October certainly flew past. It is almost halfway through November, and I am just now getting around to posting again. We visited the Fort Payne, Alabama area twice recently and saw some truly beautiful country and sites that God has blessed us with in this state.
Our first visit to Fort Payne took place on October 29, 2010. I’d seen a picture of a very different sort of church a year or two back, and I’d been telling my family about it. So we finally had an opportunity to go see it for ourselves. The name of the church is Sallie Howard Memorial Chapel which is part of the Dekalb Baptist Association. It is located just outside Desoto State Park, and it is built around a rock. It is truly a spectacular sight. I couldn’t help singing “I’m standing on the Rock of Ages….” when I was walking around looking at this little chapel. This chapel was built in 1937. Sallie Howard’s husband Col. Milford Howard built this chapel in her memory. Inside the church is an inscription from one of her letters which says “God has all ways been as good to me as I would let him be.”
http://www.discoverlookoutmountain.com/history-Col-Howards-chapel.shtml
http://www.alapark.com/DeSotoResort/Attractions/
We also took a hike through the woods in Desoto State Park. The Azalea Cascade Trail is part of the North Alabama Birding Trail. This is actually a boardwalk trail through the woods that has a gazebo along the way, then an octagon deck when you reach the end of the trail at the Azalea Cascade. As little rain as we’d had in North Alabama at that point, there really wasn’t much of a cascade, but it was a nice hike through the woods. When we stopped long enough to just listen, we heard a multitude of birds and others animals and even spotted some of the little creatures.
http://www.alapark.com/DeSotoResort/Waterfalls%20&%20Trails/
On November 5, 2010, we decided to go explore the Desoto State Park area once again. This time we made it to Desoto Falls although we didn’t get to see all of the falls. It was sprinkling and my husband thought the rocks leading to the bottom of the falls were too slick for us to attempt walking the trail so we were just able to see the upper falls area. It was beautiful, and we enjoyed the visit. Maybe we’ll be able to go back and see Desoto Falls again when it is not raining and making the trail dangerous.
During our second trip to the Fort Payne area, we stopped in at the Depot Museum there in town. The building that houses the museum was very beautiful, and we were able to take some pictures of it. When we went inside, there were three rooms which held the museum’s historical collection. One room housed the Native American artifacts, and one room housed soldiers’ uniforms and military memorabilia from the Civil War until what looked like World War II. There might have been more, but we were kind of rushed along by the ladies who were there to oversee this little museum. I am unsure what artifacts or memorabilia might have been in the third room, because we did not have time to see. Still, it was nice to see the outside of the building.
http://www.discoverlookoutmountain.com/history-Col-Howards-chapel.shtmlhttp://www.alapark.com/DeSotoResort/Attractions/
We also took a hike through the woods in Desoto State Park. The Azalea Cascade Trail is part of the North Alabama Birding Trail. This is actually a boardwalk trail through the woods that has a gazebo along the way, then an octagon deck when you reach the end of the trail at the Azalea Cascade. As little rain as we’d had in North Alabama at that point, there really wasn’t much of a cascade, but it was a nice hike through the woods. When we stopped long enough to just listen, we heard a multitude of birds and others animals and even spotted some of the little creatures.http://www.alapark.com/DeSotoResort/Waterfalls%20&%20Trails/
On November 5, 2010, we decided to go explore the Desoto State Park area once again. This time we made it to Desoto Falls although we didn’t get to see all of the falls. It was sprinkling and my husband thought the rocks leading to the bottom of the falls were too slick for us to attempt walking the trail so we were just able to see the upper falls area. It was beautiful, and we enjoyed the visit. Maybe we’ll be able to go back and see Desoto Falls again when it is not raining and making the trail dangerous.
During our second trip to the Fort Payne area, we stopped in at the Depot Museum there in town. The building that houses the museum was very beautiful, and we were able to take some pictures of it. When we went inside, there were three rooms which held the museum’s historical collection. One room housed the Native American artifacts, and one room housed soldiers’ uniforms and military memorabilia from the Civil War until what looked like World War II. There might have been more, but we were kind of rushed along by the ladies who were there to oversee this little museum. I am unsure what artifacts or memorabilia might have been in the third room, because we did not have time to see. Still, it was nice to see the outside of the building.
