On August 26th, Freshwater Land Trust (FLT) hosted a ribbon cutting for the final segment of the Hugh Kaul Trail, formerly known as the Continental Gin Connector. This final segment connects 41st Street in Avondale to the historic Continental Gin Complex, home to Cahaba Brewing.
Earlier this spring, the first Hugh Kaul Trail segment (formerly known as the Jones Valley Trail extension) was completed, which connects Rotary Trail to Avondale, spanning from 1st Ave South and 24th Street to 41st Street.
The entire Hugh Kaul Trail is approximately 1.9 miles and is a critical component to ultimately connecting downtown Birmingham to Ruffner Mountain. View our Find a Trail map to check it out.
The Hugh Kaul Foundation’s generous support for the growing Red Rock Trail System resulted in naming rights for this trail.
“Trail projects of this magnitude aren’t possible without committed community partners,” said Carolyn Buck, FLT’s Red Rock Trail System Director.
The Hugh Kaul Trail is part of Red Rock Trail System’s Jones Valley Trail corridor that runs through the middle of Birmingham and includes outdoor destinations like Railroad Park, Rotary Trail, Sloss Furnaces, and the Pepper Place Market District. Commuters frequent the existing trail, cycling, running, and walking between Birmingham’s eastern, western, and downtown communities.
“The Jones Valley Trail corridor is already loved by many and is now accessible to many more now that the entire Hugh Kaul Trail is complete,” said Buck.
FLT is currently in the final stages of updating the Red Rock Trail System’s 10-year master plan to determine priority trail projects in Jefferson County. FLT has been working with the national active transportation company, Alta Planning + Design, and local engineering firm, Dynamic Civil Solutions to produce the updated plan.
The Hugh Kaul Trail is part of the growing Red Rock Trail System, which Freshwater Land Trust is responsible for facilitating in Jefferson County, and it follows the completion of a number of popular other Red Rock trails, including Rotary Trail, Kiwanis Vulcan Trail, and the High Ore Line to Red Mountain Park connection.