Art comes in many forms, sizes, colors and shapes, but one that is readily found across Alabama is the mural.

In fact, the state has so many in its northernmost counties that the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association in Decatur decided to promote what is calls the North Alabama Mural Trail.

The “trail” encompasses more than 125 works across 16 counties, including Limestone. Athens itself houses multiple stops along the route.

Alabama Mountain Lakes offers an online download at northalabama.org where participants can keep track of where included murals are located and use a phone GPS to check in at each stop.

“We all prosper by working together in a unified effort to promote the 16-county region’s natural, historic and man-made attractions,” the organization said on its website.

Teresa Todd, president of the Athens-Limestone Tourism Association, which is a member of Alabama Mountain Lakes, said she thinks the murals help get people out of the house and offer a chance to learn some history of where each piece is located.

For example, the tribute board of Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Brittany Howard that is now housed in Merchant’s Alley on The Square not only honors the talented artist, its shows visitors who may be unaware of her origins that she is from Athens.

Merchant’s Alley as a whole is among the stops listed on the mural trail. Also included is the Athens mural painted by Athens High School students on Market Street as part of the state Bicentennial festivities in 2018.

Further downtown is the mural honoring veterans outside the Alabama Veterans Museum and Archives on Pryor Street, which is also a part of the trail. Other works of art in Athens and other areas of Limestone County can be added to the list as well, like the butterfly mural painted in Ardmore, among others.

Todd said she is hoping to have a brand new mural painted at Big Spring Memorial Park in the near future. Her plan is to commission a mural depicting Athens State University in honor of its 200th anniversary.

“I thought that would be an awesome thing,” Todd said. “Maybe it will depict some of the past presidents of the university, or some of the strong women that have worked there over the years.”