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Sunday, 10 November was a spectacular day to go for a ride, so out came my ABEES Touring Guide to find some places in Alabama that I have not yet visited that could be seen within a day's journey. I found four places in the addendum; Flip Side Cafe in Gadsden, Cherokee Rock Garden on the mountain overlooking Weiss Lake and Leesburg, Tigers For Tomorrow on Untamed Mountain near Collinsville and the Courthouse in Albertville. It took only a few minutes to develop the round trip route using Martin's excellent GPS file that lists all of the ABEES POIs and favorite roads. After a few clicks with the route tool, the route was ready to down load into my Zumo 550.
That done, off Odalisque and I rode to the Flip Side Cafe for breakfast which was was a pleasant surprise; Starbucks like, but better. The Cafe is owned by one of our Friends of Beemers, Electa who offers a 10% discount for all Alabeemers.
After a great breakfast croissant with ham, egg and provolone cheese and some of the best coffee I have enjoyed, my next stop was the Cherokee Rock Village. This was another wonderful surprise, and I had no idea that there was such a place in Alabama. There were at least 100 rock climbers of all ages there enjoying practicing their skills on the enormous rock formations. Just seeing this was enough to make the visit there worthwhile, but the spectacular view of Lake Weiss and beyond was incredible.
My next stop was Tigers For Tomorrow at Untamed Mountain which was the most pleasant surprise of the day. The park is home to over 100 exotic, native and farm animals. Their mission is to establish and maintain a rescue facility that will uphold the highest standards of care and respect for exotic animals in need of a secure permanent home. As an exotic animal park and rescue preserve they are open to the community as an environmental educational learning center and recreational destination for the entire family.
The approach road to the parking lot is dirt with gravel and a bit rutted, but manageable, just take it easy. After parking, stroll up the drive into the park grounds and there you will see two curious ostriches, a lazy camel and a huge zebra on the way to the information and admission table. The admission is $10.50 and well worth the price.
All of the cages containing the animals are about one meter away from the walking path through out the park. Never have I been so close to so many very large wild animals. My stroll by Sugar Ray's cage was an eye opener as the large 500 pound, beautiful tiger escorted me the entire length of his cage and back again. Not only will you see many tigers, there are several male and female lions, a grizzly bear, black bear, cougars, timber wolfs and many other animals within an arms length from you.
This is a must see for every Alabeemer. The park is open only on weekends and for special tours. For information, click on their website www.tigersfortomorrow.org.
This ride is what ABEESing is all about. The eating part was excellent and the exploring was sensational.
Here a some photos. Photography at Tigers For Tomorrow is not allowed, but Susie Dubick was there last year and was able to take some excellent photos which are included
That done, off Odalisque and I rode to the Flip Side Cafe for breakfast which was was a pleasant surprise; Starbucks like, but better. The Cafe is owned by one of our Friends of Beemers, Electa who offers a 10% discount for all Alabeemers.
After a great breakfast croissant with ham, egg and provolone cheese and some of the best coffee I have enjoyed, my next stop was the Cherokee Rock Village. This was another wonderful surprise, and I had no idea that there was such a place in Alabama. There were at least 100 rock climbers of all ages there enjoying practicing their skills on the enormous rock formations. Just seeing this was enough to make the visit there worthwhile, but the spectacular view of Lake Weiss and beyond was incredible.
My next stop was Tigers For Tomorrow at Untamed Mountain which was the most pleasant surprise of the day. The park is home to over 100 exotic, native and farm animals. Their mission is to establish and maintain a rescue facility that will uphold the highest standards of care and respect for exotic animals in need of a secure permanent home. As an exotic animal park and rescue preserve they are open to the community as an environmental educational learning center and recreational destination for the entire family.
The approach road to the parking lot is dirt with gravel and a bit rutted, but manageable, just take it easy. After parking, stroll up the drive into the park grounds and there you will see two curious ostriches, a lazy camel and a huge zebra on the way to the information and admission table. The admission is $10.50 and well worth the price.
All of the cages containing the animals are about one meter away from the walking path through out the park. Never have I been so close to so many very large wild animals. My stroll by Sugar Ray's cage was an eye opener as the large 500 pound, beautiful tiger escorted me the entire length of his cage and back again. Not only will you see many tigers, there are several male and female lions, a grizzly bear, black bear, cougars, timber wolfs and many other animals within an arms length from you.
This is a must see for every Alabeemer. The park is open only on weekends and for special tours. For information, click on their website www.tigersfortomorrow.org.
This ride is what ABEESing is all about. The eating part was excellent and the exploring was sensational.
Here a some photos. Photography at Tigers For Tomorrow is not allowed, but Susie Dubick was there last year and was able to take some excellent photos which are included
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