Event: Tombigbee Food, Fun and Fossils
Time: Nov. 10-11
Event Type: Educational event
Location: Old Lock Number One Park near Jackson
Cost: $60
Event Website: www.alabamascenicrivertrail.com
Sponsor: Alabama Scenic River Trails
Contact: Linda Vice asrttreasurer@gmail.com
Info: Old Lock Number One Park, near Jackson Alabama
We will camp the night at Old Lock Number One Park , a US Army Corps of Engineers primitive campsite. The campsite there is partly an ancient pecan grove and partly the ancient wooden lock that served steamboats so long ago. It's now located on a dead arm of the Tombigbee that will be our point of embarkation. ASRT Executive Director Jim Felder will lead the group the short distance to one of the the greatest fossil finds you will ever experience, featuring millions of specimens of this beautifully preserved world class fossil set. We will paddle to the bluffs below the historic dead town of St Stephens, Alabama's former territorial capital and currently a state archaeological site..

Registration begins Friday afternoon, November 9th. The event will take place all day Saturday November 10th and as much of Sunday, November 11th as you care to paddle and explore.

Here's one of the best paddle trips we ever put on. After registration, attendees will be treated to a home-cooked meal at ASRT vice president Linda Vice's charming home in Thomasville, followed by a walking tour of the historic little town. We did this last year and people are still talking about it. This is southern hospitality at its best.

We’ll visit Moscow Landing, where—after a steep river bluff scramble, so bring good shoes—we will walk to the Cretacious-Tertiary Boundary (also known as the K-T Boundary) which formed when an immense meteor struck Mexico and ended the age of large reptiles, beginning the age of mammals. This is probably your best opportunity to see the K-T boundary anywhere on earth. Fossil-finding is great in this area, too and will be a feature of our trip. Moscow Landing is over an hour drive, so be sure to fill your tank and make arrangements to share a ride.

No matter what we choose to do during the day, we will retire to Old Lock Number One campsite for the evening where our evening meal will be served.

After a discussion of the area's rich history, the usual enjoyable campfire sessions and a good night's sleep, we will rise to a provided breakfast and strike out by self-carry caravan to take our boats to Lenoir Landing. We will put in at the ramp there and spend the rest of the morning exploring the exquisitely wild Choctaw Wildlife Management Area, a paddler and birdwatcher's delight. Expect to see kingfishers, Mississippi kites, swallowtail kites and eagles soaring above. After the paddle, we will load up and head to our respective homes. Interstate 59/20 is conveniently close, with an opportunity to eat an early supper in or near Birmingham.

Both campsites are operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The sites are quiet and secluded primitive camping with concrete pads and grass and nearby nearby water. ASRT will set up hot portable showers. Old Lock Number One park features a covered pavilions and picnic tables and indoor toilets. Lenoir landing, where we will be day-tripping but not camping, has a pit toilet near the ramp.

The price of this action-packed weekend of discovery is $60 (ASRT members receive a $15.00 discount), for which you get

* A first-class introduction to the Tombigbee and the US Army Corps of Engineers parks that serve it
* One of the country's most geologically-accessible areas depicting a snapshot of a time 86 million years ago that you can't get anywhere else
* A glimpse of early Alabama history
* Five meals and great southern hospitality
* Campsites (they're free to us, we're passing the savings to you).
* Insurance (except for your personal component, read on)
* The cameraderie and fun that the Alabama Scenic River Trail has become known for—the best part of the trip, many say.

Daily paddle mileage: 4 to 5 miles
Meals: All meals catered or prepared on site for you
Camping: Included
Cost: $60 for ACA members plus $5.00 personal insurance component for non-members, ASRT members save $15 on the event fee.