Free State Of Winston - Civil War Memorial - Double Springs , AL

We were in Double Springs, Alabama today and took a few minutes to visit the "Dual Destiny" Civil War monument located there.  Double Springs is the county seat for Winston County, Alabama which gained quite a bit of notoriety during the Civil War for refusing to join the Confederacy.  They never formally seceded from Alabama but they did provide 259 soldiers to the Union and 112 to the Confederacy.  This area of Alabama was primarily made up of subsistence farmers who did not have slaves and a majority of its residents were philosophically more aligned with the North than the South.  

Although it doesn't show clearly in the picture, the statue depicts a soldier wearing a Union uniform on his left side and a Confederate uniform on his right side.

The county court house

A few miles out of town we ran across this old barn with a reference to "The Free State Of Winston" - apparently the spirit is still alive 

Sipsey Wilderness Area - Borden Creek - Pre-Columbian Temple Ruins

Today, (Thursday - we didn't do much Wednesday as there were severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings for the area which turned out to be just heavy winds) we hiked what we thought was the Borden Creek Trail in the Sipsey Wilderness Area. We took the wrong trail but still enjoyed the hike - we will go back and do the trail we intended to do.   The Sipsey Wilderness is a natural area known for its untouched rivers, cliffs, caves and waterfalls.  

Borden Creek Photos

We did, however, run across Pre-Columbian temple ruins that archaeologists date back to the 1300 to 1400 AD period. The ruins were built by the Wehdahekahwee who were known for their extensive use of  natural stone in their structures.  Little is known about the Wehdahekahwee who were believed to be native only to northern Alabama but it is believed that they were an offshoot of the Hekowie nation.

More ruins

Tower or platform about 12 feet high - archaeologists are unsure of its purpose

Another section of the temple

Heh, heh - belated April fool - these are all natural formations - the Hekowies were a fictional nation on F-Troop (1965-1967) if anyone is old enough to remember that.

Corinth Recreation Area In Bankhead National Forest - Double Springs, Alabama

We had an uneventful trip from Eufaula, Alabama to the Bankhead National Forest in Double Springs, Alabama on Tuesday.  We are staying at the Corinth Recreation Area in the National Forest.

Tuesday's Trip

Our Campsite - the sites are fairly large and spaced quite a ways apart from each other.   The campground is nearly empty so far so it has been very private and peaceful.

The boat landing

The beach area from the boat landing

Part of Lewis Smith Lake - the lake covers 33 sq. mi. and has 500+ miles of shoreline

Darby at the beach - the water is quite high - the rows of blocks would normally be on dry land

Darby after getting in deeper than he had planned

One of many caves in the area

The only wildlife we have seen so far - he was on a tree beside our campsite - some type of Gecko - probably a Common House Gecko or possibly a Indo-Pacific Gecko - not sure