Piedmont Park: Early Evening Hike + Optional free Atlanta Symphony Concert

Hope you can join us for this leisurely to moderately-paced 4-mile hike through historic Piedmont Park and its adjoining eastside Beltline trail, with a big bonus afterward! - a free Atlanta Symphony Orchestra outdoor concert in the beautiful "Promenade" in the newly developed northeast part of the Park below the Atlanta Botanical Garden.  We should be able to find a nice spot for listening to the concert (7:30 - 9:30 PM) although the actual "free tickets" (for formal seating in the Promenade) were "sold out" a few minutes after they became available online on May 3rd.
  On the hike we'll explore the "wilder side" of Piedmont Park via some of its lesser known scenic trails including the "Trail of the Six Springs" and the gravel Beltline trail along the eastern periphery of the Park.
  Stick around with us if you like for the concert - the first by the ASO in Piedmont Park since 2007.  It showcases concertmaster David Coucheron in the gorgeous Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with conductor Donald Runnicles.  Also on the program are Beethoven's 5th Symphony, Brahms' Hungarian Dances and a rousing Sousa march encore!
  Free parallel parking is normally available along Elmwood Drive just east of Monroe Drive (see precise Directions below).  We'll gather for the hike at 5:30 on the sidewalk at the Monroe/Elmwood corner.  Feel free to park elsewhere if you prefer and PLEASE BE ON TIME, allowing for the Fri rush-hour traffic.
  Feel free to split from the group at any time if you like, provided you let me know you're splitting. I can easily direct you back toward our meetup spot.

MORE about PIEDMONT PARK:  More then 125 years old, it first became world famous in 1895 as the site of Atlanta's "Cotton States & International Exposition."  Volunteer members of the Piedmont Park Conservancy deserve much credit for the Park's dramatic improvements and excellent maintenance in recent years. The thriving Atlanta Botanical Garden in the NW corner of the Park has also benefited the Park's popularity and reputation.  Check out http://piedmontpark.org/ for more information.  For a nice online Color Map of the 200+ acre park, click on this link: http://piedmontpark.org/visit/Park_Map_07-11-print.pdf

DIRECTIONS to CORNER of ELMWOOD DRIVE & MONROE DR, assuming you're PROCEEDING SOUTHWARD via INTERSTATE I-75 or I-85 toward DOWNTOWN ATLANTA:  (For a map of this meetup spot click on the Blue & Green "LOCATION" icon near the top of this article.)

1. As you near the I-75/ I-85 interchange (which is ~2 miles north of downtown Atlanta) get into the second lane from the right side of the Interstate.
2. Avoid exiting onto the other Interstate, but as you pass the interchange bear right toward I-75 Exit #84 and exit there (for "17th St, 14th St and 10th St").
3.  Then bear leftward along the access road (a.k.a."Techwood Drive") for about 0.3 mile to the traffic light at 10^th Street (bypassing 17^th St and 14^th St en route).
4. Turn Left onto 10th Street and go 1.3 miles eastward to the traffic light at Monroe Drive (crossing Peachtree St, Piedmont Rd, etc. en route).
5. Turn Left onto Monroe Drive and go just 0.2 mile northward to Elmwood Drive, (The "Elmwood" street sign is slightly blocked by trees, but note the traffic light 1 block ahead at "Park Drive" - the east-side entrance street into the Park.)
6. Turn Right onto Elmwood Drive (eastward off Monroe) where we should be able to find free parallel parking along the shaded street in this residential neighborhood. Then walk back westward to the Elmwood/ Monroe corner where we'll meet at 5:30 on the sidewalk for the hike.

LAT/LON COORDINATES of ELMWOOD DRIVE "MEETUP CORNER" (GPS or Google Maps users can input this as your "Destination" to augment the above directions):  33.7847,-84.3676
The street address at this corner is 601 Elmwood Dr NE, Atlanta, GA 30306

Free event, with free entrance into the Park and free (suggested) street parking along Elmwood Drive just east of Monroe Drive.