Order of Visit: High Point #11

Date Visited:  April 16, 2019

Route Taken:  Drive up to Bunker Tower parking lot.

Type of Terrain:  Parking lot is immediately adjacent to to the observation tower.

Elevation:  2,405 feet

Ancestral Lands: Muscogee / Creek

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What’s in a Name?

The origin of the name Cheaha comes from the Creek Indian word chaha (meaning ‘high place’). However, local Anglo settlers would later refer to the mountain as “the sleeping giant” because its profile appears to be a reclining man when viewed from a distance.

Rock shelters and archeological evidence near the base of this mountain show that Native Americans inhabited this location for centuries. Hernando de Soto led his Spanish soldiers through this territory in 1538, and historians believe they passed within sight of Cheaha Mountain.

By the early 18th century, the Muscogee/Creek people in the region began to politically aligned themselves with English colonists in a series of wars again the Spanish and Apalachee Indians. This fragile alliance lasted until 1813-14, when the Creek War with the United States took place. In the end, the Creek lost 23 million acres of land in northern Alabama and they were forcibly removed to Oklahoma in the 1830s during the Trail of Tears.

Some Anglo settlers attempted to build homes on Cheaha Mountain, but the rocky terrain prevented any large settlements from forming. Then timber companies moved in and clearcut the forests during the timber boom of the late 19th century.

The state of Alabama finally acquired the land in 1933 in the midst of the the Great Depression. This allowed the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to put men to work replanting forests, building hiking trails and picnic areas, and constructing a stone lodge atop the highest point. Now Cheaha State Park is the oldest continuously operating park in the state.

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Trip Summary

This was our third state high point in single week, and the only one that didn’t involve some sort of hike to the summit. We made an overnight stop in Helfin, Alabama while traveling west, and gained an extra hour at the Alabama/Gerogia border when we changed from Eastern to Central time zone. So, it only seemed logical to spend that “bonus hour” checking another high point off our bucket list.

Getting to Cheaha State Park from I-20 is pretty easy and it’s a well marked route. The rolling hills had several scenic turnouts as you gain bits of elevation and views for miles.

However, when the highway 281 entered Cheaha State Park, it wasn’t 100% apparent where where we needed to go. There’s a general sign announcing that Cheaha Park contains the state’s high point, but the sign was well before the summit.

The state park campground was at the highest point on the highway. So we pulled over at the campground store to ask whether we were in the right place and look at the maps posted outside the store.

I’m sure glad I did a little research ahead of time to know that the Bunker Tower was where we needed to go, since it wasn’t evident from just looking at the maps.

After paying our entrance fee to enter the campground/park, we drove the one-way road around the park toward the tower and found our way to the parking lot.

This high point is actually a unique stone lookout tower built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) back in 1935. There’s also a museum dedicated to the CCC co-located with the tower, but it’s only open Friday-Sunday.

While the museum was closed when we visited, the tower was open for visitors to walk up and take in the panoramic views. It’s a beautiful work of art, and a great reminder of the craftsmanship that goes with building things by hand. Built in the style of a traditional fire tower, the primary material is local Cheaha Quartize stone.

Perhaps we left a little sad because we’d didn’t get to hike to the summit. We’ve always associated highpointing with our hiking adventures. Although the “drive up” summits are more accessible for people of all ages and abilities, there’s still a inkling of disappointment when we don’t get to work our way to the top.

To offset this restlessness, we headed outside of the main park and back down the mountain, where we found a trailhead that connected with the Pinhoti Trail. Adding a section of another awesome National Recreation Trail was definitely a good compromise!

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Details

When to Visit: Year-round.

Getting There:  Cheaha Mountain is located within Cheaha State Park about 80 miles east of Birmingham, AL.

Entrance Fees/Permits: Day-use fees for the park range from $2-5 per person depending on age, but are free to active duty personnel and military retirees.

Parking: There’s ample parking at the observation tower. Just follow the signs along the park roads after you pay your daily fee.

Accessibility: Good for all ages and abilities.

Bonus: The Pinhoti Trail runs through park of the State Park and next to Cheaha Mountain. This 339-mile trail runs through the southern Appalachian Mountains from Flagg Mountain, Alabama and into Georgia, where it connects to the Benton MacKaye Trail.

Resources:

• Overview of Cheaha Mountain (Summit Post)
• Cheaha State Park (Alabama State Parks)
• Pinhoti Trail (Pinhoti Trail Alliance)