Little River Canyon National Preserve

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Little River Canyon National Preserve

Location:	Northeastern Alabama, USA
Nearest city:	Fort Payne, Alabama
Area:	13,633 acres (55.17 km²)
Established:	October 24, 1992
Total Visitation:	201,442 (in 2005)
Governing body:	National Park Service

Little River Canyon National Preserve is a United States National Preserve located near Fort Payne, Alabama and nearby DeSoto State Park. Created by an act of Congress in 1992, the nearly 14,000 acre (57 km²) preserve protects what is sometimes said to be the nation's longest mountaintop river, the Little River. The Canyon was historically called "May's Gulf", "gulf" being a common term throughout the Cumberland Plateau for this sort of feature (e.g. Savage Gulf in Tennessee).

The Little River flows for almost its entire length down the middle of Lookout Mountain in northeast Alabama. Over eons of geologic time, Little River has carved out one of the Southeast's deepest canyons as it winds its way from headwaters in Georgia before exiting the mountain and emptying into the Coosa River (Weiss Lake impoundment) near Leesburg, Alabama. Legend has it that a minor Civil War skirmish occurred on the rim.

Little River Canyon

Because there are no dams to regulate its flow and few man-made developments to pollute its waters, the river is among the cleanest and wildest waterways in the South. Sandstone cliffs tower up to 600 feet (200 m) above the narrow canyon floor, providing a rock climber's paradise and eye-popping vistas from overlooks along the 23 mile (37 km) scenic drive known as Little River Canyon Rim Parkway (AL 176, Dekalb C.R. 148, Cherokee C.R. 275) on the canyon's western rim. The northern half of this road was built under federal supervision in the New Deal era. The southern half was built by local authorities and suffers from erosion and occasional bridge washout, and is marked by steep grades that may be difficult for some vehicles.

Eberhart Point, above the confluence of Bear Creek and the Little River, is the most convenient point for descents to the bottom of the Canyon. Hikers may follow a rough eroded path, the remnant of a vehicle access-way which was constructed during the course of a ski-lift and amusement park project which the State of Alabama permitted a consortium of Fort Payne businessmen to undertake in the late Sixties. The project was abandoned in a couple of years, though visitors may still see debris in Pine Tree Hole, in the bottom of the canyon. An unmaintained but fairly well-defined trail proceeds approximately eight miles to the canyon mouth. Heading upstream is much more problematic. Camping is not currently permitted in the Canyon.

There are currently very few visitor facilities operated by the National Park Service within the preserve. DeSoto State Park, operated by the Alabama State Park System, is located within the preserve boundaries and has a lodge, restaurant, several campgrounds, and other facilities. A campground at one time existed where the Little River exits the Canyon, but the proprietors were known for lack of hospitality and the facility was finally destroyed by floodwaters and abandoned.

There has been little land acquisition since the New Deal era and the immediate area of the the Canyon is being encroached upon by real estate speculation, vacation house and even subdivision development.