Red Mountain Park

08/12/2024

Thank you, Latino News for featuring Red Mountain Park!

08/01/2024

We love our summer interns! Thank you to Cawaco RC&Dfor help fund two of the positions!

08/01/2024

We are grateful to all of the Breakthrough Birmingham scholars for participating in the outdoor classroom and are excited for future adventures!

07/10/2024

We are so excited to welcome scholars from Breakthrough Birmingham this week! Lots of learning and fun to be had in the first-ever outdoor classroom!

06/28/2024

A heads-up that Red Mountain Park trails will be open on July 4th.

Have a safe and happy holiday!

06/10/2024

This is a Mountain Service Announcement (MSA) for Red Mountain Park:

The field next to the BMRR South Trail will be closed this week beginning today, June 10, due to resource management activities in the area. The Land and Water Conservation Director will apply a highly diluted, non-soil active herbicide on a small, 4 acre grassy area. The herbicide was carefully selected to target the invasive species in that area. Herbicide was chosen over other means of invasive plant removal because our goal for this area is restoration of the native meadow habitat. While other methods, like goats, help to clear invasive species temporarily, the impact is short-lived. The herbicide application will prevent the regrowth of those species, allowing time for native plantings to flourish without competing with invasive species.

The treated area is very small, relative to the Red Mountain Park property. Wildlife in the park will not be impacted by the treatment of this small area. When the meadow is restored, the area will provide the natural habitat most appropriate for the wildlife. Bear with us, the restoration process isn’t always pretty but the results are exceptional!

06/06/2024

Shout out to TC McLemore and Dr. David Hicks with the Jefferson County Department of Health for understanding the important connection between public health and economic development.

“Trails play a significant role in public health by promoting physical activity and providing safe spaces for walking, jogging, and biking. They help reduce the occurrence of crime and chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
It also improves your mental health and your mood, and ultimately increases your chances of living longer.”
--Dr. David Hicks, Health Officer, Jefferson County Department of Health

🥾🚴🏾‍♀️🛶 Read why trails matter in Alabama.

05/15/2024

Ever wonder what type of trees you are hiking, biking, or running past at Red Mountain Park?

This Saturday, May 18th, from 9:00 am to 10:30 am you can learn more about the different varietals of trees, both native and exotic, around the park on a two-mile hike along the BMRR South Trail led by Henry Hughes, who studied forestry at the University of the South and teaches Native Forest Tree Identification through Alabama Audubon. This guided hike will feature approximately twenty-five common Alabama forest trees.

Details:

- Please meet us at the picnic tables near the Red Mountain Park entrance at 2011 Frankfurt Drive.

- Dogs on leashes are welcome.

- This event is $5 for non-members and free for members.

Registration is required - click the link to save your spot: https://rmnp.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/rmnp/eventRegistration.jsp?event=10706&

05/02/2024

Very exciting!

04/30/2024

Thank you to Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham for the lovely visit to Red Mountain Park, Ruffner Mountain, Turkey Creek Nature Preserve!

03/26/2024

Here's a sneak peek of Council President Pro Tempore Wardine Alexander - District 7 being interviewed by a filmmaking class at UAB!

Councilor Alexander grew up in Wenonah, and her grandfather was a miner on Red Mountain. She had some great things to say about the neighborhood and the mountain. Stay tuned for more sneak peek interviews for the final film project and an event where scholars and those interviewed will be featured in a public event this fall!

03/25/2024

Thank you, Bham Now - Birmingham’s modern media, for such a thorough article on the importance of planting native species.

One week from this Saturday, Ruffner Mountain and Turkey Creek Nature Preserve will kick off the native spring plant sale every Saturday in April from 10 am - 2 pm at the Ruffner Greenhouse featuring native plants from Ruffner and Turkey Creek.

Members of Ruffner, Turkey Creek Nature Preserve, and Red Mountain Park will receive 10% off their purchase!

It's time to spruce up your spring garden at the Ruffner Mountain + Turkey Creek Native Plant Sale. Every Saturday in April, you'll discover more than 100 native plants, including trees, shrubs and unique herbs.

03/25/2024

Support Red Mountain Park while tasting wines at Hop City Birmingham!

Join us on Sunday, April 28th, from 1:30 - 4 PM for Wine Down with Red Mountain Park!

Enjoy discovering and sampling over 100 different wines poured by knowledgeable wine industry representatives. You’ll have the opportunity to taste and learn about wines that appeal to you. You’ll also be able to buy or order your favorites on-site. We’ll have food trucks there, too.

Proceeds from ticket sales are donated to Red Mountain Park to help support programming and keep Red Mountain Park free and open for everyone in our community.

*General Admission tickets are $50 pre-event and $60 at the door.
*VIP tickets are $90. The VIP experience includes a coursed lunch with wine pairings. The lunch begins at 1 PM.
*The first 100 ticket holders will receive a special Wine Down with Red Mountain Park wine glass at the door.

Click the link below to get your tickets!!

https://rmpwinedown.swell.gives/

03/25/2024

Thank you Alabama Outdoors! We can't wait for April 5th!

03/19/2024

Red Mountain Park and members can now buy discounted Wine Down with Red Mountain Park tickets through Saturday, March 23rd. Members check your email from this past Sunday for a link to buy your tickets. General admission tickets go on sale to the public on Sunday, March 24th. Support Red Mountain Park and enjoy a great wine tasting at ! Hope to see you there!

03/11/2024

🚨Red Mountain Spring/Summer hours have begun!🚨

From now until October 1st, the park will be open from 7 am - 7 pm.

Happy Spring!

02/23/2024

Margaret Walker, poet, author, and the first black woman to receive a national writing prize was a native of Mason City, now Birmingham’s West End neighborhood and refers to the Ishkooda miners and Ishkooda camp in her poem “Childhood.” The Ishkooda mines and camp were on the land that is now Red Mountain Park. Here’s an excerpt from the poem:

“When I was a child I knew red miners dressed raggedly and wearing carbide lamps.
I saw them come down red hills to their camps
dyed with red dust from old Ishkooda mines.
Night after night I met them on the roads,
or on the streets in town I caught their glance;
the swing of dinner buckets in their hands, and grumbling undermining all their words.”

The photo is the Ishkooda No. 13 Mine portal, the longest operating mine, closing in 1962.

Thank you WBHM for celebrating the life and work of Margaret Walker at their Memories and Milestones event at the Woodlawn Theatre Birmingham last night.

02/19/2024

Despite the cold temps, we had a great turnout for last weekend’s Guided Smythe History and Excavation tour led by Will McCollum. Participants explored the history of the Smythe mining camp and the current excavation site.

The land that is now Red Mountain Park was home to three mining camps where workers and their families lived from roughly 1890 to 1920. Participants toured the remnants of three workers’ houses at the mining camp of Smythe, where archaeological excavations are ongoing.

Thank you, Will, for your hard work on this project!

02/09/2024

Mark, Director of Park Maintenance, doing his annual mowing in the meadow next to the UAB outdoor classroom. Look closely for the red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis).

02/08/2024

The Smythe Mining Camp History & Excavation Site Tour has been moved from February 10th to February 17th.

Explore the history of the Smythe mining camp and the current excavation site with historical and archeological researcher, Will McCollum.

The land that is now Red Mountain Park was home to three mining camps where workers and their families lived from roughly 1890 to 1920. In this tour, we will take a look at the remnants of three workers’ houses at the mining camp of Smythe, where archaeological excavations are ongoing.

We will meet at 9 a.m. on Saturday, February 17th, at the picnic tables at the park's Frankfurt Drive entrance. The tour will include around half a mile of walking. Please dress weather appropriately and wear sturdy closed-toe shoes.

This event is free for Red Mountain Park members and a suggested $5 donation for non-members ages 5 and up. Register at https://rmnp.app.neoncrm.com/event.jsp?event=10686&

Photo Credit: Mack McCollum

01/31/2024

Staff from Ruffner Mountain, Turkey Creek Nature Preserve, and Red Mountain Park caravanned to Mulga in West Jefferson County to visit a parcel of private land preserved by Freshwater Land Trust along Village Creek.

I asked Charles, “Would you swim in that water?”
His response: “I wouldn’t. But I’d paddle it.”

The group of Eastern hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) are the southernmost in the U.S. and grow tall and silky green. Sloan, the new Volunteer Coordinator for all three greenspaces skipped stones and Jamie helped him find the best ones. Van found snail eggs that resembled clear jelly inside a large mussel. We traversed the muddy crevasse and identified river cane (native!) (Arundinaria gigantea) and bigleaf magnolia (Magnolia macrophylla). We ate sandwiches, lay in the late January sun, and spun on the rickety tilt-a-whirl at a park down the road.

Jamie, sitting on a bench, looked over at me and asked, Well Kristi, did you ever think we’d get this far? Have this many people on board? I smiled because I knew what he meant.

01/31/2024

Thank you Bham Now - Birmingham’s modern media for the mention! Red Mountain Park has come a long way!

🚨This week in Bham history... Red Mountain Park, Hoover Library, Cobb Lane Restaurant, Woodlawn HS, Autherine Lucy and "Buckingham Nicks"

01/29/2024

We invite our members to enjoy some s'mores and Good People beer around our fire pits!

Join us Thursday, February 1st, from 5:30 - 7:00 P.M. We'll be gathered by the picnic tables at the main kiosk area near the Frankfurt entrance of the park. We'll provide all the items needed to make s'mores, and Good People Brewing Co. has generously donated a selection of beer to enjoy. We hope to see you there!

This event is for Red Mountain Park members only and free of charge. Thanks!

Red Mountain Park members can register for the event at https://rmnp.app.neoncrm.com/eventReg.jsp?event=10681&

Not a member? Become on today to join the fun! Become a member at https://redmountainpark.org/membership/

01/24/2024

Stuff you don’t see: New Maintenance Technician for and Payton gets some chainsaw training while clearing a large fallen tree.

12/20/2023

Thank you Bham Now - Birmingham’s modern media for spreading the word about the reopening of The Haskell Hideaway Treehouse!
From Red Mountain Park Membership Director, Lauren, "We’re excited to have Haskell Hideaway open again for our park members and visitors to enjoy.” You can read the full article below.

Haskell Hideaway—one of the treehouses at Red Mountain Park—is officially reopened after being closed for repairs.

12/07/2023

The Haskell Hideaway treehouse is open again! We appreciate your patience while we made repairs.

11/06/2023

Santa and Mrs. Claus are coming to town on Saturday, November 18th!

Come to Remy's Dog Park anytime between 9 A.M. and 12 P.M. Saturday, November 18th, no registration necessary, to take your pet's photo. You will check in with an RMP staff member at the dog park entrance and receive a number to designate the order your pic will be taken.

We'll have festive accessories available if your pet would like to dress up. All pets should be on a leash. You and your family are welcome to be in the photo too. And while Santa is pet-friendly, you do not have to have a pet to have your photo taken with Santa!

We will have a professional photographer, and Red Mountain Park will email your photos the week after the event. Hope to see you there!

10/26/2023

Due to the current dry conditions and recent lack of rain, a Red Flag/No Burn warning has been issued for our area.

In light of this, tonight's S'mores event at Red Mountain Park has been postponed. We are so grateful to all of our members and hope to reschedule this event once we've had a good rain.

Thank you for understanding and for your continued support of Red Mountain Park. We look forward to the opportunity to gather with you soon!

08/21/2023

It's happening!
"According to the plan, by adding 19 miles of new trail, we can create a loop that begins with Ruffner Mountain in the east through Railroad Park downtown to Red Mountain Park in the west, connecting the Cities of Birmingham, Fairfield, Homewood and Irondale, along with other cities previously included in the trail system."

🚨 See the map. Loop Ruffner Mountain to Red Mountain Park/High Ore Trail. This is a game-changer. # trails

08/15/2023

Come to RideBHM, 2800 Portofino Drive, Birmingham, AL 35211, at 9 AM on Saturday, August 19th, to meet the RideBHM team and check out the trails. The RideBHM team will give all attendees a downhill mountain biking tutorial and show them the trails. Red Mountain Park members will have the opportunity to purchase a day pass for 50% off. The day pass must be used on the day of the event, August 19th.

Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/red-mountain-park-experiences-ridebhm-tickets-684936151467?aff=oddtdtcreator