Diliberto Shares Outdoors at Alabama State Parks

By DAVID RAINER, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Tony Diliberto has always been drawn to the outdoors, and he is now sharing his love of the outdoors with others. What started by chance a few years ago has become a ministry of sorts for Diliberto, who uses Alabama State Parks to introduce families to the wonders of nature, the joy of being outdoors and away from distractions. It began with just a few dads and kids and now has grown into an annual event he calls the Dads and Kids Weekend with as many as 25 participating.

Diliberto, who was born in Birmingham but grew up in Gulf Shores, was involved in scouting from an early age. His father, also Tony (not a Sr.), was the scoutmaster in Gulf Shores, and camping and outdoors adventures were a part of his life, from exploring the family property north of the Intracoastal Waterway to the beaches and all that entails.

“I grew up watching my dad take me and my buddies camping,” said “Little” Tony. “I’m totally an outdoors guy. I would prefer to be sleeping in a hammock under the stars than anything in the world.”

Diliberto’s outdoor adventures aren’t limited to camping. His other activities include whitewater kayaking, mountain biking and paddle boarding, both whitewater and river paddling.

“In my friend group, if you want to go camping, I’m the guy you want to go with,” he said.   

Back in 2021, Diliberto and friends were hanging out when someone posed a question about his outdoors experience.

“My buddy’s brother-in-law, who used to play football at UAB (University of Alabama-Birmingham), was sitting there, and he looked at me and said, ‘You do that camping thing, don’t you?’ I said I do. He said, ‘I want to take my kid camping, but I’m better at hotels. I don’t want to take him camping and mess it up for him where he would never want to go again.’ I told him I would love to take them camping. That’s how this was born.”

The first weekend camping adventure involved three dads and three sons at Oak Mountain State Park near Birmingham. The kids were 5-6 years old.

“The funny thing is it rained and stormed, probably the worst conditions to introduce kids to camping at that age, and they had a blast,” Diliberto said. “I went by Walmart on my way to the park to get one last thing, and I had a thought that I ought to buy them squirt guns because we were going to play in the paddle boats at the lake. They started out as squirt guns, playing in the lake. By the time we got back, they had turned into swords. When they broke into pieces, they turned into microphones. For a dollar apiece, that was the best three dollars I’ve ever spent.

“Those kids ran around in the woods. They didn’t care. They got bitten by mosquitoes – all of the things they would have whined and cried about at the soccer field. They were filthy and had the best time of their lives.”

When the renovation of the campground at Oak Mountain started, Diliberto didn’t realize their usual camping area was going to be closed and had to change plans a month before another of their camping weekends was scheduled.

“I called Guntersville (State Park) and told them what was going on, and they said come on, we’ve got you covered,” he said. “They kind of treated us like a scout troop. I think we had 24 people that year.”

With that many people involved, Diliberto spends plenty of preparation time before the camping weekends to determine menus and work around any food allergies. He also plans the weekends with an activity on Saturday. He said the main activity on Saturday is paddling in the paddle boats or kayaks, unless there’s bad weather. Then they explore other natural wonders in the area, like Cathedral Caverns (State Park), and this year they went to High Falls (Park east of Guntersville). 

“The park (Guntersville) is so nice that when we get back from the activity, we feed them hot dogs, and they go play basketball or join in activities at the park, like nature classes,” Diliberto said. “The ladies at the camping headquarters are so good to us and make it really easy for us. 

“One of the cool things is that every year I do a memory book. All the fathers download their photos to me, and over the next month or so, I build a memory book. So, I have a memory book all the way from year one. It’s a nice hardback book, and you can see the kids growing up. As a guy who doesn’t have children, I’ve become Uncle Tony to these kids.”

Since the camping adventures started, the kids have learned more camping skills, and the fathers have progressed as well.

“Every year, they’re showing up with better tents,” Diliberto said. “They started out with really cheap tents that barely made it through the night. One dad even bought a pickup. These are basically dads who don’t do the outdoors thing. One dad showed up in a Tesla, and the kids were teasing him about it, so he went out and bought a Ford F-150 so he would have a truck to drive.”

Diliberto’s group includes a wide variety of backgrounds. The camping weekend this year even included a celebrity, comedian Roy Wood, Jr., and his son.

Because of the group’s minimal outdoors experience, Diliberto starts with the basics of camping, like how to avoid poison ivy on hiking trips, exploring nature and preparing meals. He also throws in a little responsibility when it comes to doing the necessary chores.

“Then I teach them how to build a fire,” he said. “They all have to learn that. One thing I’ve learned is they all like to light the match, but they hate having to get the wood. They don’t want to gather the sticks because they want to be playing. So, I make them get the sticks and organize them into piles. Then I show them how to start a fire.”

Diliberto is president of the Alabama Cup Racing Association that holds whitewater paddling events. Through the association, he has access to a 10 foot by 20 foot tent that he uses as the camping headquarters. It provides shelter and is also where he does most of the cooking, except for the evening meals, when the dads and kids participate.

“We do what I call hobo dinners, food wrapped in foil,” Diliberto said. “The dads and kids help me cut up the carrots, onions and potatoes. They build their dinners and put whatever they want in the foil packs. They watch their food cook. We do biscuits on a stick. It’s a lot about exposure and teaching them how to cook.”

A few times, planned activities had to be shelved because the kids were exhausted and ready to crawl into their sleeping bags.

“We have kids passed out everywhere,” Diliberto said. “There is so much snoring going on.”

As much as he’s seen the kids mature in their love of the outdoors, he’s observed that the fathers have embraced new experiences as well.

“We’ve taken their fathers out of their comfort zones,” Diliberto said. “The sons see their fathers when they’re not in their elements. The teaching is exposing them to being comfortable in nature. My number one goal is just to make them comfortable in an environment that is totally foreign to them.

“And with all the activities these kids have these days, they don’t have time just to be kids. When they go camping, they love it.”

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