Distance: 300 Yards
Difficulty: Easy
Russell Cave National Monument is one of 1500 caves in Jackson County, Alabama. While the cave pictured above is at least 7.5 miles long, visitors cannot enter the cave. Instead, visitors can hike 300 yards to the Russell Cave Shelter, a large opening where prehistoric people are believed to have used as long as 10,000 years ago.
The National Monument also has a museum at the trail head containing artifacts from the several tribes which used the shelter, as well as information on the natural and geologic developments of an area with more caves per square mile than any other county in America.
Directions:
From Chattanooga, Tennessee:
1. Go West on Interstate 24 for approximately 26.5 miles and take Exit onto Hwy. 72
2. Take U.S. Highway 72 West to County Road 75.
3. Turn Right onto County Road 75 and continue one mile.
4. Turn Right onto County Road 98 for four miles.
5. Turn Left into the entrance of the park.