Lake Lurleen State Park: WiFi & Wildflowers
We love camping at Lake Lurleen State Park. The lake is large and beautiful. The sites are huge and many of them overlook the lake. As with many Alabama State Parks, most of the sites have electric, sewer and water. The park is clean, remote and the staff is first-rate!
With approximately 19.5 miles of trails, you will find them perfect for short hikes or long bike trips.
WiFi Signal Problem
The MAIN difficulty with this park and really, the ONLY downside for us wanderers, is the lack of internet and phone signal. The park is in a valley and the cell towers are up on the hill. Our phones may receive a text, sporadically, but that is few and far between.
Before we made our next trip to Lake Lurleen, I saw some YouTubers talk about the same problem and they said it was solved by using a booster system. Having researched boosters, we bought and installed the SolidRF Signal Booster.
Every morning, I would jump in the truck with my laptop and MiFi card to get signal. It was about a 7 mile drive until I could reach strong enough signal to check my email and phone messages. Since my businesses are 100% internet-based, I found myself having to make this trip multiple times throughout the day… THEN… I thought… “what if my drone could carry my MiFi card into the sky and connect with a tower?” So, two questions:
First: “Will the State Park let me fly my drone?” I got permission.
Second: “If I send the MiFi card 100-200 feet into the air, will the MiFi signal be strong enough for me to still connect to it?” It does!
Make sure you watch the video below to see how I connect to the cell tower using my drone and MiFi card! I am probably the first camper to actually watch a streaming YouTube! 😉
Here is a link to the parts that I used to make my “Drone MiFi”
https://kit.co/Atlantic2Pacific/wifi-booster-and-drone-kit
Wildflower Hike
SuzAnne has the uncanny ability to find wildflowers whenever we hike. Until she started to show me wildflowers as we walked trails, everything just seemed to be another green weed – to me. She can pick out the smallest of flowers that I NEVER would have paid attention to! Today’s hike is NO exception! In fact, I never saw or heard of this flower until we made this video.
While hiking this trail in northern Alabama, SuzAnne said that she was looking for a “little brown jug.” Mind you, hiking in the woods of Alabama, looking for a “little brown jug,” a wildflower is the last thing that comes to my mind! Did she stumble into someone’s backyard still?!
Seriously though, this plant is hidden under thick leaf litter. You can find the plant by finding the main heart-shaped leaf that extends above the leaf litter. Watch the video below and you will see this amazingly cool plant!