Clearing Skies Sun Evening Hike + Comet Lovejoy! at Mason Mill Park

EVENT PLAN:  By mid-afternoon this Sunday the fast-moving front that's bringing so much rain should be "outta here," with partly sunny skies and in the mid-50s. Please join us at 4:00 PM for this easy to moderate 2-1/2 hour hike on the lovely shady trails at Mason Mill & Medlock Park here in NE Atlanta near Emory.  Although the sun will set at about 5:40 we'll still have plenty of twilight for the final part of the hike and can easily be back at the cars by 6:30.

An exciting new COMET called "Lovejoy" will be visible to the naked eye and through binoculars early this month just to the west of Orion.  We'll try to catch a glimpse of it just after dark, and can discuss how to observe it on our own over the next couple of weeks when the evening skies are clear.  Click the following SkyandTelescope.com link for more Comet Lovejoy details plus a "tracking map" and some gorgeous comet photos: Comet Lovejoy details and map at SkyandTelescope.com

We'll meet just inside the Mason Mill Park entrance (by the stone restroom building and the kids' playground—see detailed directions below).  After introductions we'll hike together to Medlock Park and back, stopping often to regroup and enjoy the scenery.  Our total distance will be about 5 miles with just one or two steep spots.  Feel free to "split" early from the group if you must - it's easy to return to the parking lot.

Bring your well-behaved dog if you like, but please make sure that he or she is leashed and under your control at all times.

After the hike if there's enough interest we may caravan to a nearby restaurant for dinner.

ABOUT the PARKS & TRAILS:  Mason Mill and Medlock are two pretty DeKalb County parks located just east of Clairmont Road near Emory University and the VA Hospital.  They conveniently connect with one another via a network of hiking/biking paths and boardwalks.  The mile-long South Peachtree Creek Trail is the main trail through this shady corridor, and like the better known Silver Comet Trail it was designed and built to the high standards of the "PATH Foundation."  The trail features a half-mile-long raised deck through the forest canopy above the rocky creek.  Another exciting portion of this trail takes us over the railroad track via a 3-stories-high wooden walkway and deck.  Hikers are treated here to aerial views of the restored ruins of the early-20th-Century Decatur Waterworks, and the high deck is also a great spot for viewing sunsets, the moon, stars & planets, comets and meteor showers. 
 Lots of creekside spur trails branch from the PATH trail into the surrounding forest and are fun to explore on the return hike.  By fording Peachtree Creek we can access Ira Melton Park which features a half-mile-long white-blazed loop trail.
  Another option (but more suitable for a 3-hour hike) is to walk a few blocks beyond Medlock to lovely Clyde Shepherd Nature Preserve and include a short "wetlands" loop there before heading back via Medlock to our vehicles at Mason Mill.

FOR a COLOR MAP of SOUTH PEACHTREE CREEK TRAIL and its interconnecting DeKalb County parks (Mason Mill, Medlock, Ira Melton & Clyde Shepherd) click on this link:  http://pathfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/south-peachtree-creek-trail.pdf

FROM "SPAGHETTI JUNCTION" I-85 / I-285 INTERCHANGE in NE METRO ATLANTA to our MASON MILL PARK Meetup Spot:   (For a zoomable color MAP and satellite view of this spot and its vicinity click on the square blue & green "Event Location" near the top of this article.)

1. From "Spaghetti Junction" take I-85 South toward Atlanta about 4 miles and get off at Exit #91 "Clairmont Road."

2. At the end of the exit ramp (assuming you were southbound on I-85) turn Left onto Clairmont Road (toward Decatur) and go about 2.3 miles to the traffic light at McConnell Drive.  (It's the next light south of the big Clairmont/ North Druid Hills intersection, and if you reach the huge VA Hospital you've gone a couple of blocks too far!)

3. Turn Left onto McConnell Drive, go just 0.1 mile, and turn Right at the stop sign to stay on McConnell. (Note the small "Mason Mill" directional sign here.)

4. Then turn Left almost immediately at the "Mason Mill Park" entrance sign into the large free parking lot.  We'll gather by the stone Restroom building near that main entrance adjoining the children's playground.

LAT/LON COORDINATES of the Mason Mill Park spot where we'll meet: (You GPS or Google.com/maps users may wish to augment my above verbal directions by entering these map coordinates as your destination.)
  33.8080,-84.3066

Free Event with Free Parking!