Day Trip to Northwest Alabama

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Although we did not take the RV, and we were only gone a day, I wanted to post this and let folks know about some of the fantastic places right here in Alabama. What makes it even more interesting is that this trip (well, not THIS trip, but the locations) was mentioned in an article on places to go in Alabama on line: http://www.al.com/living/index.ssf/2014/06/9_stunning_spots_that_make_you.html#incart_river_default

On my Facebook page, I mentioned that due to repairs to our RV and other costs, we might not do as much traveling, but I posted this link and said there were 9 great vacation trips available to us within a short distance. We have been to several of them, but the Muscle Shoals area was new. The trip we took was sponsored by RSVP--Retired Senior Volunteer Program out of Guntersville. The RSVP group is nationwide and offers opportunities for seniors and retired folk to both give back to the community (we both volunteer to help folks with taxes) as well as provide interesting programs and learning experiences in everything from dulcimer lessons to computer lessons to reading buddy programs. We have been members since we moved here and have attended lectures on wildlife, history, and culture as well as taken one trip to see the Tiffin RV factory and historical sites in Decatur. But this trip was going to be jam packed with meals, history, gardening, and local culture.

Our trip started with a long drive towards Tuscumbia and then to the Rattlesnake Saloon. This is a fantastic restaurant located down a hill and tucked under a huge rock ledge, with a waterfall coming over and running into the ravine on down below. It looked like something out of the old West, and most of the seating was outside under a huge rock overhang. With recent rains, the water was pouring over the cliff high above, hitting near the entrance to the "saloon" and then rushing down into the ravine below. There were clever names on the food items like Snake eyes, Cowboy buttons and Skunk rings. Our meal was a 1/2 pound cheeseburger with loads of fries, sweet tea, and a large platter (for the table) of appetizers (some of the aforementioned items.) All was cooked well, served quickly and the tasted great! The atmosphere in the dining area was fun and we marveled at the ceiling fans bolted to the rock roof high overhead. Wow, full and satisfied, we headed to the first visitation on the list.

The "Only Coon Dog Cemetery in the US" was next on the list. If you saw the move "Sweet Home, Alabama", there was a coon dog cemetery in the town. Well, it was modeled after this but the real cemetery is way out in the country and on a hill. ONLY genuine coon dogs are allowed to be buried here. There is quite a process to getting your dog certified as a true coon dog, but if you pass, then you may lay your dog to rest. By the way, there are a lot of dogs named Bear or Bryant here, just like in the movie. If you don't understand these names, you are either a) too young, b) not a football fan or c) definitely not from Alabama. (Funny, didn't see any dogs name Tide or Roll.)

We left the cemetery and headed for the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. This initially was confusing for us. The musical group Alabama is from nearby Fort Payne. (They just put on a free concert last weekend in the "Alabama" museum in Fort Payne.) This museum honored those musicians who are from the state of Alabama. It included the likes of W.C. Handy, Lionel Ritchie, Tammy Wynette, and Jimmy Rodgers. There were blues, R&B, country, gospel, and even classical music represented. The curator gave us a wonderful review of each honoree and why they are part of the hall. We then toured and saw the Million Dollar Quartet, copy of the contract from Sun Records to Decca for Elvis for $5,000, Alabama's tour bus, and recording studios recreated in the hall. I learned that Paul Simon recorded Kodachrome in Muscle Shoals. (But since he is not from Alabama, he is not in the hall of fame.) If you like music, you would find this a fascinating stop and well worth the time.

We left the Hall and headed to Ivy Green in Tuscumbia. Ivy Green is the childhood home of Helen Keller. I have seen The Miracle Worker on stage twice and watched the film several times. When I was teaching I used a film strip (anyone remember those?!) of the story to illustrate how to put on a show on stage. The home itself is wonderful, built in 1820 on 640 acres in northwest Alabama south of the Tennessee River. The home has been maintained as it was from Helen's days in the late 1800s. Clothing owned by Helen is on display in cupboards, the parlor is set with the actual furniture, and the dining room is set with actual china she would have used (at least, that she didn't destroy in anger....) The 1820 home is very well preserved and reminded Trish and I of our home in Adams, NY, that was about the same age. Outside was the water pump where the miracle happened. And yes, the play/movie are remarkably close to actual happening. The cottage where Anne Sullivan took Helen is right next door to the home. That was not open but doors were open and we could peer through plastic covers and see that it was furnished as it would have been in that age, complete with some of Helen's favorite stuffed dolls.

Following our tour, master gardeners gave a tour of the grounds, explaining the plantings and what was there when Helen was young. I opted to not go on that and instead went to the back of the grounds where there is a large outdoor stage and seating area. Each summer the local folks put on The Miracle Worker in the evening for about 3 weeks. The set was fabulous and I marveled at the work involved in bringing out the props, tables/chairs and then striking all that each night so that they did not suffer vandalism or damage from weather. Wow--lots of folks at work to make this happen. I went back in the house as the garden tour continued and spoke some more with the docent. I was curious to learn if Anna (Patty Duke) had ever met Helen Keller. The docent told me how Anna had met Helen and had returned to Tuscumbia numerous times, not in a huge flurry, but just to visit and see the home with her family.

The garden tour concluded, and we headed back to the bus/car for our next stop. In the middle of Tuscumbia is a lovely city park with playground, small train, carousel, and pond. There was supposed to be an early evening water show, with music and orchestrated water fountains (I imagined something like the Bellagio in Las Vegas). We sat and watched the ducks and geese. We listened to the train go by several times. And we waited. But nothing happened. Never did learn what was wrong, but after about 20 minutes, we decided to pack up and move on as the group had dinner reservations down the road at Mamma Jeans.

Mamma Jeans is one of those southern restaurants specializing in good home cooking and featuring "meat and three." That seems to be common down here and it means, choose which meat you want from 4-6 choices (fried chicken, country fried steak, ham, hamburger steak, meatloaf) and then 3 sides from a HUGE long list (but always, fried okra is available. I had the country fried steak with mac & cheese, slaw and creamed potatoes. I had to ask what creamed potatoes were---yankee! Duh, it's "mashed" potatoes. Asked if I wanted gravy, I said yes. Well the country fried steak came with a white gravy and the potatoes with a brown. So I assumed the white gravy was really a white sauce and asked for additional sauce for the potatoes. Yankee!! It's gravy. My saving grace was I had tea and didn't ask for "sweet" tea since, of course, tea is always sweet down here. The food came fairly quickly and was delicious. Only the cornbread muffin was a disappointment, but then , if it's not my wife's cornbread, it usually is only 2nd rate.

We finished the meal and had a long drive home. It was the night of the full moon and it was clear, bright and beautiful. We got back to Guntersville about 8:30 and then had a short drive home. But what an opportunity to see a part of Alabama we were not familiar with. I strongly encourage all to 1) find an RSVP near you and get involved and 2) if you have a chance to come to Alabama, visit the Tuscumbia area for great educational experiences and really filling meals.

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Photos

RSVP trip
Here is the group prior to boarding the bus for our trip. We actually had another vehicle as well, a new Dodge Caravan, 6 passenger, that I drove with Trish and 3 others. MUCH more comfortable.

Rattlesnake Saloon
We could only imagine what the First Nation people did here long ago. It's a wonderfully protected area with water and defensive areas.

One of 100 places to eat before you die
We had a plate of appetizers that included Rattlesnake Eyes--breaded fried mushrooms. Do you see the ceiling fans hanging from the rock ceiling?

Coon Dog Cemetery
The ONLY cemetery in the entire United States dedicated ONLY to Coon Dogs.

Coon Dog Monument
We have no idea the tradition of leaving coins at this monument. This is one of the fancier monuments to coon dogs.

Coon Dogs
One memorial says, "He wasn't the best Coon Dog, but he was the best Coon Dog I ever had."

Ivy Green
This house was built on 640 acres in 1820. It is where Helen Keller grew up.

Honeymoon Cottage
This was the cottage where Anne Sullivan took Helen and worked with her one on one to get her to obey, learn and understand.

Keller Dining Room
Do you recall the famous eating scene in The Miracle Worker? It is one of the most exhausting scenes two actors can do on stage. This is the actual dining room in the Keller home.

The Pump
It was here that the Miracle happened. Anne Sullivan took Helen to the pump to refill a pitcher and as she always did, spelled out the word in her hand: W-A-T-E-R. Suddenly Helen drops the pitcher and repeats the symbols. She has suddenly realized that the symbols have meaning and the meaning is a thing. From that moment on, she never stops learning.

Behind the Keller Home
Every year the residents of Tuscumbia vie for part in The Miracle Worker, performed out doors in the evening behind the home of Helen Keller. We hope to some time get tickets to attend this moving play and see it in the actual location.

Comments

[Deborah Chamberlain]

That Rattlesnake Saloon is pretty cool!