Lovely Arabia Mountain! - a sunny hike on seldom-seen trails

PERFECT WEATHER is expected Sunday afternoon with mostly sunny skies and a high in the 60s.  What better place to enjoy such a springlike day than Arabia Mountain! 

IN A NUTSHELL:   On this moderately paced 6-mile hike we'll visit not only the Park's "twin summits" but also some lovely seldom visited places such as the secluded "Arabia Lake" and its surrounding forest in the western portion of the Park.
   Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve is a huge DeKalb County Park about a half-hour drive east of downtown Atlanta via I-20, and just 15 minutes from the east-side I-20/I-285 interchange. (Please follow carefully my directions below.)  We'll have free parking and free park entrance at the preserve's nice Nature Center.
  Our AOC "subgroup" will gather initially at 1:30 PM near the Nature Center's outdoor bulletin board kiosk.  Look for me, Charlie, wearing my green & white Atlanta Outdoor Club T-shirt.

HIKE PLAN:  After welcoming and introducing one another we'll first explore some of the beautiful seldom-hiked terrain west of the Nature Center, as mentioned above.  During the latter part of the hike we'll enjoy leisurely ascents of "Arabia Peak" and "Bradley Peak" in the eastern side of the Park, and then enjoy the newly opened "blue loop trail" around the lake below those rocky high points.
  We'll stop occasionally along the way to observe birds & wildlife, rare native flora and the fascinating rocky outcrops. We expect to be back at the parking lot Sunday afternoon by about 5:00 PM.

FASCINATING "MONADNOCK" GEOLOGY!  The hundreds of acres of exposed rock at Arabia Mountain is known to have been originally formed from huge globules of molten rock deep inside the earth about 400 million years ago.  By comparison the granite of its nearby "siblings," Stone Mountain and Panola Mountain, is believed to be "relatively young!" - only?! about 300 million years old.  All three mountains are "monadnocks" - the geologic term for granitic domes that hardened from such igneous globules and were gradually revealed as miles of softer layers of earth and rock eroded away from above them.
  By the way, an exciting event called "Monadnock Madness" is being planned during which we'll climb Stone Mountain, Arabia Mountain and Panola Mountain all on a single day, and I hope some of you can join me for that upcoming AOC "hiking challenge."

DIRECTIONS from the I-20/ I-285 INTERCHANGE on ATLANTA'S EAST SIDE:  (This "hypothetical starting point" for driving to the Park is about 10 miles east of downtown Atlanta)

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.

7.  We'll gather 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.  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 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!