The Alabama Scenic River Trail (ASRT) is a
water trail
Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...
that spans the state of Alabama.
["Alabama Scenic River Trail among 3 to receive national recognition today." Associated Press. July 16, 2012]
/ref> The trail starts in northeast Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
on the Coosa River's Weiss Lake
Weiss or Weiß may refer to:
People
* Weiss (surname), including spelling Weiß
* Weiss Ferdl (1883-1949), German actor
Places
* Mount Weiss, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada
* Weiss Lake, Alabama
* Weiß (Sieg), a river in North Rhine-Wes ...
at the Georgia-Alabama state line and ends at Fort Morgan, Alabama
Fort Morgan, also known as Fort Bowyer, is an unincorporated community in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States. It is west of Gulf Shores on Mobile Point. Mobile Point extends from Gulf Shores to the west, towards historic Fort Morgan at th ...
, where Mobile Bay
Mobile Bay ( ) is a shallow inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. The ...
meets the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...
. It comprises sections of the Coosa, Tallapoosa, Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
, and Mobile
Mobile may refer to:
Places
* Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city
* Mobile County, Alabama
* Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S.
* Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels
* Mobile ( ...
rivers.
Extending more than 630 miles, the ASRT is "the nation’s longest one-state river trail," and it was designated as a National Recreation Trail in 2009 by Dirk Kempthorne
Dirk Arthur Kempthorne (born October 29, 1951) is an American politician who served as the 49th United States Secretary of the Interior from 2006 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a ...
, then the United States Secretary of the Interior
The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natural ...
. It was designated a National Water Trail in 2012 by Kempthorne's successor, Ken Salazar
Kenneth Lee Salazar (born March 2, 1955) is an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who is the United States ambassador to Mexico. He previously served as the 50th United States Secretary of the Interior in the administration of President Ba ...
.
Because the trail's route extends through diverse topographic and climatic conditions, paddlers along the trail may encounter a wide and changing variety of flora and fauna.["Alabama Scenic River Trail." National Water Trails System, National Park Service. Retrieved July 23, 2015]
/ref> Over one hundred trail access points and nearly that many campsites are available for public use, many provided by private landowners who are known as "trail angels."
Although most paddlers take on only a section of the trail, some "through paddlers" have completed the entire route from Weiss Lake to Mobile Bay.[Gentry, Jill Clair. "Gulf Shores man kayaks entire Alabama Scenic River Trail." Gulf Coast News Today. October 9, 2013]
/ref>
See also
* List of Hiking Trails in Alabama
This is a list of trails in the U.S. state of Alabama.
By county
Autauga County
* Autauga Creek Trail, ; Prattville
* Wilderness Park Trail (a.k.a. Bamboo Park), ; Prattville
* Cooter's Pond Park Riverwalk, ; Prattville
* Jones Bluff Par ...
References
External links
Alabama Scenic River Trail
{{authority control
Rivers of Alabama
National Recreation Trails in Alabama
Hiking trails in Alabama
Water trails