Breweries in Birmingham, AL

One of my favorite hobbies besides traveling/hiking is tasting new craft beers. I have been spending a lot of time lately trying out new breweries in Birmingham, Alabama so I thought I would share some information about the different breweries that I have been to. 

Avondale Brewing Co: The inspiration for this brewery came from Miss Fancy the Elephant which is why you will see elephant symbols everywhere at the brewery and phrases like "Trunks Up". The atmosphere is perfect for a Saturday afternoon with some friends and your dog. When you enter from the front door you will find a very nice bar which is a great place to have a cold beer at night. On a nice day I urge you to explore their outdoor area where they frequently have live bands. On Saturdays you will find tons of people and dogs enjoying the weather and fenced in area for the dogs to run without leashes. My favorite of their beers is without competition the Vanillaphant Porter. It has the smooth, dark, and chocolatey characteristics of a porter but with a hint of vanilla. Its amazing. 

Back Forty Brewing Co: This brewery is located in Gadsden, Alabama and the space is much smaller  than that of Avondale. The environment is great and the bartenders are very friendly. They also have live music inside the taproom. They participate in a lot of local events and you can find a calendar of events on their website. My favorite beer at Back Forty is the Freckle Belly IPA. It has a bold hoppy finish that I love about IPAs. 

Cahaba Brewing: This brewery is relatively small compared to the others, producing only 3.5bbl (Barrel) at a time. The beer is tasty and the brewers and bartenders are friendly and will take the time to get to know their patrons. I love this about microbreweries! They have a few constant beers and then a few taps that rotate as the seasons change. I think the only thing they are missing at this point is a great stout, I wasn't crazy about their stout because it wasn't malty enough for my taste unfortunately. For others who don't like the deep malty characteristics of stouts- it may be perfect. I did like their IPA which is called the Oka Uba IPA. It is an easy to drink IPA because it has a low hop concentration at only 57 IBUs. I like the feel of their taproom because there are some games available and they open up the garage doors to make it feel very large and open. 

Good People: Good people has been around since 2008 and has developed some amazing beer recipes since that time. I loved hearing about how the brewery started because it was started by two friends who loved to brew in college and wanted to abandon their day jobs to pursue their brewing dreams. At the time they started brewing, they were not allowed to sell their beer in Alabama so they continued brewing and gave away their beer to friends for parties/weddings. Now that is dedication! Their location is prime because it is right across from Regions Park. If you are in the city for a game, stop by for a brew beforehand! My  beer of choice at Good People is the Coffee Oatmeal Stout. Oatmeal stouts aren't always easy to find, so when I see one I always try it. This stout is incredibly flavorful and you can definitely taste the coffee and malty flavors, alongside a bit of hoppy notes. 

If you aren't able to visit the taprooms while they are open- you can find most of the these beers at Whole Foods in Birmingham, Highland Package, Hop City, and sometimes even your local Publix. 

Sylacauga, Alabama Off-Roading

I am staying for the week with my boyfriend in Pell City, Alabama which means that I am not far at all from off-roading, hiking, and swimming in lakes! TripAdvisor will tell you that this area of Alabama has basically nothing to offer but I disagree.
We went with a group of friends and two Jeeps on an off-roading adventure. We got onto Forest Road 600-1 in the Talladega National Forest near Sylacauga, Alabama at Highway 148. The road starts out as basically a gravel one way road, as you keep venturing on it becomes more bumpy and rugged. There were a couple of very steep side trails that we were able to get the Wrangler up with a winch around a strong tree. We were definitely happy to be in jeeps with 4WD because some parts of the trail are VERY rugged and rocky. There are also some puddle areas with standing water (that smells awful) but are fun to drive through. 
We drove for about 2 hours and then stumbled across this beautiful look out point because the boys wanted to drive the jeeps up onto the rocks. It is called Heath Cliffs Overlook. As we walked over the rocks we were all in awe at the view. 

On the way back down the radiator cracked in one of the jeeps and it overheated. We had to tow it out with the other jeep through the rockiest and windiest parts of the trail. This was definitely a challenge and a bit nerve wracking through all of the trees. 

A few lessons learned

- Definitely do not go alone incase something happens to your jeep/truck. You will be very deep in the forest and will most likely not have cell service 

- There are many horse flies in this area so just be weary of this

- Bring water and snacks because it is a very long trail and there are no sources of water

- Bring your tools so you can try to fix anything you need to in the event that something happens

Even with the slight hiccup, it was an amazing day and a great first time off-roading experience for me!!

Charleston

After leaving Asheville we stopped at William B Umstead Park for some quick site seeing.The lake at the park was absolutely beautiful and there are plenty of hiking trails to do. I can only imagine how breathtaking it would be in the month of October when the leaves change colors. 

Our next destination was Charleston, South Carolina and I had picked out the beautiful  Angel Oak Park  to visit. I was anticipating a bit of walking and stretching my legs, but it is more of a park and sight see type of place. EIther way, the park is beautiful and the tree is incredible. Anticipate a lot of tourists while you are there. We were not able to get any pictures without tourists in them unfortunately. 

 

After the visiting the park we checked into our hotel, King Charles Inn. This is the only "nicer" hotel we stayed in during the whole trip. It was worth every penny because it was a great way to relax after a very active and busy trip. We were able to sleep in and since we were staying downtown we could walk to everything (PERFECT for after a week of being in the car) We did a lot of sight seeing down by the waterfront which was only five minutes from the hotel. The scenery reminded me a lot of my hometown Sarasota. 

We stayed in Charleston for two nights and then started the journey back to Orlando, FL. Below is a screen shot of our entire trip we planned out on Roadtrippers. I definitely suggest this website for anyone interested in planning a roadtrip! It will keep you organized and ensure you see everything you want to see. 

Let me know if you have any questions about any of the places! :)

Pisgah National Forest: Looking Glass Falls

Our journey took us next to the Pisgah National Forest as we traveled towards Asheville, North Carolina. If you want to see a beautiful waterfall that you do not need to hike too Looking Glass Falls is perfect for that. You can venture down the stairs to get a closer look, or stay at the road level for a great view. Since we were there in December you were not able to swim (I definitely did not want to anyway it was very cold!!!). I imagine it is a great swimming spot in the summer though! 

After visiting the beautiful waterfall we headed over to Looking Glass Rock trail for an amazing hike. It is about 6.5 miles total with an elevation change of 1700 feet. The trail is definitely challenging and there are many points where it seems like it is over but you need to just continue finding the blazes and trek on. When you get to the top it becomes completely clear why this viewpoint is so popular. The view is absolutely breathtaking. 

After eating a couple cliff bars at the top and soaking in the view, we headed back down and drove directly to Oskar Blues Brewery in Brevard, North Carolina for a few hard-earned beers. At the time we were there they had received a few christmas trees from their other location in Colorado and threw them directly into one of the Old Chub batches (Old Chub is a Scottish Style Ale). They called this concoction Christmas Chub and it tasted incredible. We got a private tour from one of the bartenders and it was probably one of the most fun tours we have been on at a brewery. She took the time to get to know us and told us new information about brewing that we didn't know, instead of just reciting the same spiel that they give to everyone. Overall it was a great experience and we even went home with an amazing growler that keeps beer cold for about 36 hours!

I am already planning my next trip back to North Carolina and the Pisgah National Forest! So many amazing views still to see. 

Great Smoky Mountains: Cades Cove

            This adventure was part of my Graduation Roadtrip with my boyfriend. After leaving Nashville we drove directly to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains. There is an 11 mile loop that is perfect for sight seeing of mountains and wildlife. There are many stop off points where you can get a quick hike in and have some up-close encounters with deer. We were there in the winter so we did not see any bears but I'm sure in other seasons you may see some bear as well. We didn't plan out which trails we wanted to do off of the loop, we just hopped out of the car when we felt like it! The important thing to remember in winter is that although it is a desirable time to go because there aren't as many tourists, some of the waterfalls may be dry if there hasn't been a lot of rain. We hiked to a waterfall only to find out when we got there that it was dry. Regardless, the mountains in the backdrop make this an incredible driving and hiking route!! 

We spent about four hours here, I definitely could have spent an entire day but we had to get on the road and head to Asheville!! More to come on Asheville adventures :)

How To Find A Job You Will Enjoy

            I recently completed the dreadful journey of job searching. I turned down a full time salaried job offer for an internship with no benefits and low pay in order to follow my dream. In the end my dream wasn't what I wanted to do anymore and I had to do a lot of soul searching to figure out what exactly I wanted to do. After five years of engineering school I thought I would have my life figured out- this was not the case. As most of my friends began getting amazing job offers for their "dream jobs" and I continued to work at an internship I did not love I began to feel very depressed. I think the hardest part for me was that what I thought was my dream job was not at all what I enjoyed doing. This was truly shocking when I was so confident before. 
            I suppose you can't truly know until you try it, but I think we all have the hope that if we do get the opportunity to pursue our dream job- it will make us truly happy. In the event that it does not, you need to get back on your feet and try again. If you are having some trouble figuring out what it is that you would truly enjoy doing, read some of my tips that helped me. 

1. Look to where your mind goes when it wanders: maybe this will lead you to the correct path. Do you craft baking recipes? Imagine a room with better furniture? Think about how processes could be more efficient? For me it was constantly thinking about global climate change and how buildings could save energy. Styrofoam coffee cups in the break rooms made me cringe and I never understood why so many lights were left on throughout the night. This day dreaming helped lead my path to the job I want to have, and the person I want to become. 

2. Figure out your strengths: I'm not talking about your "organizational skills, multi-tasking, and passion" that you describe in job interviews. Get real with yourself, what are your strengths? Do you find yourself a natural leader and excellent project manager? Are you creative and able to imagine finished products before they are even created? Find out what you are good at and write it down. 

3. Stop worrying about your 5 and 10 year plan: You cannot plan for ten years ahead from now, you have no idea where you will want to be or what will make you happy so stop worrying about it. Many professionals I have interacted with were doing something completely different in a polar opposite industry 10 years ago. Give yourself the freedom to do what makes you happy today and this year. 

4. Be open to try something new: Don't limit yourself to the strengths you listed earlier, simply use them as a guiding light. If you have absolutely no idea what you want to do then you shouldn't limit yourself. Try something new and out of your comfort zone, it may be perfect for you. If not shake it off and try again. 

5. Consider a year of service: I considered joining the AmeriCorp for a year while I did some soul searching, before I stumbled across the job I will be starting in the next month. There is nothing more humbling or mentally clarifying then service in your local community. If you can't commit to a year, consider volunteering a few days a week while you are job searching. It will keep your spirits up. 

But most importantly... 

6. Dont give up hope: When you become mentally defeated, it shows. People can sense when you lose your spirit and zest for life. Do not let this happen to you. Job searching is stressful, terrifying, and frustrating. But it is also exciting and the beginning of something wonderful. You will only find your dream job when you are happy and optimistic, so try to keep a great attitude throughout the grueling process.