St. Stephens Historical Park

[Southlady]

Hey guys we've got a couple of parks down here in South Alabama that have lost ALL state funding. St. Stephens and Blakely. Both are historical parks. Both have trails. I am in the process of making maps of the trails for St. Stephens. There are day hikes here only. The park is small but very important to the history of the state. There is camping, a 100 acre lake, limestone bluffs, a lake trail, a historical trail and several trails that cross on to private property but the owner is encouraging people to use the trails on his property. There is horse camping in this park and it has become very popular with the horsey set all around. I'll put pics up and keep you guys posted. We're going to try and get some grants to improve the trails.

[squidbilly]

Sad that historical parks have lost their funding. It looks like volunteers will have to step up and take care of things. I wish I could offer some help with the trail work, but I'm a long way from there.
Thanks for your efforts.

[Southlady]

Some pictures are up. I'll post more when I get the chance.

[Firedog]

Looked at your pics, thanks. Question, was the area clear cut at one time. The trees in the pics are small. didn't see any old growth in the pics.

[Mlsherrod]

Being from Jackson, I can tell you St Stephen's is a decent little park. But that's about it. There's few real hiking trails, more like just visiting the surrounding woods. There's a lot of neat stuff to see and do with an over night campout there. Camping costs per tent, as does swimming. Bring your own firewood, but you can explore the Indian baths, there's a boat ramp to the river & volley ball courts, a playground, showers & an indoor bathroom. There's also the remains of the town where an active archeological dig is under way. Again, it's a neat jaunt if you live near there, but not worth the trip other wise. Same with Blakely & a few other spots in the Clarke Washington area. Unfortunately, there's a lot of full time campers in St Stephen's. Or there were for the past 5 years. These were the guys working to help build TK (German Steel mill in Calvert). So expect to have to share room with them, though the primitive camping is set always from the campers. Note worthy St Stephen's is neat. I'll be looking forward to seeing those hiking maps.