Irondale Furnace Park

The furnace ruins.

So since I posted about Jemison Park I thought I'd post about some of the other trails we've been on recently with Wiley.

One of our favorite trails is the Irondale Furnace Park. When I was a kid I was the "little sister" of a Big Brothers, Big Sisters duo. One of my favorite "Big Sisters", Katheryn, had family that lived up in Mountain Brook. I remember going over to their beautiful home (even more beautiful because her mother was a fantastic gardner--I mean, she did landscaping type stuff for a living). I also recalled them taking me to a trail that lead to an old cannonball factory. They sent me off to hunt for pieces of cannonball and we let her dogs run free. I kept that memory and mentioned it to Patrick, tried looking up directions but couldn't really find any since I didn't know what the park was actually called. I thought I could find it so we tried driving through where I thought it was, but we got lost (and I get car sick easily so getting lost in Mountain Brook is the worst). Finally, after searching online several times I found actual directions to get to the park (sadly, it's as easy as looking up Mountain Brook's website with their parks and trails--but since I didn't know the name of the trail it didn't automatically pop up with that sight when I was trying to look). The first time we went I was about 8-9 months pregnant with Wiley, it was mid-July and burning up. We went early in the morning to be able to even tolerate the heat. I have no idea how I managed walking this trail as pregnant as I was, but I did.

The entrance to the park our first visit.

It's a very beautiful trail beside a creek with houses on the other side (I'm sure on both sides, but you only really get a good view of the beautiful houses whose backyards go up to the creek).

Near the entrance.

I want to say this trail is about a mile one way, but I'm not sure right now off the top of my head. So after Wiles was born I had had the c-section and had to give up all of the wonderful walking and swimming I was doing because I hurt so much and wore out so easily. Then it got cold and I don't really have the right clothes  and right now we don't have the money for new clothes for the cold so I tend to hide away inside. Finally, on a pretty, warmer day we managed to go back.

On the trail

We like trails also because our poor dog doesn't get walked as much as she should, but she loves going on walks. So it's cheap, healthy and a way to get some of Lupe's energy out.

Everybody but me in front of the ruins.

Wiley looks un-impressed because he'd been eating before this.

We have had a bit of issue with people letting their dogs run loose on the trail. Not so much the people who have their dogs on the trial (who for the most part have been good and friendly. We'd let Lupe off-leash if she didn't try to act all tough when other dogs were around), but the people who own houses right at the end seem to let their dog loose and we've had to deal with a dog running down their hill barking at us and then both times the dog followed us (I don't even know that they were the same dog, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt it is). I mean, if I lived right by a trail like that I'd at least have an electric fence to keep my dog from following some strangers home. 

We got there about an hour before sundown.

It really is a beautiful trail, though. It's also very easy (hence why I could walk it at 8.5 months pregnant) and I think it's going to be one of our regular go-to trails.

Most importantly, Lupe approves.

"Approved!"