Ruffner Mountain is a 1,011 acres (4 km2) nature preserve located in the eastern portions of Birmingham, Alabama, near the neighboring suburb of Irondale. The preserve includes a visitor center containing native Alabama animals including raptors, snakes, turtles and owls.
The Ruffner Mounain area was home to iron ore mines and stone quarries, supplying the area's steel mills. When the mines played out in the 1950s, nature reclaimed the area.
The preserve contains 11 miles (18km) of hiking trails.
In 2006 Ruffner Mountain Nature Center announced plans to expand the park by 500 to 700 acres (2.8 km2) at a cost of around $11 million. The addition would make Ruffner Mountain's nature preserve one of America's largest urban nature preserves at around 1,511 to 1,711 acres (7 km2).
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