YEAR VISITED: 2020 & 2022

FAVORITE CITIES AND EXPERIENCES: In 2020, on our month long road trip, we had planned to take an afternoon and head to Gulf Shores. We heard the Alabama coastline is home to some of the prettiest white sand beaches in the world. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out. When you are on a month long road trip you must learn to be flexible. I am not certain if we were worn out from being in the car as much as we were or simply suffering from a touch of heat stroke after spending the morning on the beach in Biloxi. Either way we got such a late start heading to the Alabama coast that we ended up turning around at a Waffle House off Interstate 10 near Grand Bay.

Until 2022, that was our only time entering the state of Alabama. In 2022 over Thanksgiving break, Maddie and I drove 3/4s of the state. We started in Destin, Florida and got as far north as Tuscaloosa. Maps took us through many backroads where we managed to crisscross farm land and cotton fields. When you are born and raised in the Pacific Northwest cotton fields are an anomaly. Our first stop was Selma where we explored downtown, walked the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and sought out Lannie’s BBQ Spot. From there we drove the hour and a half northwest to Tuscaloosa where we attended the Iron Bowl. Following the game we headed southeast to Montgomery where I walked their historic downtown. Around 1:00 in the morning we finally returned to Destin. Altogether we were on the road over nine hours. While that is a lot of time to spend in a car, it was a blast exploring areas of the country we had never been. Furthermore, I will always remember the in depth conversations my daughter and I had around the Civil Rights movement, the state of the country, and what it means to be a good neighbor.

STADIUMS AND/OR SPORTING EVENTS: Thanksgiving break always seems to line up as an opportunity to go on vacation; the kids don’t have sports and my wife and I can easily get away. In 2022 we decided to head to the Florida panhandle and the beach town of Destin. While the weather didn’t cooperate enough for us to actually play on the beach I was able to get to one of the biggest rivalry games in sports, the Iron Bowl. Months earlier we purchased tickets and then on the day of the game my youngest daughter and I made the four and 1/2 hour drive to Tuscaloosa. We rolled into town a couple hours before kickoff. Not enough time to experience a Crimson Tide tailgate, but plenty of time to shop the bookstore, walk a large percentage of campus, and ultimately get to Bryant-Denny Stadium in time for kickoff.

The stadium holds 100,000 people, definitely the largest stadium I have ever been too, and it was electric from start to finish.

Alabama defeated Auburn 49-27. Highlights were the pregame flyover, singing Sweet Home Alabama, and participating in the flashlight wave during the 3rd quarter.

This is hands down one of the most exciting sporting events I have ever attended.

ADVENTURE(S): While on our 4+ hour drive to Tuscaloosa, Maddie and I decided to take a small detour to Selma.

We explored the historic downtown and walked the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

The city is best known for the 1960’s civil rights movement. Specifically this is the bridge that Martin Luther King Jr. began the march to Montgomery. While he led a non violent protest, they were unfortunately met with force. Four people died, fifty people were hospitalized, and the first day of the march became immortalized as ‘Bloody Sunday’.

Upon entering the town it felt as if we had traveled in a time machine back to the 1960’s. The bridge, town, river and adjacent scenery appeared exactly as seen in the history books. Walking across the bridge felt as if I had entered history.

NOTABLE DESTINATIONS & STOPS: While the weather had been overcast and grey all day, it really began to turn stormy during the 4th quarter. By the time we pulled out of Tuscaloosa for our return trip to Florida, the wind had drastically picked up and it began to rain harder and harder. In fact it became so stormy that for much of our trip south google maps labeled our trip as being under “tornado watch”.

As bad as that sounds, the storm never built stronger than anything we regularly see in the Pacific Northwest. Besides, we were not going to be deterred from visiting Montgomery. We pulled into the city around 8:30 pm and parked along the National Historic Trail.

The city has done a fabulous job of marking the historical sites which are all walkable. However, since it was so late and stormy we decided to drive from location to location. Our first stop was the Rosa Park’s arrest site.

It was here that she was arrested in 1955 for refusing to give up her seat on the bus. Next, we drove around the corner to the Freedom Riders Museum.

The museum was closed but seeing the outside of the preserved greyhound bus depot, which was the site of the violent attacks on the freedom riders in 1961, gave me the same ‘time machine’ feeling I had earlier in the day in Selma.

The roads, building, and overall location looked exactly as I have seen in history books. Additionally, being there in the evening during a storm made it seem even more eerie. Our last stop on the historic trail was the State Capital building. This was the final destination of the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965.

The capital building is absolutely stunning and various historical events are preserved with monuments around the capital grounds. Directly across the street from the Capital is the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. served as pastor here from 1954-1960. The church is where meetings were held to organize the now famous Montgomery Bus Boycott.

While I hope to return one day and see the inside of these famous locations, I loved every second of our long road trip and was blown away by just how close these historical locations are to one another.

• OUR LIST TO VISIT OR RETURN TO:
• Unclaimed Baggage Center, Scottsboro
• Alabama vs LSU Football game at Bryant-Denny Stadium
• U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Huntsville
• Gulf Shores Beaches
• Orange Beach
• Talladega Superspeedway
• Natural Bridge National Park