, a lake to swim in, and the perfect camping areas for van camping and tent camping. We also really enjoyed our visits at Oak Mountain State Park, another oasis of trails, fresh air, and of course the chance to slow down and enjoy each other’s company.
Our family has plans to visit every state park in Alabama, but for 2019 our Alabama State Park bucket list is just those with campgrounds and bike trails.
Our Alabama State Park Bucket List
DeSoto State Park located near Fort Payne is a great spot to enjoy some mountain views. We have camped here before, but not with our entire family so we are calling for a re-visit this year. DeSoto has camping for tents, campers or even cabins. There is a swimming pool, hiking, and biking trails and you can’t miss the beautiful DeSoto falls just 7 miles north of the park.
Chewacla State Park was amazing! We stayed here in February 2019. Check out more information on Chewacala! Chewacla has camping (tent, RV, and cabins), hiking and biking trails and a lake.
Monte Sano State Park is another park we have not visited just yet. They also have cabins and a campground with some beautiful hiking and biking trails. I look forward to visiting this park located outside Huntsville. While there I recommend visiting the US Space and Rocket Center!
Lake Lurleen has a lot to offer; golfing, boating, swimming, hiking, camping, and biking. Located just outside Tuscaloosa we will again pay attention to the football schedule to avoid it during peak times.
Lake Guntersville State Park looks incredible, like more of a resort and less of a state park. They offer swimming, zip lining, golfing, hiking, biking, and horse trails, cabins, chalets, and camping.
Gulf State Park is of course the one we all want to visit most this spring or summer. It has 2 miles of beaches and I just not sure that we need anything else to make it a journey we want to take. They have cabins, cottages, camping, and a lodge. They also have fishing, swimming, hiking and biking. Even if we don’t make any of our other state park bucket list spots we are really hoping for this one.
We want to visit all of the 22 Alabama State Parks, but for now we are aiming for these parks first.
We have visited some incredible places in the last several years. And while the Eiffel Tower and the Sydney Opera House were incredible; this year we are hoping to tackle more local spots. I will be sharing my Alabama Bucket List soon. We hope to visit the state parks this year and I have found some other things we want to do while we are at the parks. I would love to hear what things in Alabama you feel are must-do items for someone that has never been… or even for the gal that has lived here most of her life and still hasn’t seen everything there is to see in this great state of ours.
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