Cullman County is full of stories, and “Absolutely Alabama” host Fred Hunter may have heard more of those stories than anyone else.

Hunter, a Fort Payne native and meteorologist at WBRC in Birmingham, has been producing “Absolutely Alabama” for 22 years, and has travelled across the state in search of stories to tell about Alabama’s interesting places and people.

During those 22 years, the “Absolutely Alabama” crew has made many visits to Cullman County, Hunter said, and whether it’s for driving out to produce a segment or just stopping for gas on the interstate, the people involved in the show always enjoy making the stop because the people here are some of the nicest around.

“It’s always good to come to Cullman,” he said.

As part of his talk to the crowd, Hunter played a clip that highlighted some of the trips that he made for the show in 2017 and shared several stories about some of his most memorable shows around the state, as well as some of his work as a meteorologist — which included a trip to Panama City Beach last week to be on the scene as Hurricane Michael was devastating the Florida Panhandle.

He also spoke about a few of the stops that he has made in Cullman County over the years, including several visits to Oktoberfest, a trip to the Ave Maria Grotto, sampling the Monks’ Bread at St. Bernard Abbey, getting a tour of Stone Bridge Farms and sitting down for an interview with Roy Drinkard.

Hunter said one of the best compliments he’s ever gotten about “Absolutely Alabama” came from Cullman High School teacher Kyle Morris, who started teaching a class called The Science of Alabama History that uses clips from the school as part of its lessons.

He said he was happy to hear that young people are using his show to learn more about the state and its history.

“If I had a small part of imparting that knowledge, then I think that’s a big step in the right direction,” he said.

Hunter said there are many people who come up to him and say that “Absolutely Alabama” has featured places that they had never been before, such as a woman from Dothan who didn’t know about the state’s waterfalls or a woman from Huntsville who had never been to the state’s beautiful beaches, and part of the show’s purpose is to get people to travel to these places and get to know Alabama.

“That’s one of my real passions, is encouraging people to experience your own state,” he said.

Whether you are planning your next vacation or just talking to friends or neighbors, encourage everyone to explore the state and experience some of the great places and people that are in Alabama, Hunter said.

“It is our state, and it’s a good state,” he said. “And it is ‘Absolutely Alabama.’”