business to the hotel, and its last season was 1900. Geology Geologically, Monte Sano is a mesa separated from the main Cumberland Plateau by the Flint River Valley. It is characterized by a resistant sandstone caprock of the Pennsylvanian Pottsville Formation overlying more soluble layers of Mississippian limestone. The Mississippian limestone is rich in marine fossils, especially crinoids and blastoids. Western Slope Much of the western slope of the mountain - the backdrop for downtown Huntsville and 2 miles from City Hall - comprises the Monte Sano Nature Preserve owned and managed by the Land Trust of North Alabama. Established in 1987 as Alabama's first land trust, the Land Trust of North Alabama is an accredited not-for-profit organization dedicated to preserving land, fresh water resources, local farms, and habitat. The Monte Sano Nature Preserve is one of the largest urban nature preserves in the US and one of six nature preserves in the area maintained by the Land Trust. The Monte Sano Nature Preserve consists of over 1,107 acres and offers 23+ miles of public trails. The extensive trail system, along with those of the Land Trust's Wade mountain, Harvest Square, and Blevins Gap Nature Preserve, are the first to be honored as National Recreation Trails in Madison County. Along with the Land Trust, volunteers have crafted and maintain the trails. Land Trust trails include Three Caves Loop, Bluff Line, Toll Gate, Alms House, Fagan Springs, Oak Park, and Old Railroad Bed trails. The Old Railroad Bed Trail preserves what is left of the path of the steam locomotive that traveled from the Huntsville Depot to the (no longer standing) Hotel Monte Sano from 1888 to 1896. This trail is one of the first 500 Rails to Trails. References External links "The Romance and Realism of Monte Sano", The Historic Huntsville Quarterly, Vol. VI, No. 4, Summer 1980 Monte Sano Historical Collection, The University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives and Special Collections Huntsville-Decatur, AL Combined Statistical Area Landforms of Madison County, Alabama Mesas of the United States Mountains of Alabama