Hey Guys!
Like every year in April, I booked a weekend getaway for my birthday.
My sister had sent me a link to a unique property in Alabama several months ago and as soon as I saw it, I booked it!
The house was located in Winston County.
Tip: Click here for 89 cool and unusual things to see/do in Alabama
My hubby and I left out on a Friday morning and arrived to the house around 1:15 pm.
The house was very private and tucked away amongst rock bluffs and trees.
After getting parked, we headed inside.
The inside of the house was beautiful!
Every area of the house was utilized in the most perfect way!
The house had a king size bed, a small kitchen, a seating area, a beautiful garden tub and a huge shower!
The owner provided games, books, lots of coffee, and so much more!
I’ve stayed in many AirBnb properties, and this owner provided a lot more than most.
Tip: There is a washer & dryer hidden behind a huge full length mirror
There was a huge deck that overlooked the beautiful Sipsey River!
On the deck was a very nice grill, TV, an outdoor shower, chairs and a table. 
After checking out the inside, we headed back outside.
The property provided an outdoor fire pit that was tucked up against a rock bluff where a small, natural waterfall flowed. It was so peaceful and serene!
We then walked down to the water’s edge.
Tip: If you like to canoe, the owner provides a canoe/kayak launch from the top of the parking area…so, bring your own canoe or kayak and enjoy this beautiful river!
Unfortunately the dock had been damaged in a recent storm so we were unable to use it.
Tip: There are other houses in the area but you can’t see any of them and we never heard anyone around.
Later that evening, my hubby grilled burgers on the outdoor grill.
So good!
After dinner, I took advantage of the beautiful, garden tub!
We then spent the rest of the evening relaxing and watching TV.
The next morning, my hubby cooked up a scrumptious breakfast!
After breakfast, we got ready and headed out for the day.
The driveway to the house was very steep! We had to put our car in low gear to make it to the top!
Our first stop of the day, the Natural Bridge Park, was only about 15-20 minutes from the house.
Driving into the park
The Natural Bridge Park opened to the public in 1954.
Tip: The park is open daily from 8 am to sunset
After getting parked, we headed inside the gift shop to purchase our tickets.
The grounds surrounding the gift shop were beautifully landscaped with all kinds of flowers!
The gift shop had all kinds of neat gifts from locally made goods to t-shirts, snacks and more.
We headed to the t-shirt racks to find a shirt! 😉
A shot of the pamphlets they offered for other nearby sites that you can visit.
After purchasing our tickets and t-shirts, we headed back outside to began the very short trail to the sandstone arch. It’s only about 1/10th of a mile from the gift shop!
The trail had lots of exposed roots so be sure to wear good shoes!
Arriving to the arch
The arch is a 148-foot sandstone bridge that towers 60 feet!
It is the longest natural bridge east of the Rockies!
It was formed when the sea washed sandstone away leaving iron ore veins holding the bridge.
It was the most unique arch that we have seen….and, if you keep up with my blog, you will know that we have seen many!
There is a one mile loop path that leads you under the arch.
The arch is surrounded by unique rock formations.
As you walked the path, you got to see the arch from a different perspective.
It was similar to a double arch and had two openings in the top of the arch.
It’s hard to tell in pictures just how big this arch is!
After the arch, we continued our walk.
There were huge rock boulders along the trail!
We then came to another area where the path led us under a rock bluff.
The rocks had cool looking formations on them!
Continuing our walk
Along the trail, we spotted these dwarf crested iris’s growing everywhere!
You will cross a couple of wooden bridges along the trail.
Read reviews for the park here
After getting back to our car, we headed to our next stop, the Sipsey River Picnic Area located in the Sipsey Wilderness. The picnic area was located 35 mins from the Natural Bridge Park.
When we arrived, the parking lot was full but we were able to squeeze into a small parking area.
I had read that this area offered picnic tables, hiking trails and more but when we arrived, there was really no trail markers or any signage and we so no picnic tables.
We found what looked to be a trail and followed it for a very short distance. The trail ran parallel to the river. 
Tip: Read a blog post about this area here
Tip: Mize Mills Falls is located near the Sipsey River Picnic area
We decided not to go any further so, we left and headed to our next stop, Parker Falls but once we arrived, there was a sign stating that it wasn’t the trail to Parker Falls!
There are many great reviews about this falls…if you click on the link above, you will see clear directions to the falls.
Whatever you do, when you visit this area, make sure you download offline maps as there is very little cell service in this area!
We then headed to our next stop, Caney Creek Falls. However, once we arrived to the unmarked road, there was a gate blocking access to the road.
This waterfall is located on private property but I had read that the owners allowed access. It did appear to be closed due to the recent flooding in this area.
Tip: Read here how to access this beautiful waterfall!
After leaving here, we headed to the next waterfall on our list called Kinlock Falls.
The falls was located down a very bumpy, pot hole filled road and felt very remote!
However, once we arrived, there were a few other cars at the parking area….which by the way, is very limited!
Once parked, we walked down to the falls.
It was a very short walk from the parking lot.
Finally, we were able to see our first waterfall!
Kinlock Falls is a beautiful, cascading waterfall that drops 15 feet over a span of 20 feet.
We took a few minutes to relax and enjoy the views.
This area, the Bankhead National Forest, is known as the place of a 1000 waterfalls.
For a comprehensive list of waterfalls in this area, click here & here.
During the summer, this is a popular area for swimming and I can see why…the water is so clear!
After leaving here, we headed back to an area that was close to Parker Falls called the Randolph Trailhead.
There was one small parking space available when we arrived.
After getting parked, we met another gentlemen that was about to start his hike and he shared his map with us so we could see which trail to take.
We were looking for an old, historic cemetery that I had read about called Johnson’s cemetery.
After looking at the map, we discovered the cemetery was located on trailhead #202.
The trail leads you through a heavily forested area.
After walking for about 25 mins, we finally arrived to the cemetery.
There are two sections of the cemetery….one was right before the white cross and one section was right after the white cross.
Both areas of the cemetery held graves that dated back to the mid to late 1800’s!
It was so weird finding a cemetery out in the middle of the woods!
Most of the dates on the headstones could not be made out as they were so old.
After leaving the cemetery, we headed back to our rental house.
Once again, we had burgers for dinner and then relaxed the rest of the evening!
Thanks for reading!
Stay tuned for Day 3! Update: Read Day 3 here
On my next post, I will add lots of other nearby places you can visit while you’re in this area.
Here’s the best route for the stops we did:
Click here to see links to all of my blog posts