Chinnabe Silent Trail - AL - trip report

“This past Sunday afternoon my wife, kids, and I drove over to the Talladega NF to hike a small portion of the Chinnabe Silent Trail to a swimming hole called Devil's Den. The trail got it's name because in the early 70's a Boy Scout troop over at the Talladega School for the Deaf and Blind built the trail. It's one of the best trails in the area and is about 6 miles long. It makes a great out and back dayhike.

When we arrived at the swimming hole there were about 2 dozen teenagers so we made our way up to the upper swimming hole. Later we were greeted to the smell of canabis coming from a couple in their late 50's hiding in the woods. Great kid atmosphere. We swam, threw rocks and just played. Lots of fun. Next time I'll go to a lower section of the creek that is gravel bottom that's more kid friendly.

This area would make a great short trip for a kids backpacking trip. I may come back next weekend and give it a try to tie it into a side trail to avoid all the people.

pics”

“John, you are a very rich man!”

“LOL Yeah, it's easy to see where the kids get their good looks from!”

“I am blessed for sure.

The last time we hiked up to that area my wife was pregant with our son.

If I can shake free soon I'm going to take my son on his first backpacking trip. I may have to work all weekend. If not, this may be the weekend. I'm thinking about starting at this same place and then taking the Skyway Loop trail over to the next drainage and setting up camp. The water is about the same but no people. On the way out we passed probably a dozen folks. They all smelled like beer, most were carrying beer, and it was about 6:30 in the evening. I have nothing against beer, or my kids seeing me drink beer, but I don't want them around 2 dozen teenage drunks. These kids were jumping from 30-40' up into the water and had to clear a lower ledge. We're the only adults and would probably wind up having to take charge if one of them doesn't clear the ledge. Damn, I'm getting old. Did I just say all that?”

“MDS - I've been meaning to email you to hear how Roan went. Are you going to post a report.”

“If anyone ever wants to know what "Quality Time" with their family is, refer them to this thread.”

“LOL Yeah, it's easy to see where the kids get their good looks from!"
MDSHiker
10:41:38 AM

Ain't that the truth, lol. ;-)

That picture of the wife and little girl both smileing with the exact same smile is a cute one.

Keeping the boys away in a decade or so ain't gonna be fun. ;-)”

“That depends on how much dayhiker enjoys shooting skeet...”

“Emma is a big time flirt too (that's the daughter, not the wife!). She always tries to get guys attention if we're out to eat for example. She won't pay the girls any attention. When you're friends a co-workers already say that you're in for trouble then watchout.

Her aunt had Emma and a cousin in a store. The checkout lady said, "You sure are cute." Emma replied, "We're a handful."”

“Ha, bit. You are gonna have that problem a lot sooner than dayhiker.”

“Yah I really need to get a shotgun.”

“lol@dayhiker”

“I forgot to mention that on the way out I saw a fish that appeared to be a trout. I was pretty surprised to see one in Alabama.”

“Looks like a great time.

Is Alabama a trout-free state or are they there and y'all just prefer not to talk about those kind of fish?”

“lizs once asked about trout and I said no-way. I did a search and found some record trout that were taken in a lake in Alabama. That was a surprise to me. I didn't think the water would be cold enough. I just called the NF ranger station and no one was in that could answer the question. I asked if the creeks were stocked. I suspect the answer is no, but it's better than asking, "I think I saw a trout, did I see a trout? The fish was pretty."”