Cheaha State Park: Leave No Trace Bigfoot Challenge Trail

Last updated: August 15, 2023

In January 2023, I went to Cheaha State Park for the sole purpose of visiting Alabama’s highest point, but it was shut down due to a recent storm. While this was a major disappointment, I still enjoyed other features of the park by visiting Pulpit Rock, Bald Rock Overlook and even explored the neighboring Talledega Forest by hiking to High Falls.

Fast forward to July 2023 and I’m back again, this time with my parents to finally make my way to Alabama’s highest point. While there, I took the opportunity to show them Pulpit Rock, Bald Rock Overlook, and we hiked the Leave No Trace Bigfoot Challenge Trail. Afterwards, we headed to Talledega National Forest so we could hike to Devil’s Den Falls. I’m happy to share with you my experience with the Leave No Trace Bigfoot Challenge Trail below!

Since we had driven right up to the high point, I decided that I needed to take a hiking trail when leaving. It just felt wrong that I had driven right up to it… like I hadn’t earned the right to stand on the highest point. It was just… too easy! So when I saw that I could take a trail down to one of the main parking lots, I jumped at the chance. If you go visit Alabama’s highest point, I highly recommend taking this trail (well, it’s the only trail I saw) to get the highest point rather than driving up. At only a half mile, it’s super easy, plus they made an attempt to make it fun by hiding some sightings of Bigfoot along the way. A bit cheesy, yes, but come on… you only live once so just enjoy all the things.

Ok, so here’s the scoop. We drive up, park, explore the highpoint, pictures…. the whole shebang. Once I exhausted those efforts, I began to look around to see what else was available. Across the road from the highpoint, there is a giant display of none other than Bigfoot himself. I didn’t picture him to be so friendly looking, but here he is.

As I was taking the above photo, I realized there was absolutely no way to get a photo without the reflection…. So we decided to just do a group photo with Bigfoot (you can see Bunker Tower behind me). Like I said… just make the best of life and find joy in all the things.

His sign says, “Leave no Trace. Bigfoot’s been doing it for years.” This is meant to be a educational program to teach the importance of hiking etiquette. I personally thought incorporating Bigfoot into this message was quite clever, especially to make it memorable for kids.

Close by was the Leave No Trace Bigfoot Challenge trailhead, and this is when I decided I would redeem myself and earn my visit to the highpoint. The purpose of the trail is to once again educate about the importance of leaving no trace. There are signs along the trail with Leave No Trace Outdoor Ethics on them. I know I mentioned kids above, but a lot of adults need to take this trail and read these ethics as well (yes, person who litters on hiking trails… I’m talking to you!). Let’s talk about this for a moment…

A brief history on the Leave No Trace Ethics (you knew I’d go here)

During the 1960s and 1970’s, outdoor recreational items became more widely available, and the technology was significantly improved upon. Gas stoves were developed, in addition to synthetic tents and sleeping pads, making the outdoors more accessible to a wider variety of folks.

With the new influx of so many visitors, National Park officials began teaching about the importance of having a minimal effect on the land. And in 1987, “Leave No Trace Land Ethics” was officially coined. Here they are:

1. Leave What You Find.
2. Plan Ahead and Prepare.
3. Respect Wildlife.
4. Dispose of Waste Properly.
5. Be Careful with Fire.
6. Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces.
7. Be Considerate of Others.

They are proudly displayed along this unique trail.

Okay, now that we’ve been educated, let’s talk about this hike. The challenge part of the hike is to see how many Bigfoot (Bigfeet?) you can find hidden along the trail. I found two and my dad found one. I literally would have never noticed the one he spotted. Apparently there are SEVEN??? I found this out afterwards on the Cheaha State Park Facebook page. Well, it’s Bigfoot… he’s really good at hiding, but… seven???? Where the heck was he. Lol. Anywho, here are the ones we found! I think it’s clear which one I would have missed… can you see him?

The trail was narrow but there were some photo worthy moments along the way…

So really; take this trail if you go visit Alabama’s highest point. It’s only a mile round trip and I want to know where those other four Bigfoot (I truly want to say Bigfeet) are located!

Happy hunting! Perhaps there some sort of call you could use? 😆