Hidden Gems of Arabia Mountain! - an adventurous late-morning Hike via seldom-explored Trails

IN A NUTSHELL:  Thursday morning's weather forecast is looking great, with sunny skies and in the low-70s - ideal for hiking.  Hope you can join us to explore beautiful Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve and many of its "hidden gems" that make this huge DeKalb County park such a scenic, ecological and historic treasure.  We'll gather a few minutes before 9:30 AM at the Nature Center's outdoor bulletin-board kiosk adjoining the big free parking lot.  (Please follow carefully my Directions & GPS info below.)

HIKE PLAN:  After welcoming and introducing one another we'll enjoy many of the park's seldom-hiked trails including the beautiful blue-blazed loop around "Mountain Lake" - just beyond our initial trek to the mountain's twin rocky summits.  Also we'll visit a second shady lakeshore and hike its scenic connecting creekside trail.  We'll pause at scenic spots along the way to shoot photos, observe birds & wildlife, climb through historic quarry ruins and marvel at the hundreds of acres of rocky outcrops with their rare native flora & fauna.   Should be no problem arriving back at the Nature Center parking lot by 12:00 Noon.

OPTIONAL GROUP PICNIC LUNCH: (~12:00 Noon - 12:30PM)  If you can spare the time I encourage you to bring a light picnic lunch.  We can leave these in our cars during the hike - in small coolers, etc.  There's a shady picnic table area by the Nature Center and you're welcome to join me there for lunch & friendly conversation before we head our separate ways. 

FASCINATING ANCIENT "MONADNOCK" GEOLOGY!  The exposed rocky outcrops at Arabia Mountain are remnants of huge globules of molten magma that bubbled up deep inside the earth about 400 million years ago - long before the appearance of dinosaurs. The igneous globules slowly cooled and hardened, and now many eons later their tops have been revealed after miles of softer layers of earth and rock eroded away above them.  Arabia has two popular nearby "siblings" - Stone Mountain and Panola Mountain, which geologically are about 100 million years younger, but also older than the age of dinosaurs.  All three are called "monadnocks" - the term used by geologists for such ancient granitic domes.

GPS Destination Address (Davidson-Arabia Nature Center):  3787 Klondike Rd, Stonecrest, GA 30038
GPS Concise "Lat/Lon" Address for our gathering spot at the Nature Center's outdoor Info Kiosk:  33.6722, -84.1164  (Be sure to include comma & minus sign.)

Directions from the I-20/ I-285 Interchange on Atlanta's East Side:  (The Davidson-Arabia Nature Center is about an 8-mile drive from this interchange.  For a zoomable map or satellite view of our gathering spot click the square blue & green "Event Location" icon near the top of this article. )
1.  From the East-side I-20/I-285 Interchange proceed eastbound on I-20 about 5 miles (outside I-285 toward Augusta) and exit to your Right at Exit #74 ("Evans Mill Rd/Lithonia").
2.  Take the 1.3-mile-long exit ramp and access road STRAIGHT AHEAD to its end at the second traffic light where Evans Mill Rd crosses underneath I-20.  (AVOID the first "Evans Mill" opportunity, which would be a right turn before the end of the access road.)
3.  Turn Right at the traffic light onto Evans Mill Road and go just 0.1 mile to another traffic light.
4.  At that light continue straight ahead onto Woodrow Drive and continue another 0.8 mile to the stop sign at Klondike Road.
5.  Turn Right onto Klondike Road and in about 1 mile you will pass through a traffic circle at Rockland Road.  Stay straight ahead on Klondike for another 0.25 mile beyond the circle and look for the" Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve" nature center on your right.
6.  Turn Right into the Nature Center's gravel parking lot where we can park at no charge.  We AOCers will gather initially by the big bulletin-board kiosk, between the parking lot and the Nature Center building. (The park's indoor facilities have normally been kept closed during the Covid pandemic, including I think their public restrooms, so please take this into account before you arrive!)

Free Event with Free Parking!