Birmingham, Alabama
Season IV - Chapter 4
Mardi Gras to Maine
“The Art of the Motorcycle in the Heart of Dixie”
Yes, you read that correctly. Motorcycles as Art... but if you don’t believe me, check in with the curators at the Guggenheim. In the fall of 1998 the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of New York City presented the exhibit “The Art of the Motorcycle” with the majority of the displays on loan from from George Barber’s personal collection in Birmingham, Alabama. The overwhelming success with 1,620,000 attendees at five locations, prompted Mr. Barber to develop his own venue. The Barber Motorsports Park and Vintage Museum are beyond compare!
The interior is elegantly based on Frank Lloyd Wright’s flowing design. There you will find flawlessly restored examples of the most important motorcycles ever created, both visually and technically. The museum and it’s five floors take you on a journey from motorcycling humble beginnings to today’s leading edge of technology. Our memorable day was capped off by a ride of our own through Alabama’s hillsides with the Oaks in their spring glory.
We kept our excursions in Birmingham to the Sports Park and the Oak Mountain State Park. Miles of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding intersect here. We have much more horsepower than the equine equivalent, so it is hiking and biking for us. Eagles Nest was the trail to the top and well worth the climb. We enjoyed two other hikes to Tranquility Lake and Maggies Glen. The mountain bike trails provided four levels of challenge. We found that the intermediate the most rewarding.
Alabama lies directly in the heart of the Deep South and the museum here stole a bit of our hearts. As others have discovered, we did too, because here lies “The Art of the Motorcycle in the Heart of Dixie.”
Travel safe... and we will see you at the museum.
John and Caroline 🍀
Points of Interest
1. Hike: We chose to hike a few days and avoid the city and happenings of Birmingham. March Madness was happening in the city so we put on the hiking boots, strapped on our poles and headed a mile down the road to a few of the terrific hiking options: Eagle’s Nest Overlook, Maggie’s Glen along the creek, and a final hike around Lake Tranquility.
2. Bike: The Oak Mountain Campground is located within the park with park roads having bike lanes on both side of the road. The speed limit is 25 MPH so it is an easy bike ride around the park.
3. Bike: There are several mountain bike trails throughout the park. The difficulty can range from easy to quite difficult. Using our e-bikes we did find a moderate trail that kept us on the pegs for about 14 miles. Very fun!
4. The Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum: This is noted as the largest collection of motorcycles on the world as well as having a race track with track days and events. Be sure to check the schedule for special events; we enjoyed the Porsche track days during our visit.
Optional Scenic Motorcycle Route:
Lookout Mountain Scenic Parkway: 93 miles of vistas through 3 states: Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee.
While we did not ride this particular route it is listed as one of America’s scenic drives. We will have to catch this ride on our next trip through!
RV Location:
Oak Mountain State Park
200 Terrace Drive
Pelham, Alabama 35124
205-620-2527
*This is a “big rig” friendly park for driving, however, many of the sites are not full hook-up or large enough to accommodate so be certain to check in advance. We called and made our reservation over the phone and still only reserved a site with water and electric only.
