One of our favorite Thanksgiving traditions is everyone going for a hike together after eating their Thanksgiving lunch.
This Thanksgiving hike, which more appropriately may be called the “Thanksgiving walk,” is the perfect opportunity for family and friends to take in the great outdoors rather than rotting into oblivion on the couch following the big meal.
Because you are reading this post, you are probably the outdoors lover in your family. They are counting on you to serve as the trusted source of information when recommending a place for everyone to go hiking.
There are a few things we want to be mindful of when developing some recommendations: We want to pick a location that will be fun for everyone both young and old regardless of skill level. This means picking a location where small children won’t be running to the edge of a cliff and where your elderly family members will not be required to scale the edge of a mountain.
Additionally, we must remember that everybody will not have the stamina you do. Therefore, we want to pick a location that will not require all afternoon to complete.
Finally, we must be mindful of terrain. No, we do not need a topo map, but we want to pick somewhere that does not have any steep hills or inclines. The last thing we need is someone breaking their ankle because you had ONE JOB of picking a place to hike.
Your family would never let you live that down. Also, you would never be asked to recommend a hiking trail again.
So again, our criteria: fun for everybody, distance, and terrain.
The following list contains locations that check all three boxes.
1.) Red Mountain Park in Birmingham
2.) Madison County Nature Trail in Huntsville
3.) University of Alabama Arboretum in Tuscaloosa
4.) Blount Cultural Park in Montgomery
5.) Ebenezer Swamp operated by the University of Montevallo
6.) Muddy Creek Interpretive Trail in Theodore
7.) Vulcan Trail in Birmingham
8.) Veterans Park in Hoover
9.) Jemison Park Nature Trail in Mountain Brook
10.) Buck Creek Trail in Alabaster
Have a Happy Thanksgiving, tag us in your Thanksgiving hikes, and enjoy your time with friends and family.
-Hike Alabama-
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