Limberlost Forest & Wildlife Refuge, Huntsville

Описание: 70 km of hiking, cycling, and cross-country ski trails, beaches, and an 18-hole disc golf course: all free (no charge) for day use. There are also cabins and campsites for rent.

This is a beautiful privately-owned place to hike. It also looks amazing for paddling. There are 20 small lakes, some with a range of cabins and campsites for staying overnight. It is also free to play the disc golf course. (bring your own discs). Canoes and kayaks are available for rent.

You are required to fill out a waiver online before your visit. If you do not fill it out, you do not have permission to use the property. There are specific hours when the property is open for day-use visitors, so be sure to check that before you go.

When you get there, drive through the main gate and immediately you will find the parking area. It doesn't look like a place to park because it isn't paved, but there are signs.

There is also a small cabin which is where you can find information about the trails. Maps are posted on the outside, and if the cabin is open, you can go inside and sign the visitor book.

The trails are very well marked and maintained, and the website has lots of details about what to expect and see.

One thing I am a little confused about is the Solitaire Trail. The website shows it going around Lake Solitaire, but I'm not sure where else. The website says the trail is 13 km, but when I walked around Lake Solitaire, it was a loop of about 6.3 km (and that includes about 700m on the road).

I started at the parking area and hiked in a clockwise direction around Lake Solitaire. It was just over 5.5 km to the road. I crossed the road and hiked around Clear Lake for just under 1.5 km back to the parking, for a total of about 7 km.

The trail was mostly flat with the exception of a big hill up to the lookout and down the other side on Lake Solitaire. The trail has roots and rocks at times, so watch your footing. There are also a few beautiful boardwalks around rock formations.

The lookout is on top of a cliff, and it is very small with no fences or walls. It is a beautiful view, but I found it quite scary since I am afraid of heights, and I stayed quite far back from the edge.

The disc golf course has 18 holes, and it is very nice. It starts by the grassy parking area and goes through different forests and up a hill where you have a nice view into the distance.

Up on this hill is also the statue trail. There are sculptures with plaques explaining their significance.

Time codes
00:00 Introduction
00:07 Solitaire trail
00:49 The lookout on the Solitaire trail
01:16 Clear Lake trail
01:24 Beach area
01:45 Disk golf and statue hike
02:00 Map and summary