Although Northeastern Alabama has small mountains, once you go as far south as Anniston, hills are few and far between.  This is why Cheaha Mountain is so special. The mountain appears quite large in rather flat topography and dominates the skyline for miles around.  There are a number of hiking trails up Cheaha mountain, but my friend and I actually drove up part of the summit road.  We had to hike 2 miles to the summit of Cheaha Mountain due to an accident caused by ice on the road (Alabama doesn't have a budget for salting their roads).  The hike was fun until we decided to take a shortcut and ran into some nasty thorn bushes.   The views from the area around the top are pretty nice, but Alabama in general is quite a pretty state.  I really enjoyed the ride down I-59 in Northeast Alabama to Anniston.  We stayed there the night before the hike, and found the town very pleasant.  If you go, make sure to get some Alabama Barbeque, it is delicious!