The Free State of Hopeful

06/19/2020

All the while Cheaha road is destroyed. Unbelievable

ALDOT did a great job resurfacing AL 281 from Adam’s Gap to the park. Smooth and easy ride!

05/29/2020

Guess that sign doesn’t mean anything to them.

05/16/2020

I went up to the State Highway 281 that runs out of Cheaha state park South to nowhere this evening. This highway was already one of the best roads that I know of and then out of the blue it is being resurfaced. Not sure exactly what they are doing to it but they are spending money up there all the while Cheaha road is still a train wreck. One of the most broke States in the entire country. Struggling with money just about everywhere yet this 8 mile or so stretch of road gets all kinds of attention. About a month ago there was a crew up there picking up trash. What in the world?

05/01/2020

This big pothole just decided to get big practically overnight.

03/30/2020

Noticed lots of people parking outside the gate at Lake Chinabee this weekend. There were actually cars parked up and down either side of Cheaha road. I spoke to the USFS law enforcement guy Friday and he said that those people will be cited for trespassing for going down in side the Lake Chinabee recreation area. If they walk from the road down that mountain then back up then they will probably have a heat stroke. That is an easy walk in but it is a very long steep walk out. There are also lots of folks parking on the private property at Salt Creek walking down to the falls. That is a very dangerous area to be in. I’m sure many folks from Hopeful can remember lots of folks being injured down in there on those rocks. Be careful folks. Lots of people coming up and down our road and many of them do not seem to realize how narrow that road is.

03/26/2020

Lake Chinabee, Turnipseed, and Shepard branch are on the list

The United States Department of Agriculture has temporarily suspended access to recreation areas at Alabama's national forests in order to promote CDC guidelines to stop the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

03/26/2020

Ok folks it is Hopeful Hole day for the week. Who knows where this beaut is? Start studying up folks because I’m going to start giving prizes for the first person that can guess the Hopeful Hole of the day.

03/24/2020

I guess a positive first step for the condition and safety of Cheaha road is a weight restriction. Our State representative Steve Hurst contacted Talladega county and was able to get them to weight restrict the road. This sign has been placed between the Cedars house and the woods just before the white rail fence. This weight should prevent the large dump trucks that have be going up in the mornings and coming down in the evenings. It will also prevent the log trucks that occasionally decide to come down this way. Basically anything heavier than a school bus. That being said we need to vigilant and watch for these trucks. If you see one please get pictures so they can be reported. These things are destroying this road at a time when we have no mechanism for getting it fixed. I believe this is a step in the right direction. Hopefully we can soon get some agency to accept responsibility for this road.

03/21/2020

A closer look at the Civilian Conservation Corps' work in Alabama from the Department of Interior. This film shows Birmingham and views of Alabama's mountain...

03/18/2020

In honor of Humpday, I figure I will start a tradition. It will be the Hopeful Hole day. Please take time to celebrate our National landmarks. This one is located just before the first National Forest portal sign coming Cheaha from the bottom of the mountain.

03/17/2020

Something I have been thinking about over the past few days. What is the difference between activities and accomplishments? Activities are something that could occur over a period of time or could go on forever, but at the end nothing would be different under the sun. Accomplishments on the other hand also occur over a period of time but they eventually end upon completion. Something will be different about the world in the end. I am sure many of you know that the reason we are in the predicament we are up here with this road is because of uninformed voters and people that do not understand the difference between activities and accomplishments. I recently read something on another page about a politician that was approached about an issue. It was an issue that has been a problem for a long period of time. Now that it is election time they tell their constituents that they have been attending meetings about the issue. Meetings are not an accomplishment. They are activities. Like flying on airplanes, driving to Montgomery, sitting on your rear end. These are all activities. Actually fixing the issue and making things better is an accomplishment. Hillary Clinton hung her campaign on how far she flew and how many meetings she attended. Those things were not accomplishments, they were activities. My little girl and I went to Washington DC and attended a meeting with our Congressman Gary Palmer when I lived in Bham. Wonder how many of these politicians have ever had a meeting with a congressman in Washington DC. We didn’t accomplish anything accept talk about second grade, football and hunting. So that being said, to all my friends, neighbors and most especially the residents of the Free State of Hopeful do not let these politicians fool you by talking about their activities. We want to know what they have done for us. They think because there are only a few of us in our little community that we have no influence. They think that because we are not very wealthy that we have no influence. I intend to prove them wrong if they are not performing. At my job I have heard people when folks ask them what they have done about something say, “I had a meeting, I’m following up or I’m looking into it.” Don’t be fooled by that. Do not except that from these people. Together we can force these people to act. We can force them to decide who this crappy and unsafe toad belongs to. Thank you all!