Planes, overlooks and quarries: Ruffner Mountain

Hidden in the backdrop of downtown Birmingham, next to I-59 and the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International airport, is Ruffner Mountain, a public nature preserve that is part of a larger nature coalition in Jefferson County. It showcases the many ways natural areas can be used and defined in the grand sense of what makes a park or a preserve a park or a preserve. 

In terms of physical condition of the facilities, I think Ruffner Mountain might be the cleanest place I’ve visited. With consistent trail markers, neat trails and a clear map, navigating the area wasn’t difficult at all. Ruffner Mountain’s efforts towards bettering their environment and their community are evident with educational interpretative signage, gardens, along with their nature center. They also share frequent opportunities to learn about their restoration efforts or how to participate in hands-on community events. 

I think that’s what made me and my friend’s  time at Ruffner Mountain unique. Most, if not all, parks have community events — ways to learn more about the environment you’re in — displays on their environmental efforts and more, but Ruffner Mountain feels alive. While we were there, we made an effort to get through our hike before a plant sale that was going on finished, and we made sure to check the calendar for future events. 

It does help any community efforts that Ruffner Mountain is in the midst of Birmingham city life, an already fairly bustling community. I mean, the history of the park is also intertwined with the community. 

Starting out as a local push to save 28 acres of land threatened by development, the Ruffner Mountain Coalition was formed in 1977. Over time, a private-public relationship was developed to preserve additional land. Featuring historic mining and quarry sites, wetlands, ridgelines and unique overlooks of Birmingham, including the Birmingham airport, Ruffner Mountain now boasts over 1000 acres of preserve and 14 miles of trail and the first nature center in Alabama. 

In 2023, Ruffner Mountain also partnered with Turkey Creek Preserve, taking over from Birmingham-Southern College. Also located in Jefferson County, the area was threatened with a proposal to build a prison at the preserve. A local organization was formed, Society To Advance the Resources at Turkey Creek (START). Their goal was to prevent the prison and save the environmental and historical importance of the area, and they succeeded. 

The merging of the management of the two areas in 2023 however was followed by the establishment of the Jefferson County Greenways Commission and the Jefferson County Greenways Foundation to also include a third park, Red Mountain Park. The ownership of the three parks is a mix of state and city owned land and land provided by the Alabama Forever Wild Land Trust. 

The commission is publicly funded and is responsible for the daily operations of all three parks, Red Mountain Park, Ruffner Mountain and Turkey Creek Nature Preserve. Meanwhile, the foundation is responsible for fundraising, donations, membership and grants to provide funding for educational programs and different community events. 

Be on the lookout for the future as well. According to Amy Conyers, Jefferson County Greenways Park Deputy Superintendent, the commission plans on launching a new website for all three parks for early 2025. They are also working towards adding a new park to Jefferson County, East Side Park. With 6 acres of greenspace, the plan is to help transform the area into a fully accessible place for people to enjoy. 

All three locations show the importance of individual involvement and the power of grassroots mass organizing. Without the numerous people and organizations, now over a thousand members, and hundreds of thousands of visitors, both places wouldn’t be able to operate. 

While I was at Ruffner Mountain, I noticed that the care and passion I have mentioned especially shines through in the nature center. My friends, who also work at the 4-H Center, and I took notes and photos of their displays for inspiration. While we have many more animals in our collection, their interpretive signage and information was incredibly cohesive and drew you in into each animal’s story and the importance of their roles in the environment. 

I think my favorite display was their venomous snake section. Featuring a gorgeous copperhead and a few other non-venomous snakes, they provide all the information you need to know about snakes in Alabama and how to identify them.

Snakes are one of the best pest controls we have in our ecosystems — they help get rid of rodents and even ticks. They just want to be left alone to eat their mice. If a snake is a threat to any small children or animals in your yard, rather than killing it, relocate the snake. If you need help, you can contact Alabama Snake Removers, a volunteer organization who remove snakes from private property around the state.

My own personal experience with snakes has been nothing short of amazing. At 4-H, we have 15 snakes and I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to handle most of them. They’re all non-venomous and each has their own unique personality. While they should still be considered wild animals, they’re used to being handled and help us educate people on the importance of snakes. 

Anyways, enough of the snake rambling. Unfortunately we didn’t see many snakes, let alone much wildlife while we were on the trails. Other than some bumblebees and orb weavers, the most we saw of any wildlife was what we thought was raccoon scat, or poop. 

The trails though, like I’ve said before, were fantastic. You could easily navigate your way between the trails as they have multiple connectors. We decided on taking the Quarry Trail, the white-trail, to the Overlook Trail, the red-trail and then we followed the Possum Loop Trail, the yellow-trail, back to the end of the Quarry Trail. All in all, it was about five miles of total trail. We had originally planned to do the Ridge and Valley Trail, the orange-trail, which was 1.7 miles of 1000 feet of elevation gain, but decided against it to see if we could make it to the plant sale and then lunch. 

The hike was partially moderate but not very technical. The overlook of Birmingham and the Quarry site both made the five miles more than worth it. The Birmingham overlook features the downtown skyline but also the airport. I got super excited when I realized we could watch planes land and takeoff. We saw two planes take off but didn’t get a chance to see one land. 

While I was checking out the planes, my friends kept their eyes on the sky, too, but for birds instead. They mainly saw some songbirds but also a few turkey vultures riding some thermals. 

The quarry site was also amazing. The overlook gave a great full-scale view of the site and a chance to fully take in what it looked like for nature to retake previously developed land. The Possum Loop takes you to the base of the site. Walking through the open area was definitely much hotter than the shaded forest, but gives you plenty of wildflowers to see and possible snake holes. The trails around the quarry aren’t marked and wind throughout the site — giving you the chance to explore. Without much canopy at all, though, it’s easy to find your way back to the entrance. 

 A large part of Ruffner Mountain’s mission is to not just preserve the natural environment, but to also preserve and help native species thrive in the area. If you notice, invasive plants are fairly difficult to spot. Their native plant sales and Micro Habitat Gardens help reinforce this principle by also teaching community members how to preserve and prioritize native species on their own properties.

When I go back, I am definitely going to check out the Wetlands Trail and some of the trails you can take to learn more about the mining history. There are several sights to see like old ore crushers and other historical relics and artifacts. If you want to learn more about the mining history you can click here. 

Overall, I’m happy with the trails we chose for our first outing to Ruffner Mountain. We never felt like we were in a rush and despite being so close to the city, it was a quiet and serene time in the forested areas. 

If you want to go check out some overlooks, see an amazing nature center or to go to weekly events, like a plant sale, every Saturday, I highly recommend going to Ruffner Mountain. It’s only a $5 parking fee for non-members to see some of the best trails and community events in Birmingham. 

If you’d like to become a member, Ruffner Mountain has partnered with Turkey Creek Preserve and Red Mountain under the Jefferson County Greenways Foundation, which means if you’re a member with one, you’re a member with all three. Membership gets you access to a member parking pass,  exclusive parking at Ruffner Mountain, member only programs, a newsletter and discounts for plant sales and other merchandise. They have different tiers of membership for individual, dual, household or steward membership that is either monthly or yearly-based. 

However, if you receive government assistance, are a college student, or live within Birmingham, Irondale or Pinson city limits, you are eligible to become a member for free. For more information, you can go here. 

Every visit helps Ruffner Mountain continue to work towards their mission. For an event calendar, you can go here. And for more visitation information, you can go here. 

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