Wild Alabama Guided Hikes and Forest Bathing in the Bankhead National Forest and the Sipsey Wilderness
Wild Alabama staff and volunteers lead hikes in the Bankhead National Forest and Talladega National Forest year round.  Driven by our mission to inspire people to enjoy, value and protect the wild places in Alabama, our hikes introduce people of all ages to their National Forests and Wilderness Areas.
Please plan to join us! 
See below for hikes and forest bathing in Bankhead National Forest and Sipsey Wilderness.
Contact Janice at janice@wildal.org to get on our email list... or sign up yourself on our homepage!  Please scroll down to read Important Information For All Hikes.
All hikes and forest bathing are free of charge thanks to the generosity of individual donors and grants from the Walker Area Community Foundation, National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance, Alabama Mountain Rivers and Valleys RC&D, 


First Saturday and other Hikes: 
Wild Alabama staff and volunteers lead hikes in the Bankhead National Forest or Sipsey Wilderness on the first Saturday of every month and other times.  These hikes vary in length and level of challenge.  Children are welcome!  

Upcoming guided hikes:

Saturday, November 5, 2022
Guided Hike in Bankhead National Forest
Destination and all the details will be announced soon
Group size is limited and advance registration is required.
Sign up at janice@wildal.org 
Leader:  Janice Barrett
Distance: 
Level of Difficulty:  
Children are welcome!

Bring:

• a daypack with all the food and water you'll need for about 3 hours
• a walking stick  or trekking poles
• EpiPen if severe allergic reaction to insect stings is a concern
• a small trash bag for personal trash such as used toilet paper, food wrappers and scraps
• personal items such as toilet paper
• Other optional items:  journal, sketch pad, paints, hammock, field guides or app, camera.

Wear clothing that is appropriate for the weather  and comfortable for hiking.  Footwear needs to be sturdy with good  reliable traction that will keep you upright on slick rocks and  uneven terrain. 
 Tick protection:  If protection against ticks is desired, we recommend permethrin products such as Permanone or Sawyers, the kind you spray on clothing, not on skin.  Spray on clothing at least 4 hours before wearing.  It only takes a little!  There is no scent and it works.
No dogs and no smoking, please

Forest Bathing:
Alternating between Friday and Saturday typically (but not always) on the last weekend of the month, Wild Alabama’s Janice Barrett teams up with writer and teacher Anne Markham Bailey, founder of the Creative Awareness Institute to offer sessions in what the Japanese call Shinrin Yoku, or literally translated, wood-air bathing, or forest bathing. This is not a typical hike but is rather an opportunity to open deeply to the awareness of being in the forest, in one’s self, and in the shared and sacred space. We move in silence, have opportunity for deep connection to the earth, the water, the trees and to our own interiority. Time for writing, sketching, movement or meditation is built into the schedule for the day. 
For ages 16 and over.  Contact us for arranging a session with  younger participants.
Please watch this short video by Anne Bailey about Forest Bathing.
The recorded Forest Bathing webinar that Wild Alabama hosted in early July 2021 may be viewed here.

Next Forest Bathing Session: 
Sunday, October 30, 2022
9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (time may be adjusted according to weather and location) 
Sign up is open at  janice@wildal.org
​Location in the Bankhead National Forest will be revealed to those who sign up. 
This month's forest bathing walk will be a total walking distance  of about 1.25 miles roundtrip on a trail that is unmaintained, uneven and sloped (gradual downhill most of the  way  in, gradual uphill most of the way out).  The route will be easily doable for most people who hike.  Bring lunch, snacks, drinking water, a journal and/or sketchbook and pen, a small pad or cloth for comfortable sitting or lying down.  A detailed list of what to bring and directions will be emailed to those who sign up.  Participants in this contemplative forest immersion will enjoy guided meditation, silence,  invitations and suggested techniques for connection to the elements through the senses, deep rest, reflection and tea.  Group size is limited to six.
​No dogs and no smoking, please.

Wild Wednesday Nature Hikes for Kids and Families and Field Trips for School Groups:
Wild Alabama's Wild Wednesday Nature Hikes for Kids and Families are a fun and safe way to explore the Bankhead National Forest.  Wild Alabama staff lead guided hikes for kids and their adults every Wednesday from the last week in June through the first week in August to some  of the easiest to get to, spectacularly beautiful, wet and wondrous places in the forest! 

Participants learn about Leave No Trace, the natural and cultural history of the  area, what lives  in the water and on the land, and adults learn of places to take their children on their  own.  A family group must  include at least one child or teenager under the age of 18. 

Wild Wednesdays are over until next summer, but we lead field trips for schools and groups year round.

 For more information, contact Janice Barrett at janice@wildal.org.

Important Information for All Hikes
Wild Alabama practices coronavirus protection protocols as advised by the CDC and strongly encourage all adult participants in our events to be fully vaccinated.
What to bring on a Wild Alabama hike:

• a daypack with lunch, snacks, drinking water
• a mask
• an Epi Pen if severe allergy to insect stings is an issue
• walking stick or trekking poles 

What to wear:  Clothing that is appropriate for the weather and comfortable for hiking.  Shoes or boots should be sturdy with good traction for slopes and slippery rocks and stream crossings.
Tick protection:  If protection against ticks is desired, we recommend permethrin products such as Permanone or Sawyers.  Spray on clothing at least 4 hours before wearing.  It only takes a little!