Smith Mountain Alpine Trail: A Hike with History

Smith Mountain Alpine Trail, located near Dadeville, Alabama, offers a unique blend of natural beauty and historical significance. The highlight is the Smith Mountain Fire Tower, a 90-foot structure erected in 1939 as part of a fire detection network. For four decades, it served as a sentinel over Lake Martin and the surrounding woodlands. In 2010, the Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail Association (CRATA) acquired the tower and surrounding land, restoring it with the help of volunteers and donors. Today, the tower is open to the public, offering panoramic views of Lake Martin and the distant Talladega National Forest. The surrounding area features old-growth mountain longleaf pine forests and secluded shorelines. The trail system includes the steep, but short, Tower Trail (0.4 miles to the tower's base), the Lakeshore Trail (2.4 miles), the David M. Forker Island Hop/Boat Dock Trail (1.4 miles to the dock), and the challenging Little Smith Mountain Loop Trail (2.6 miles). The trails range from moderate to difficult, with the Little Smith Mountain Loop Trail noted for its potentially dangerous sheer cliffs.