Alabama Wonderland Featuring Waterfalls & Glowing Worms Delays 2024 Opening

One of Alabama's most uniquely beautiful natural landmarks did not open to the public as planned last week after January ice storms wreaked havoc on the hypnotizing hidden gem.

Dismals Canyon can be found in Phil Campbell Alabama, less than two hours north of Tuscaloosa, and is a stunning and strange maze of stone, wood, moss and water that is home to hundreds of plant speices and tiny bioluminescent glowworms called Dismalites.

At night, they transform the already mystical landscape to near-magical as the creatures glow a soft blue and stand out against the surrounding darkness.

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The privately owned nature retreat usually opens to visitors in early March ahead of the Dismalites' peak Spring season from May through mid-June, offering guided night tours and more, but last week management took to Facebook to announce that winter weather earlier this year wreaked havoc on the North Alabama jewel.

"The ice storm in January caused extreme damage to the canyon such as downed trees, washed out areas, etc," they wrote. "To ensure that the Dismalites habitat (moss) is not affected, the clean up could take some time. Please bear with us as we attend to the canyon."

No update from the Dismals Canyon team about when they will now open in 2024, but we hope the damage is not lasting and this treasure of the Yellowhammer State will start welcoming visitors again soon.