Arabia-to-Panola Mountain paved-trail Bicycle Ride + short Hike

IN A NUTSHELL:  Blue-sky weather in the 50s is expected this Saturday afternoon  Why not celebrate the midwinter sunshine by joining us for this leisurely 3-hour bicycling & hiking outing!  We'll bike about 17 miles total on the beautiful paved trail that connects Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve and Panola Mountain State Park, and at our mid-ride point also enjoy a short hike - see more event details below.  We'll have free parking at the Arabia preserve's nice Nature Center, about 15 minutes east of metro Atlanta's east-side I-20/ I-285 interchange - see directions below and click on the red "location icon" above for a map.  You "northsiders" should plan on perhaps 45 minutes of drive time each way.

  The Arabia-to-Panola trail is suitable for riders of all experience levels and bikes of all styles.  If you have (or can borrow) a road-style bike or mountain bike or perhaps an inexpensive “hybrid,” by all means please join us.

WHEN & WHERE?  We’ll gather with our bikes at 1:30 PM at the Nature Center's bulletin board kiosk—detailed directions below. Look for me, Charlie, wearing my green & white Atlanta Outdoor Club T-shirt and grey "Marin" road bike.

EVENT PLAN:  After introducing one another and making sure our bikes are trail-ready we’ll depart from the Nature Center kiosk at about 1:45 PM and head SW via the "Arabia Mountain" paved trail to Panola Mtn State Park.  We'll stop occasionally to regroup and to enjoy and photograph the scenery and wildlife.  Feel free to split from our group whenever you like, but please let me know if and when you’re splitting.

  When we reach the halfway point of our ride in the beautiful "Alexander Lake" area of Panola Mtn State Park we'll spend about a half hour hiking on the lakeside trails.  If you "pedal-clip" bikers wish to do that with us, please carry a light pair of walking shoes in a pannier or daypack, to change into.  While we're there at Alexander Lake I'll show y'all the new "permanent Orienteering Course" that my friends and I in the "O Club" have set up for the general public to enjoy.

   We'll return back to the Arabia Nature Center via the same paved trail and expect to ride only about 17 miles total, but en route may explore a couple of the short connecting spur trails.

PRE- & POST-RIDE OPTIONS:  Feel free to arrive early or stay late to enjoy more of the nice biking and hiking trails on your own.  Extra-mileage cycling options:  From the Nature Center you can ride northward on the same Arabia Mtn Trail or southward on the "Klondike Spur Trail" which is chiefly a big new boardwalk trail on the opposite side of the road from the Nature Center.  Another great option, esp. if you haven't been to Arabia Mountain before, is to hike one or more of the scenic free trails which fan out from the Nature Center - see map links, etc. below.

FOR MORE on the ARABIA MTN BIKE TRAIL:  If you're familiar with the Silver Comet Trail (NW of Atlanta) the Arabia Mountain Trail is a similar (though generally hillier) multi-use paved scenic trail about 10 miles in total length and also built to the high standards of the "PATH Foundation."  It extends from the town of Lithonia and Stonecrest Mall on its northern end (near I-20 Exit #74) and Panola Mtn State Park on its southern end.  (Now even extends a few miles BEYOND the lakes at Panola!)

The below-linked Path Foundation website features downloadable maps of the various paved trails, connecting spurs and parking lots.  The Arabia Alliance website has info on the Davidson-Arabia Mtn Nature Preserve and its programs, hiking trails, etc.
http://pathfoundation.org/trails/arabia-mountain/
http://arabiaalliance.org/explore/plan-your-visit/

RAIN OR SHINE EVENT!  If showers are forecast for a paved-trail ride such as this, we normally still go ahead with it, and simply carry lightweight emergency rain gear along.  For AOC events in general, if the event has to be canceled for any reason the leader will normally email everyone by the night before and post "cancelled" beside the event posting on the AOC home page.

DIRECTIONS from the I-20/ I-285 INTERCHANGE on ATLANTA'S EAST SIDE:

1.  From the 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 BEARING RIGHT off the ramp at the first "Evans Mill" opportunity.)

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 on Klondike Road 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 for free and unload our bikes.

7.  We'll gather with our bikes by the roofed bulletin-board kiosk between the parking lot and the Nature Center building.

FOR a MAP of our DAVIDSON-ARABIA PARKING LOT VICINITY:  Click on the above red "Event Location" icon.  In conjunction with the above Directions you can also use MapQuest, Google.com/maps, or your vehicle's GPS System for custom directions from your point of origin.  Use as your entered destination the following Nature Center address or Lat/Lon coordinates:
3787 Klondike Rd, Lithonia, GA 30038
33.6723, -84.1161

Free Event with Free Parking!  Just bring your own bike, helmet, water, etc.