Once the work was done (which was quickly), i was taken up into the "mountains", hills, whatever. Hairpin single lane roads, residential driveways, and pick-em-up trucks with 5-ton campers on the back barrelling downhill while we struggled to get uphill. Once we got to the parking area, it was just a matter of climbing the rocks.

Then there was this tree. Just sitting there jutting out of the ground, the lowest limb probably 40-50 feet in the air. i love the unusual quirks of nature like this. Overshadowed by a giant rock, this tree was determined to grow higher, surviving long enough to reach out above the stone to finally get a full day of sun.

Or maybe it was dead. i can't remember.

Once up there, i wanted to stay all day. It was peaceful, relaxing, and seemed so far away from anything. i would have been content just to sit up on that rock and fry like a belly-up turtle.

What's that Eric? Oh, you're bored. Time to go.

The second leg of the Alabama nature tour was a stream that came down through the mountains and into town below. There was a small rapids that had become a common stopping place for picnics and what appeared to be meth-heads looking for a quiet, peaceful fix. Cool. So we stopped and checked out the river. Only now do i realize that i should have thrown him in and drove away.

Then there was this place. Dismal, stagnant, and i'm pretty sure The Toxic Avenger has family reunions here. Naaaaaasty.

My favorite photo from the trip. We stopped at a Subway headed out of town toward home, and next door was a closed video store. i noticed a sign, so i went up and snapped a picture. The kind of thing you just have to wonder about...

The best view of the Alabama Nursery is from the hills, but this was the clearest day we were there. You can only just make out the field bed patterns through the haze.