No matter its size, a city’s growth is always measured in new jobs, new rooftops, new businesses and new people.
But in Springville – at least for its Parks and Recreation Department – growth is also calculated in miles and smiles.
Consider Springville’s Run 4 the Parks.
In its brief existence – the inaugural event took place last year – the city has raised some $23,000. According to the parks and rec website, proceeds from the 5k race and other run-related events will offset the cost of improvements at the Springville Sports Complex, specifically a stone entrance gate, new signage and lighting.
Rick Hopkins, the city’s director of Parks and Recreation, says the idea for the run sprouted from an effort to bring more events into the community.
Riley Robertson and passenger
Years ago, the city hosted a successful 5k run. But Springville’s park board envisioned something bigger and better.
“We talked about how we wanted it to be something more than a 5K so that it would be something for the entire family, not just for people who specialized in long distance running. That was the real genesis of it.” SpringFest and a previous 5K run – which helped fund Big Springs Park and the city’s popular Splash Pad – provided a template for the Run 4 The Parks.
“We just built off SpringFest,” Hopkins says. “But we wanted something that was focused on the entire family. We tried to bring back something similar to SpringFest. That was really our goal.”
In the 5K, 108 runners competed this year. Some 100 runners participated in the other classifications last year, which included runners across the spectrum in terms of age. The event also attracted a large number of spectators.
The sports complex improvements are aimed at raising the facility’s public profile.
“One of the big issues we have at the sports complex is a lot of the people don’t know we’re here, because we don’t have signage; we don’t have an entrance,” Hopkins says.
Run 4 the Parks is just a slice of what Springville Parks and Recreation offers. “We like to have something for everyone,” Hopkins says.
And it seems the city does – youth baseball, flag football, tackle football, cheerleading, basketball, soccer and softball, as well as adult co-ed softball. Disc golf and pickleball are also on the horizon.
The city has four parks – the youth baseball and sports complexes, Big Springs Park and Woody Park – six tennis courts, the Big Springs Splash Pad and Big Springs Dog Park.
The department also manages the Springville Senior Center, which according to Mayor Dave Thomas, is “bursting at the seams” and the Farmer’s Market site downtown. The city hopes to reopen the market by June 2024 as a state-certified Farmers Market, joining markets in Moody and Pell City as state-certified.
By the end of September, the city was expecting a $50,000 grant from T-Mobile to help fund improvements at the facility, and the city plans to match the grant.
A major municipal undertaking is underway, construction of the Big Canoe Creek Preserve. Paving work is moving ahead. And Schoel Engineering is providing a master plan for the project at no cost to the city. Some trails, including horseback, are expected to open in October.
Rubber Ducky Launch
Looking to future progress, at press time, Springville was awaiting the green light from the Forever Wild Land Trust to begin construction on a four-mile biking and hiking trail. Since 1992, Forever Wild has secured more than 284,000 acres of Alabama land for public use, and Big Canoe is part of that trust.
Big Canoe Creek Preserve will also be home to environmental education, celebrating the land’s broad biodiversity. “I think the future is so bright for outdoor education for the nature preserve,” Hopkins predicts.
“The nature preserve is going to be a feature for the entire county,” he adds. “It’s really a feather in the cap for this community because it’s going to draw people to St. Clair County from all over the state and outside the state.”
The preserve continues to be a community effort with in-kind contributions spurring the progress. It’s important to note the city has received some $30,000 in free excavation work from a local firm, Norris Paving.
Parks and Rec Administrative Clerk Lucy Cleaver, along with preserve manager Doug Morrison, is developing the environmental education program at the preserve to serve students and adults. She earned two degrees in outdoor education from Auburn University.
“We want to use (the preserve) to the best of our ability to truly be a spot where people can come and be inspired by nature, to learn about the history of St. Clair County … and all the immense biodiversity that we have out there. It’s a very special place.”
Cleaver also oversees the Farmer’s Market and assists Hopkins in managing Parks and Recreation events.
It’s estimated that some 90 percent of Springville’s nearly 5,000 residents utilize the city’s parks and recreation facilities and programs. Some 2,000 from the city and neighboring communities take part in team sports.
All of this is part of an ongoing effort by the city to “raise the bar” when it comes to quality of life in Springville, Mayor Thomas says. He praises Hopkins and his staff as they juggle the myriad activities and events under the department’s umbrella.
“Hat’s off to them,” he says. “I don’t know how they do it.”
The goal for parks and rec? Maintaining and expanding high quality opportunities for Springville citizens. Think possibilities like Art in the Park or Strings in the Park. But it takes time.
“Everybody’s struggling with finite resources,” Thomas says. “We can’t do everything we want to all at once. But as long as we maintain the vision and keep our eye on the ball, we will get there.”
While the success of Springville’s Parks and Recreation efforts can be measured in numbers like participation, a more compelling narrative comes from anecdotes. It’s impossible to please everyone. But Hopkins says positive feedback far outdistances complaints.
Thomas uses another metric. Smiles. “By and large, the support is overwhelming. They like what we’re doing.”
For Hopkins and his department, serving the community is the focus. “We are here to serve (the people), and we want to serve them in the best way that we can every single day.”
Blame it on Valentine’s Day. That’s when Boomer Meason received a gift from his wife, Melody, that would end up changing his life. The gift was a “bonsai growing kit,” which, he admits was a challenge for a man with the “brownest thumb ever.”
Thinking it would be fun, but not expecting them to survive, he dutifully planted the seeds. A couple of weeks later, after returning from a trip out of town to their home in Pell City, the couple was surprised to see the seeds thriving in their growing pots.
“At that point, I had no idea what to do with them,” Boomer confesses. “So, I got on YouTube and figured it out. I watched tons of videos and learned a lot. I learned that it’s not just what you can create, but that what you can do is limitless.”
Bonsai is not a type of tree, but rather, the cultivation of a plant and its aesthetics to fall within a specific set of conditions. Bonsai is considered both a horticultural practice and an art form. The goal is for the grower to cultivate a plant or a tree to be a healthy version of itself, but small enough to be grown in a shallow dish. In fact, the word, bonsai, literally means “tree in a dish.”
Melody wins award for her serissa bonsai
There is so much more than that, however, to understand bonsai. It involves learning as much as you can about each of the species that you are working with. It involves clipping, wiring, and weighing down the branches that need manipulation.
A bonsai artist must first see a vision for the plant. Then he sets about figuring out how to make the plant fulfill that vision.
Most of all, bonsai requires patience. Each of the phases of growing and training the plant requires grooming, then waiting for the plant to recover, waiting for changes to take effect, rewiring, pruning again, then waiting for the right season to make the next change.
A centuries-old art form made popular in Japan, bonsai evolved from the ancient Chinese art of “penjing,” which includes landscapes or scenes in a pot. The Japanese art put more emphasis on the tree itself.
Traditionally, bonsai are trees or bushes that are pruned to create a smaller version over several years. The mission of the bonsai artist is to create a tree that looks like a tiny version of a mature tree, but without obvious evidence of human intervention in the process.
A typical tree in nature can live to be hundreds, sometimes thousands of years old. In contrast, a well-cared for bonsai can live indefinitely due to the constant care and promotion of new growth given by the artist.
Boomer received those first seeds in 2020, shortly before the pandemic changed so much in the world. “I always ask people if they have a COVID hobby,” he laughs. “My wife’s is kayaking. Mine is bonsai. We couldn’t do a lot of the things we normally did, but we spent a lot of time working on these. I spent the whole first year trying to not kill the trees.”
He took to the hobby like a duck to water. His “brown thumb” now a thing of the past, he has close to 300 plants in various “pre-bonsai” stages. It has taken more than three years to accumulate that many plants to work with to create bonsai. He has more than two dozen that are in shape to be considered officially show-ready bonsai.
Pencil drawing by Boomer’s grandmother, artist Evelyn Whatley, included with the display at the bonsai show
Although both his mother, Leah Whatley Meason, and his grandmother, Evelyn Whatley, were artists, he has never had an outlet to develop his artistic talents. He admits that his career in manufacturing does not always engage his artistic side. It does, however, make it possible for him to fuel his passion financially.
Buying that many plants at nurseries to work with can be costly, but Boomer gets about 20% of his plants from the wild, a practice known as “yamadori.”
Typically done in the spring, just before the plant’s growing season, a bonsai artist digs up plants from the wild, along with dirt from around the plant, brings it home and nurtures it to help it recover from the shock of transplanting. When the plant is ready, the pruning and training begins.
Another technique involves creating new plants from established ones from cuttings and air layering. A propagation technique similar to grafting, air layering is the practice of cutting a branch and wrapping the “wound” with special moss to encourage the growth of a new plant.
“You do everything in bonsai according to what the species needs and what the tree is telling you to do,” says Boomer. “Bonsai people probably know more about roots than most botanists do. The texture and nutritional details of the root systems are so important. When you do serious work on a tree, and you reduce the root system, you must reduce the canopy to make sure it can still survive.”
The deeper Boomer dug into his new hobby, the more information he craved. He began messaging questions to some of the YouTube video creators. He read all he could find on the subject.
World-renowned bonsai master Peter Chan’s book Bonsai Beginner’s Bible became his go-to guide. He spent countless hours watching channels like Chan’s Herons Bonsai. “His videos are geared toward people who want to get into it, but not spend a lot of money,” Boomer explains. “The way he works on his trees really helps you. And he speaks to you in a way that’s easy to understand.” Another bonsai expert, Ben Kirkland of Appalachian Bonsai, strongly suggested that Boomer get in contact with his local bonsai society.
At first, Boomer wasn’t ready to share his artistic efforts with anyone else. After picking his way along the path for three years with only the internet as his teacher, he finally reached out to the Alabama Bonsai Society (ABS).
The group meets for monthly workshops and to encourage each other and share the progress of the plants they’re working with. They also hold an annual show at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Boomer can’t say enough about how the group has helped him. “I’ve never worked with a more positive group of people,” he adds. “Their support and advice were so helpful in building my confidence.”
Through the Alabama Bonsai Society, Boomer met John Walker, who curates the Meyers Bonsai Terrace at Aldridge Gardens in Hoover and is one of the best trained bonsai artists in the state. Boomer buys some of his plants through Walker’s company, Walking Tree Bonsai, which sells mature bonsai and plants ready to transform into bonsai. He also admits to “hanging out at Hazelwood’s” (nursery) at least twice a month scouting for plants to transform.
Sometimes treasures can literally be found in your back yard, like the Chinese privet Boomer dug up from his yard in 2021. The plant was still healthy, but not thriving, so he put it in a container and began working with it. Over two years later, he entered it in the ABS annual bonsai show and won his intermediate level in the broadleaf evergreen category.
“I have a lot of American Elm trees, wisteria, flowering plants, red maples and azaleas that have come out of my yard and from my mom’s yard.” says Boomer. He says the easiest to work with is the Chinese privet but added that he’s had the most fun with ficus trees because one of his mentors, Nigel Saunders, works with them and has given him a lot of inspiration.
A bonsai can be created using almost any plant with woody stems. Generally, one can expect to spend a minimum of two years pruning and cultivating a tree to get it small enough to thrive in a shallow dish (a requirement of bonsai).
ABS’s bonsai show director Anika Paperd explains. “Some species like a trident maple that grows quickly, you could do it in as little as two years. You’re going to begin refining it to develop the branches and shape. We use wiring and pruning techniques to cause the branches to split to make them spread and form a canopy on the tree.”
One of the most fascinating aspects of bonsai art is that it is never finished. That’s because the tree continues to grow and react to its environment. The artist must continue to maintain it and adapt it as conditions change. “It’s much like being a sculptor where your sculpture is breathing and continues to grow,” Paperd emphasizes. “It’s a constant progression.”
From start to that continued progression, a bonsai is all about the vision in the mind of the artist. It is nature inspired and human coerced. “Every time you work on it, you’ll either find a new inspiration or another aspect of it that changes it. Or you just keep working on the original plan you had envisioned,” says Boomer.
“You are trying to create the aesthetic of a really old tree in something you can pick up and carry around,” Boomer concludes, holding up a tiny juniper bonsai that is springing from a crater in a softball-sized rock. “My wife found this rock while kayaking. We both thought it would make a great container for a bonsai. So, I planted a Chinese juniper in the hole, and it’s pretty cool.”
Melody has now joined her husband in his hobby. She has developed her skills to the point that she, too, brought home an award at the spring bonsai show for her serissa plant, a deciduous evergreen.
Boomer’s quite a few years shy of retirement, but he says bonsai will be important in his future plans. He looks forward to the additional hours to devote to his art. As to whether he will ever be able to see a profit from his work, Boomer admits that he’s not sure if he’ll ever be able to part with his creations. “There’s a little bit of me in each of them.”
And those Valentine’s Day seeds? One of the black spruce seeds lives today as a beautiful bonsai on Boomer’s back deck. Not bad for a guy with a brown thumb.
Editor’s note:Next year will be Alabama Bonsai Society’s 50th Anniversary. Their mission is to bring awareness to the community and to share the art form of bonsai. For more information about bonsai and the Alabama Bonsai Society, check out alabamabonsai.org.
Story Scottie Vickery Photos by Mackenzie Free Submitted photos
Not long after watching eight turkeys disappear into the forest, Doug Morrison stood on a wooded trail overlooking a stream that flows into Big Canoe Creek. The only sound was the deep whistle of a great crested flycatcher, and Morrison felt pure serenity.
“This is God’s museum,” he said of the surroundings. “There are so many forms of life out here – plants, animals, fish. When you get out in nature and just stop for a moment and take it all in, it’s incredible.”
Raetta Young and horse, Fancy Rae, along the trail
Soon, many others will be able to experience Morrison’s joy when the “museum,” otherwise known as Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville, opens to the public. The project has been a long time coming, but after 14 years of study, planning, roadblocks and hard work, the opening date is nearing, hopefully late October or early November. Morrison, manager of the preserve, couldn’t be more thrilled.
“This is going to be huge,” he said. The preserve – 422 acres of unspoiled terrain – will provide hikers (experienced or beginners), mountain bikers, horse owners, and birding and flora and fauna enthusiasts the chance to unwind, learn and enjoy the great outdoors.
“Being outside in nature can soothe the soul,” Morrison said, and the timing of the fall opening is perfect. “This place shines when the leaves turn. It’s beautiful in the fall.”
Big Canoe Creek, which is part of the Coosa River and flows on the northern boundary of the property, is a vital part of the preserve and a major contributor to the beauty. The main section of the creek, which has been described as “a jewel in the crown of Alabama’s biodiversity,” is more than 50 miles long and flows into Neely Henry Lake. According to The Friends of Big Canoe Creek website, the creek has four major tributaries flowing into it: Gulf Creek, Muckleroy Creek, and two “Little Canoe” Creeks.
The creek is home to more than 50 species of fish, including the rare Trispot Darter, which is listed as “threatened” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act. Salamanders, snails, crayfish, turtles and mussels – including eight federally listed freshwater species – can also be found in the waters. Just recently, in 2022 the Canoe Creek Clubshell (Pleurobema Athearni), a freshwater mussel found only in the Big Canoe Creek watershed, was listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act.
“Alabama is fourth in the nation in biodiversity, but we’re first in the nation for biodiversity for aquatic species,” Morrison said. “That’s because of all of our rivers and waterways. That’s the kind of thing we want to teach our kids. Our vision is to get kids aways from their electronic devices, get them outside, and teach them about our biodiversity.”
With a motto of “explore and discover,” Morrison said the goal is to soon add outdoor classrooms and bring in experts from agencies like U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Geological Survey of Alabama to teach students more about the world around them.
Until then, the preserve itself – the creek and 10 miles of hiking, biking and horse trails – is already the ultimate classroom and the perfect background for solace.
“This is really going to be something special,” Morrison said. “This preserve is going to be an asset to every individual who wants to get away from the hustle and bustle.”
Partners in preservation
Morrison knows the importance of that firsthand. After all, a search for a more peaceful life is what prompted him and his wife, Joannie, to move to Springville – just across the creek from the preserve – 24 years ago. “She was looking at the house, and I was looking at the creek,” he said.
A friend introduced him to kayaking, and after a short time of paddling, “I started learning about the critters in our watershed, and I started seeing issues from bad development,” Morrison said. “Sedimentation is a huge issue in our waterways – it’s the number one pollutant.”
Not long after Morrison fell in love with the area that’s now home to the preserve, he learned that he and his community was in danger of losing it. “In 2007, they were planning to develop this, and then in 2008, the economy went south, and the plans were scrapped,” he said. The scare stirred up an interest in preserving and protecting the land.
Fast-forward to 2008, and the effort started gaining traction. The Friends of Big Canoe Creek, a grassroots organization, which Morrison served as president from 2008-2020, learned about Forever Wild Land Trust, which focuses on securing land for public use.
They nominated the land for designation as a Forever Wild site, and after nine years of numerous delays and roadblocks, the first 382 acres were purchased by Forever Wild in 2018, and 40 more acres were added the next year.
St. Clair County and City of Springville leaders – both former and current – embraced the project and have provided tremendous financial support, along with the St. Clair County Economic Development Council.
The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Freshwater Land Trust, The Friends of Big Canoe Creek, Greater Birmingham Community Foundation and The Nature Conservancy have been vital partners, as well, Morrison said. Additionally, Dean Goforth who owns nearby Homestead Hollow, was a key player in making the acquisition a reality. “I don’t think this would have happened without Dean,” Morrison said.
Springville Mayor Dave Thomas pushed for the formation of the Big Canoe Creek Preserve Partners, a nonprofit organization that helps provide sustainable funding of the preserve. As a result, individual and corporate partners have come on board, including Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, EBSCO Industries, Norris Paving & Excavating, Schoel Engineering, Amerex, Lovejoy Realty, KEBCO, BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama, All American Ford, United Way of Central Alabama and Lawley Resource Management.
There is one key donor for the Preserve Partners who wishes to remain anonymous. “This fella just continually steps up with generous donations at critical times when needed. I wish I could tell you his name, but again, just another one of those good folks in our community that steps up. This community is all in!,” Morrison said.
“It’s been amazing to be a part of this,” Morrison said. “I’m just so proud of and grateful for this community and how hard people have worked to preserve, protect and support this place. Sometimes I have to pinch myself.”
Discover and explore
Although there were a few old logging trails, the land offered a blank slate. Plans were made, and Granger Waid of Norris Paving & Excavating and Joey Breighner of Schoel Engineering, helped ensure the best design came to fruition. In addition to their companies donating tens of thousands of dollars in in-kind work, they provided invaluable input for the project.
Dusty and Mary Lou Davis
“Granger’s vision has everything to do with what this is going to be,” Morrison said. “He brought changes to the original concept that made a tremendous difference, and Schoel Engineering took his concept and did the drawings. Those guys working together was just a godsend.”
For Waid, helping with the project was a no-brainer. “This is something I believe in and I’m passionate about it,” he said. “I’ve been playing in this creek since I was 2 feet tall. People need a place to be able to go and get outdoors.”
Breighner agreed. A 20-year resident himself, “I’m excited about the preserve and what it means to our community.” In addition to the recreational aspect, he pointed to the educational value it holds and looks forward to people being able to “see what the preserve has to offer.”
Through his work on the Springville Planning Commission, he developed a friendship with Morrison, who discussed plans for the preserve as they were building it. “I could see Doug’s passion for the project and when I toured it, I saw some needs.” As executive vice president of Schoel Engineering, he put his and his company’s knowledge and expertise to work for the preserve, donating land surveying and engineering work.
Pointing to all the partnerships and community support involved, Springville Mayor Dave Thomas said, “One of the things Springville and St. Clair County as a whole have earned as a reputation is the level of cooperation rarely seen elsewhere. Everybody appreciates the potential of the preserve that will outlive and outlast us all. It’s generational.”
He talked of the educational component with outdoor classrooms and the ability to bring in experts in the field to teach teachers from around the state who will go back to their schools and teach. Field trips will bring their lessons to life, giving them so much more than a textbook can.
“We have set the bar high to be an example for others that here is what we can do if we work together,” Thomas said. “This is a prime example of people bringing energy that translates into synergy.”
Focusing on details
The attention to preservation will be evident as soon as visitors drive into the parking lot. The top lot has room for cars, trucks and horse trailers, while the bottom lot has plenty of additional spots for cars. The two lots will be separated by a bioretention area with special landscaping designed to filter rainwater and runoff through gravel, sand and topsoil. “We’ll use plants that filter the pollutants from cars and clean the water,” Morrison said, adding that the area will eventually feature a seating area at one end.
Since a major goal of the preserve will be education, there will be a sign with a QR code to connect visitors to videos and photos that explain the concept of bioretention and document the building process. “This is something we hope to promote for any kind of development so that we can trap sediment and clean the water that’s going into our waterways,” Morrison said.
Leaving riparian buffers intact is a vital part of the preserve, as well. “The forest is a riparian buffer for the stream,” Morrison said. “It’s basically leaving the natural vegetation near a stream bank alone” so the trees, plants and shrubs act as buffers to pollutants and help control erosion. That’s why the trails offer a view of the creeks and streams in most areas rather than meandering alongside them.
“You can see the water and you can get down to it if you want, but we left all the vegetation near the streams alone,” Morrison said. “People come out here and say, ‘Look how clear this water is.’ Just look around. You have nothing but trees. The natural vegetation filters everything.
There are a variety of species doing the work. The woods are filled with mountain laurel, native azaleas and oak leaf hydrangeas. There are Bottlebrush buckeye shrubs, red and sugar maple trees, pines and beech trees.
“I call this area Beech Tree Hollow because there are beech trees all over the place,” Morrison said during a recent walk through the woods. “Beech trees keep their leaves longer than other trees, and you don’t really know how many are in here until wintertime.”
Ferns are everywhere, as well. “We’ve got so many different ferns out here, it’s unbelievable,” he said. “I brought a horticulturist from the Birmingham Botanical Gardens out here, and I couldn’t keep him on the trail. He kept wandering off and saying, ‘Look at this, look at this.’”
Morrison gets most excited about the preserve’s aquatic diversity. The Trispot Darter, for example, had not been spotted in Alabama in nearly 50 years before it was discovered in one of Big Canoe’s tributaries in 2008. The removal of Goodwin’s Mill Dam in 2013 brought even more species. The dam was built in the 1880s for a grist mill but hadn’t been in use since the mill closed in the 1940s
Restoring the creek’s flow has provided a larger and more suitable habitat for fish, mussels and other mollusks. Since the dam was removed, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service returned just a couple of months ago and was delighted to find the Canoe Creek Clubshell near the site. In 2013, prior to the dam removal, these were not present. “The fish passage returned after the dam removal. Fish serve as host for the mussels, so the fish passage returning was definitely a good thing for these mussels”, Morrison said.
“In a stream in the middle of the Nature Preserve, the Geological Survey of Alabama found a Western Blacknose Dace, a small fish that hasn’t been documented in the Big Canoe Creek Watershed since the ‘80s, so that was a great find, and we will continue to explore,” Morrison said.
News like that is what keeps Morrison motivated and excited about the preserve’s future and impact. He recently stopped at one of his favorite spots on the southern side of the woods to reflect on the opportunity he’ll soon have to share this piece of paradise with the rest of the world. Chances are, he knows the terrain better than anyone else, and he feels a special connection to the land.
“I call this section Slab Creek,” Morris said, pointing to the giant slabs of rock that line the stream’s bed. “They just keep going and going. It’s like a stack of dominoes that got toppled over.” Later, he pointed out two neighboring trees that meet as if in an embrace. “These are the kissing trees,” he said, shortly before telling of another huge tree that was lost in a storm. “I felt like I knew it personally.”
Morrison’s greatest hope is that visitors will love the preserve as much as he does, treat it with the respect it deserves, and treasure it for generations to come.
“It was a struggle getting this thing going,” he acknowledged. “There have been so many trials and tribulations, ups and downs, ebbs and flows. Right now, there’s just good things happening, and I sometimes feel like it’s just destiny. I am very grateful for our Mayor, Dave Thomas, and his leadership through this, the City Council, St. Clair County Commission and Forever Wild. They are seeing what this can become, the educational opportunities, the outdoor recreation and the economic value of greenspace.
For more information about Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve, or to make a donation to Big Canoe Creek Preserve Partners, visit bigcanoecreekpreserve.org.
Whether it’s the spirit of adventure we remember from Swiss Family Robinson or the memories of reading the Magic Treehouse children’s books, thoughts of treehouses often elicit smiles and fond memories.
That sense of wonder and freedom, of resilience and self-reliance often makes us remember times long gone. A treehouse is pure childhood magic.
Now imagine that treehouse on the edge of a creek saturated in history, a place steeped in the natural beauty of woods and wildlife. Sitting on a small rustic overlook, you watch the water for movement. It could be fish, turtles, beaver or otter. Beyond the creek, you hear a noise and barely catch a glimpse of a doe and her fawn slipping back into the woods. It is transformative, experiencing the wonders of nature all around.
Kitchen area
There is such a treehouse, and as a guest here, you’ll be immersed in nature throughout your stay. Even though it’s called Bear Claw Treehouse, you most likely won’t see a bear. You will see plenty of other wildlife, if you’re quiet enough, including turkey, beaver and eagles.
The last sign of a bear, though, was over 10 years ago. They say he did leave a distinct bear paw print in the mud at the edge of the creek. And, so, Bear Claw Treehouse began.
Situated in Springville between Barker Mountain and Washington Valley, this unique rental property is owned by Jim and Melany Harrelson. Featuring a translucent roof for stargazing and firefly viewing, this one-bedroom treehouse is simple, but outfitted with all the absolute necessities.
There’s a queen-sized bed and a kitchenette with an air fryer, microwave and coffee press. Guests can catch a hot shower in the 40-gallon oval tank from Tractor Supply with water provided by a Zodi shower pump.
The toilet facilities are two-fold. More delicate matters are dispersed by a pit latrine style leach system. There’s a freshly serviced port-a-potty for the more serious matters.
While they currently use a generator to power the lights and air conditioning for up to 10 hours a day, Jim Harrelson says things are about to be upgraded. “We have gotten clearance to get electricity hooked up at the treehouse,” says Harrelson. “I put in the order last week, so it’s coming soon.” Since there is no refrigerator and no running water, Harrelson keeps visitors stocked with both water and ice in coolers on the porch.
Dining alfresco is the order of the day here. Just 50 yards away, there is a grilling and eating platform near the creek. A sign nearby reminds visitors of the history that was made on the ground beneath their feet nearly five centuries before. One could almost imagine encampments of explorers and, later, soldiers eating their rations on these very banks.
Hernando DeSoto’s team of explorers is believed to have entered Alabama near Piedmont and traveled down the Coosa River on their quest for gold. DeSoto and his band of nearly 700 followed the Coosa through the state for several months before heading west to Mississippi. Bear Claw Treehouse sits on the edge of Big Canoe Creek, a tributary to the Coosa.
Because of its abundance of available natural resources, including food and water, historians believe those conquistadors would have fished and camped nearby.
Less than three centuries later, General Andrew Jackson’s forces likely fished and camped in the same area as they headed to the nearby Creek village of Littafatchee to battle the Red Sticks in the Creek War of 1813-1814.
“There is really a great spirit on this land. There’s just so much history here,” says Harrelson. It’s something he wishes he had known more about in 2013 when he tried to get the Animal Planet series, Treehouse Masters, to design and build it. The premise of the former reality TV show was that people who wanted to have treehouses built would submit applications and if the situations were interesting enough, they might be chosen to be one featured as an on-air build.
In 2012, the Harrelsons purchased seven acres and divided it into two plots. They built their own home on five acres and saved the adjacent two acres to build an income property later. As they contemplated what type of structure to build on the two-acre plot, they received the unwelcome news that they wouldn’t be able to have a septic system. Still believing the property was perfect to support the activities of outdoor enthusiasts, the idea for a treehouse was born.
Being a fan of Pete Nelson and his Treehouse Masters show already, Harrelson submitted his application with pictures of the land. The producer interviewed them on Zoom and got back to them later with the news that they did not make the cut, ending up 26th on the list that only needed 18 for the show’s broadcast season. “Had I known the full history of the land, I believe I would have done a better job of pitching it to them,” says Harrelson.
Jim and Shep by the creek
In 2019, with his own vision in mind, Harrelson framed and built the treehouse on weekends as he had time and money. Subcontractors came in to help with specialties he couldn’t do. In October of 2021, the Harrelsons hosted their first guests, a couple from Illinois who were coming to visit relatives.
Since then, the Harrelsons have listed the property on Airbnb, VRBO and Hipcamp and have had a steady stream of guests. Guests are encouraged to bring fishing gear and fish in the creek or take the available canoe for a long explore in the water.
Apparently, guests are taking that advice to heart, as evidenced by a recent guestbook entry that reads, “We enjoyed sunset on the nightfall porch, swimming and fishing in the creek and lazing in the hammock chair while the boys fished. We loved watching daybreak through the ceiling each morning!”
Sitting on that nightfall porch, Harrelson fights back tears as he recounts the difficult journey that brought him to this peaceful place. It was another story of lives changed by the string of tornadoes that tore through the state on April 27, 2011.
The same system that brought tornadoes to Cullman and Hackleburg and devastated parts of Tuscaloosa obliterated most of the Harrelson’s neighborhood in Pleasant Grove.
Thankful to be alive and eager to leave that chapter behind, the couple found a property off Highway 23 in Springville. That’s where they are today, on a beautiful little property in the same valley that, at first sight, took away the breath of one 17-year-old Jim Harrelson, as he made his way on Highway 59 on his senior trip from Long Beach, Mississippi, to Niagara Falls, Canada.
“I was so moved when I saw the beauty of this valley, I said I’d live here one day,” says Harrelson. And he does. He offers you the chance to do the same, two nights at a time, in the magical whimsy of a treehouse.
Horse Pens’ Songwriter Festival inspiring music on the mountain
Story by Roxann Edsall Photos by Richard Rybka
There is no doubt that music is a powerful tool, touching our heart strings and transporting us through time and space. The words to certain songs speak to our hearts when, oftentimes, nothing else will. Alabama-raised songwriter Mutt Cooper explains, “I always hope the words connect to the audience and that we’re all in the same emotional space at the same time.”
Cooper, who now lives in Georgia, started playing the guitar and writing music when he was just 10 years old. He now works as an occupational therapist, specializing in traumatic brain injury.
A navy veteran himself, he works with veterans at Martin Army Hospital in Fort Benning. He uses his songwriting skills to address the pain and emotional scars of the wounded, whether they’re military, children or just ordinary people navigating daily life. His song, Tom, has received a lot of attention from Vietnam veterans groups because of its powerful, relatable lyrics.
He wrote the song about his cousin, who served in Vietnam. The cousin, Tom, came back from Vietnam a changed man, a change so profound that he had to live with Cooper’s family and spent most days playing guitar to help him process the pain. “He died in Vietnam, but he didn’t know. He’s got a lot of scars that don’t show,” the haunting lyrics say.
The lyrics to another of Cooper’s songs address the simpler, but broader, issue of aging. The words to I Knew Him When are easily relatable to anyone who has noticed a wrinkle or a grey hair as birthdays come and go.
Staring in the mirror, it’s easy for me to see. The same young man who lives inside of me. Well, it makes no sense, and how can it be? There’s an old man in the mirror looking back at me.
Cooper recently spent a weekend with more than a dozen other songwriters at the Horse Pens 40 Songwriter Festival on Chandler Mountain. The festival’s organizer, Paul Ensign of C&P Entertainment, has been providing the venue and stage to showcase the talents of local, regional and national touring songwriters for four years. “These guys and gals get up on stage, not just to sing, but to give you the emotion behind the words, the experience that helped to write the song,” explains Ensign.
Cass Hunter and Mutt Cooper
Texas-based songwriter Thom Shepherd, also a festival participant, agrees. “Everybody’s here to really listen to the lyrics and hear the stories behind the songs.” He and his wife, fellow songwriter, Coley McCabe, have both won awards through the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and have been named Duo of the Year by the Trop Rock Music Association for the past four years. She has played at the Grand Ole Opry four times.
The two met when they were working with different Nashville publishers housed in the same office building. They were married by an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas in 2015. They tour regularly and enjoy going to songfests to meet new writers and to reconnect with others. They even hold their own songwriter’s festival in Texas called Lonestar Luau. (Editor’s note: You can check them out at Lonestarluau.com.)
“Write for yourself,” says Shepherd. “That’s what a publisher told me years ago. I’d moved to Nashville to perform. Everyone said you’ve got to be able to write, so that’s when I started working on that. I struggled at first, but then I was counseled to write for myself, about things that have had meaning to me. That’s the place that hit songs come from. That’s when I started thinking about things like my love of cars.”
His love of old cars is what made him reminisce about seeing his first car again after selling it to an old friend. He went back to visit the man and saw the car, sat in the driver’s seat and opened the glove compartment. “That’s when I started to imagine. What if this car had been owned by someone else and what if that someone had left a note in the glove compartment,” says Shepherd excitedly. “And what if that owner had been a young man going off to war who left the note to the new owner in case he didn’t come back? And what if the car was a Corvette?”
With that story in mind, he collaborated with songwriter Wood Newton and wrote the 2001 hit single, Riding with Private Malone. The song was recorded by American Country Music artist David Ball. “You always hope one of your songs will touch people’s lives, and this one has,” says Shepherd. “I hear from people who say this was a particular soldier’s song, and he didn’t make it back. It reminds them of that soldier. Others tell me this song is the reason they joined the military.”
Christina Crystal and Megan Kuehner
Coley McCabe wrote Don’t Open That Door as a response to the loss of her sister, Tracy. The song was later recorded by country star Loretta Lynn. “I wrote it after Tracy passed, never meaning for it to be recorded,” says McCabe. “But it was pitched to Loretta, and she recorded it. I ran into her a few years later and told her I’d written it. It was shortly after her husband had passed. She sang the chorus to me with a tear in her eye. It was sweet!”
Strong family ties also fuel the fire for fellow songwriter Christina Crystal. She has just turned 30 and has been writing songs for 16 years. At the songwriter’s festival, she explained to the audience the background behind several songs she and her husband, songwriter/producer Nick Biebricher, have written and produced, including the very personal Ultra Sound, a ballad about the experience of expecting the birth of their son.
Another of Crystal’s favorites is a playful lyric that she wrote and performed called, Dolly, Would You Pardon Me, a fun, upbeat song with a nod to vocal great Dolly Parton. The song was nominated for best country song of the year in 2019 at the Independent Music Awards.
“Hit songs begin with words that make people feel something,” says Shepherd. Pure joy and fun are a hallmark in his huge hit summertime party song, Redneck Yacht Club. Written by Shepherd and recorded in 2005 by country music’s Craig Morgan, the lyrics are an invitation to “Meet us out at party cove. Come on in, the water’s fine. Just idle on over an’ toss us a line.”
If you’re out on this lake this summer, you’re sure to hear it. The power of music is fueled by powerful lyrics.
As the weather warms up, many of us start feeling that spring fever and want to head outdoors to one of Alabama’s many beautiful hiking areas.
From the new Big Canoe Creek Preserve – whose trails open soon in Springville – to neighboring Cheaha State Park, you won’t have to go far to find those opportunities to take in the natural world outdoors. And while you don’t have to be a seasoned pro to enjoy hiking in Alabama, thru-hiker and Pell City native Bennett Fisher offers some tips for the rest of us.
After all, he was a novice once himself. He jumped in as a hiker full-speed, hitting the Appalachian Trail (AT) on his first backpacking trip after graduating from Pell City High School in 2015.
Hiking at Big Canoe Creek Preserve
Along with his dad, who was also a novice hiker, he completed the entire 2,190 miles of the AT from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Katahdin, Maine. Since then, Jolly, as he is known on the trail, has also thru-hiked the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT) and about half of the Continental Divide Trail (CDT). He is still recovering from the foot injury that sidelined his CDT hike.
His first piece of advice for the beginner is to prepare, but take it easy on yourself. “There’s a lot of gear to choose from. Don’t get discouraged. Form your own opinions. Do your research and take advice, but then try it and form your own opinions.”
After the father-son duo set out on their quest to conquer the AT, it wasn’t long before they were questioning their choices. On subsequent hiking trips, they explored different gear options and weeded out what didn’t work for them and added what they missed.
Local hiking gives you many more options on items you may want to bring for comfort. “If taking a camp chair helps you get outside and enjoy yourself,” says Bennett, “then take it. It’s all about what you will use to make your experience better. But don’t weigh your pack down if you don’t need it. If you don’t use it, just don’t bring it next time.”
Next, he says, evaluate the same gear in different weight options. “On one of my first hikes, I brought sandals to wear around camp that were about a pound each. What I really needed were dollar store flip flops that weighed only a few ounces.”
Good hiking shoes, he adds, are an essential piece of equipment. “A lot can go wrong with shoes.” That sentiment is echoed by Trey Staples, manager of Gadsden Outfitters. “My number one tip is to be sure you have a good sock and a good shoe. You’ve got to keep your feet dry. Get help from an outfitter who will take the time to fit you for the shoe that’s right for your feet and your activity level.”
For easy cleanups, Staples recommends bringing wet wipes, which are easy to pack. He also recommends repacking items to bring less waste with you and be sure to pack out whatever trash you do have.
Getting a backpack that fits your body is important if you’re doing more than day hiking. “Get a pack that fits you,” says Staples, “and that means going somewhere where they’ll measure your torso to get it right.” For day hiking, a small pack is useful for storing your water, food, rain gear, first aid kit and snacks.
“It’s also a good idea, no matter how long a hike you’re on,” adds Staples, “to let someone know where you’re going and when you’re expecting to be back.”
Water is a critical safety component of any hike of any duration. “If you’re on a day hike,” says Fisher, “definitely bring your own water. But for multi-day hikes, you’ll want to bring along a water filter.” Also, he says, you don’t have to buy professionally packaged backpacker food. “It’s pretty expensive, and you don’t need it.
Just bring things you like to eat and will look forward to eating. I’ve brought food before that I thought I needed that was healthy, but it just lived in my backpack because it wasn’t appealing to me, so I didn’t eat it.”
Developing a passionwith each step
Fisher and his dad came back from their AT thru-hike having solidified their love of hiking. Fisher says he spent quite a bit of time hiking at Cheaha State Park before moving to Utah in 2018 and earning his degree in Outdoor Product Design from Utah State in 2020.
He has since launched his own outdoor clothing line with the tagline, “Where fun meets functional.” You can check out his products at Jollygear.com.
