Media Advisory For: April 27, 2024
Eleventh Annual Celebrate Trails Day Highlights Impact of Trails on Local Communities, including both the Chief Ladiga Trail and the Pinhoti Trail.
Piedmont and Jacksonville, Alabama. On Saturday, April 27, join us as we Celebrate Trails Day on the Chief Ladiga Trail. According to the Rails to Trails Conservancy, trails and greenways create a support system for small businesses, as well as creating incentives for companies to move operations to a particular community. This is especially true for the Chief Ladiga Trail.
Trail organizations in east Alabama have teamed up with the communities of Anniston, Jacksonville, and Piedmont to host Celebrate Trails Day on and around the Chief Ladiga Trail. Local businesses are offering discounts to those who participate. Everyone is encouraged to get outside and experience trails, whether through an organized event, enjoying the trail individually, or with family and friends.
Wild Alabama and Alabama Audubon are hosting a birdwatching and nature hike along the Chief Ladiga Trail in Talladega National Forest. This experience will take you through diverse habitats, offering a unique opportunity to witness the beauty of nature while exploring one of Alabama’s most picturesque trails. The Chief Ladiga birding hike will begin at 8 AM and return participants to Piedmont by 11 AM. Places are limited, registration required.
The East Alabama Trail Club The East Alabama Trail Club will be leading a hike to Oakey Mountain Shelter, beginning at 9 a.m. at the Pinhoti Trail /Chief Ladiga Trailhead on CR-94 off Vigo Road (CR-70) east of Piedmont. This hike will connect three outdoor destinations that Piedmont is famous for: the Pinhoti Trail, the Chief Ladiga Trail, and Terrapin Creek. The distance is 4 miles with an elevation gain of about 700 feet. The hike will take approximately 3 hours. Register here (optional).
The Northeast Alabama Bicycle Association (NEABA) will host two group bikes rides on the trail. Riders can register in advance or just join the fun the morning of the event. Arrive at 9:30 AM with plans to roll out by 10 AM. One ride will head from Piedmont to the Georgia line (approximately 13 miles each direction with minimum elevation change. A longer, more challenging ride (33 miles) along mostly gravel roads from Piedmont to Coleman Lake in the Talladega National Forest is ranked medium to hard with elevation gain and a short road ride. For people that don’t want either of these, a self-paced ride to Jacksonville offers an opportunity to refuel and refill waters at the Jacksonville Community Center. Register here (optional).
Pinhoti Pizza Company (107 S Main St) located along the Chief Ladiga Trail in Piedmont will host food trucks, vendor booths and live music beginning at 11 AM and continuing until 5 PM. Hydration and information stations will be set up at multiple locations along the trail.
The City of Jacksonville will host a kick-off 5K to celebrate trails. This event begins at 1 p.m., and the race begins at 2 p.m. at the Jacksonville Community Center (501 Alexandria Rd SW). Water stations will be available along the route, which will include parts of the Chief Ladiga Trail. Food trucks (ice cream, BBQ, and more!), and a variety of vendors and information tables will be on hand as well!
Perks for Registered Participants:
Show your wristband at the following businesses on April 27th to get special discounts!
- Elevated Grounds – 10% off one coffee
- Eubanks Welcome Center – two entries into a drawing for a free Chief Ladiga Trail t-shirt and hat
- Rhythm Cafe, Heflin – discount on their Pinhoti Sandwich
- Shell’s Downtown – free dessert with purchase of a meal
- Stay tuned for more!
The Chief Ladiga Celebrate Trails Day event is a collaboration between the Alabama Trails Foundation, Northeast Alabama Bicycle Association, Pinhoti Pizza Company, Alabama Audubon, Wild Alabama, the University of Alabama Center for Economic Development, and Jacksonville State University. Rails to Trails Conservancy is supporting multiple events like this across the country.
We look forward to seeing you on the Chief Ladiga Trail as we Celebrate Trails!
The Chief Ladiga Trail is Alabama’s longest rail trail currently beginning at Michael Tucker Park in Anniston and continuing to the Alabama-Georgia state line where it connects to the Silver Comet. Combined, the Chief Ladiga and Silver Comet are one of the longest paved pedestrian paths in the nation. The Chief Ladiga intersects with the Alabama Pinhoti Trail, which is Alabama’s longest hiking trail, spanning 170 miles across six counties before it connects to the Georgia Pinhoti Trail and eventually to the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Collectively, east Alabama is the most “trail rich” area of the state.
According to the American Hiking Society, day hiking is projected to see the greatest rate of growth in adults out of any outdoor recreational activity by 2060. According to American Trails, Outdoor recreation now outpaces the oil and gas industry in economic impact. The outdoor recreation industry is built on trails, making trails an important economic driver.
The Alabama Trails Foundation (ATF) works to develop Alabama’s potential as a nationally recognized trails destination and supports trails that can bring Alabama’s many cultures and peoples together. ATF partners with other non-profit organizations, state and federal agencies, and local governments to catalyze significant destination trails to become premier recreation resources and economic engines for Alabama.