Michael M.

Madison, AL

Joined September 2016

Cheaha: Views from the South

Cheaha has many designated campgrounds, but my friends and I decided to do primitive camping. We got to the state park around 10am after driving over from Auburn where we were in school. The first thing we did after leaving the car was to hike to the highest lookout point in Alabama only about a quarter mile hike from the parking spot. The view was amazing, and the visibility was amazing we could see for miles. We spent about 2 hours rappelling off of some of the high ledges at the summit, an activity I would highly recommend, provided that all safety precautions are taken. We then began our hike in the back country down the side of the mountain to find a suitable camping spot. There are a lot of trees but the brush is low only about knee height so going off trail is not a problem just watch for snakes! We got to a valley about 3 miles from our parking spot and decided to camp. There was no water or stream that we camped by, but we brought plenty of water. The three of us are all hammock campers and finding spots was not a problem. At the time we went fires were not allowed in any back country so we used a jetboil to eat our freeze dried meals which worked very well. The hike back up the next day was challenging and we spent another hour or so at the summit. Overall this was a great trip and I would highly recommend Cheaha State Park to anyone.