THE SHOALS-Fresh Air Family along with hike guide Charles Rose will be hosting a series of Nature Walks to observe spring flowers in the area.
There will be a total of 4 walks throughout the net 4 Sundays. On these walks there will be several opportunities to see and photograph some of North Alabama wildflowers.
Charles Rose has been leading nature outings in the Shoals area and across North Alabama for over two decades. Since 2011, he has conducted these in conjunction with Birmingham-based non-profit Fresh Air Family, which offers these events free to the general public. The majority of these events take place in March through May each year, when our spring ephemeral wildflowers are blooming.
To register or get more info, contact Charles Rose at chuckrivers@comcast.net or 256-366-1937.
Registering is easy; all we need is:
https://goo.gl/maps/
Sunday, March 10 — Wildflower Hike at Cane Creek Canyon Nature Preserve
Sponsored by Fresh Air Family.
Meet 1:00pm at the preserve, located in Colbert County, about 8 miles south of Tuscumbia, AL.
Led by Charles Rose.
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 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.
Bring water & snacks. Wear hiking boots or sturdy shoes. Moderately rigorous: at least a 4-mile hike, with up-hills & down-hills. We will be flexible as far as the distance covered; some may choose to go further.
See waterfalls, including the 60-ft. “Lacefield’s Falls”, scenic vistas, huge flower-strewn boulders and cascading creeks.
Our main goal on this hike is The Boulder Garden, featuring huge rocks that we hope will be strewn with hundreds of Trout Lilies.
Other wildflowers expected to be blooming are Hepatica, Bloodroot, Rue Anemone, Jacob’s Ladder, Trillium cuneatum, Toothworts and more.
https://goo.gl/maps/
Saturday, March 16 — Cane Creek Canyon Nature Preserve Wildflower Hike
Sponsored by Fresh Air Family.
Meet 9:00 at the preserve, located in Colbert County, about 8 miles south of Tuscumbia, AL.
Led by Charles Rose.
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 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.
Bring water, lunch & snacks. (There are many sites along the way to replenish your water.)
Hiking upstream on the East Cane Creek Trail, we will take a break at the Blue Hole, then continue onward, passing along the scenic Narrows section of Cane Creek to Linden Meadows. Our next stop will be the Boulder Garden, featuring many huge wildflower-strewn boulders. We will then hike out of the canyon, via Tree Fern Cave, the Canyon Rim Trail, Lacefield Point, and the 60-ft. Lacefield’s Falls.
If participants desire, we can skip Tree Fern Cave and the Canyon Rim Trail, and hike the challenging Steep Trail straight up to Lacefield Point.
https://goo.gl/maps/
Led by Charles Rose.
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 or
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 10:00am at Jack’s Hamburgers, 3211 Woodward Ave. (US-43) in Muscle Shoals, AL, on the south side of the building.
https://goo.gl/maps/
Bring Lunch, water, and snacks. Wear sturdy footwear. A hiking pole or stick, and insect repellent are recommended.
The Hicks family hosts this event on their 300-acre tract on Spring Creek, near the Lagrange community in Colbert County.
We will hike along beautiful Spring Creek, in search of early spring wildflowers.
On this date, expect to see both White and Yellow Trout Lily, Virginia Bluebell, Jacob’s Ladder, Spice Bush, Wood Betony, various Toothworts, Hepatica, Spring Cress, various Trilliums, Bloodroot, Saxifrage, and Spring Beauty.
Charles Rose is musician active in the Muscle Shoals, AL & Nashville recording scenes. A member of the Muscle Shoals
Charles Rose
Horns since 1971, he is currently their leader/arranger. A native of Sheffield, AL, he earned a Bachelor of Music degree, with a major in trombone & a minor in piano, from Murray State University. He has served as trombonist & horn arranger for Lyle Lovett & His Large Band since 1994. He toured with Waylon Jennings for three years until the singer’s death in 2002. He performs as a pianist with his jazz group, The Charlie Rose Trio. He’s the band leader & arranger for the biennial Alabama Music Hall of Fame induction shows and an ongoing series of Muscle Shoals Revue shows.
An active environmentalist, he is a founder & president of Shoals Environmental Alliance, a board member of Tennessee Riverkeeper, & a nature outings leader for Fresh Air Family. In 2008, in a wooded ravine in Sheffield, AL, he discovered a population of Collinsia verna (Blue Eyed Mary), a spring wildflower previously not known to exist in the State of Alabama. In 2002 he founded and led “Citizens for Saving the TVA Trail & Nature Area,” that stopped the destruction and development of 1,000 acres of public recreation land on the TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation
