Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground is now open for limited day use 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, effective Friday, Oct. 21, 2022. Mobile County is waiving admission fees while park use is limited during continued construction.
Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground is located at 15551 Moffett Road in Wilmer, Alabama and visitors now have day-use access to the river and beaches, restrooms and parking, pavilions with picnic tables and grills, as well as some walking trails. Park signage guides visitors to the open areas of the park.
Commissioner Connie Hudson held a brief soft opening program that included welcoming visitors back to the park, thanking Gov. Kay Ivey and Commissioner Chris Blankenship of Alabama’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for the $3.5 million state GOMESA grant, which has funded park improvements to date. She also introduced and thanked key staffers, key people involved with design and construction as well as Larry and Janice Godfrey, who owned and operated the park for 33 years. Associate Pastor William Dunam of Wilmer Baptist Church offered a blessing of the park and all who use it. The soft opening event concluded with tours of the day-use area and river/beach access area.
Commissioner Connie Hudson said, “We wanted to open it absolutely as soon as possible.” She further explained, “What started out as 45 acres is now 200 acres with roughly 50 acres along the waterfront. We’re proud and blessed to have this now in the County’s inventory and we hope you enjoy it as much as we’ve enjoyed being a part of it so far,” said Hudson.
“My vision is that this be family oriented,” Hudson explained. “We invite everyone to come out to Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground, spend a lot of time here and enjoy it with your families,” she added.
Park Improvement Phase 1A is substantially complete, which included infrastructure work like water/sewer, roads and parking lots, a day-use area with beach access, restrooms, parking, eight picnic pavilions (including handicap accessible), and walking trails – these are open for visitors to enjoy. The 32-pad RV campground with a restroom/shower/laundry facility is expected to open in early 2023.
The beach access area, accessible only via a walking trail, includes a small launch and visitors are welcome to bring their own kayaks, canoes or similar to Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground. Rentals are in future plans, but are not available at present.
Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground is still under construction and many exciting additions are underway. Phase 1B construction will begin later this fall and includes a café, general store, black water river interpretive center and playground.
Phase 2 is in planning and future amenities are expected to include rentable cabins and a few novelty tree houses, a small conference center, a disc golf course, more river beach access areas, rentals for tubing or paddling, as well as more walking and biking trails.
All Mobile County parks are designed to be family-friendly allowing visitors of all ages to enjoy the beautiful outdoors. Visitors should leave only footprints in the park – litter is prohibited. Leashed pets are permissible, but owners should pick up after their animals. The use of alcohol and similar substances are strictly prohibited. ATVs are prohibited.
Escatawpa Hollow Park & Campground construction is part of the Mobile County Commission’s multi-year, $40 million parks improvement initiative that includes $35 million to increase public access to water. The Parks Initiative and these park improvements, funded by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA), are designed to increase public access to shoreline recreational areas including the black waters of the Escatawpa River. The park encompasses a diverse ecosystem of native plant and animal life for the enjoyment of all guests.
For more information contact MoCoParks@mobilecountyal.gov or 251-574-7275.
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