Trip Report: Stone Mountain, GA (7/13/09)

[Sir Robin Hood]

Mondays are my usual off days from work. This past Monday, 7/13/09, I wanted to get away for a bit, so....ROADTRIP! It couldn't be too far like a WDW getaway, since I had to be back at work by 3pm on Tuesday. I decided to go re-visit one of my favorite places growing up. We used to live right outside of the Atlanta area, and would habitually spend weekends at Stone Mountain Park. Many fond memories of this place, and I hadn't seen it probably in over a decade. So I decided to make a day trip and go see the 'ol stompin' ground, and thus my Stone Mtn trip report begins.

Arrived at the park during the early afternoon hours. They were calling for scattered showers/thunderstorms all day Monday in the Atlanta area. Thankfully I didn't see a drop of it and the weather couldn't have been more pleasant. (Mid 80's, sunny). My first stop once on park grounds was to the Stone Mountain marina. It was closed. I did stop and get a few pictures though.

The above photo was taken from the Stone Mtn marina parking lot, looking across the lake toward the Golf club. The riverboat you see in the pic is called the Henry W. Grady. It usually only runs as a charter for special events, weddings, etc. Very nice backwheeler, but very seldom does it run. The running boat that most visitors get to go on is called the Scarlet O'Hara.(A sidewheeler) She was parked all day due to the marina being closed, so I didn't get a good shot of her. I've ridden the S.O.H over a dozen times growing up, and the H.W.G. once or twice. It was sad not having either running this day. One of the latest additions to the park is the "Ride the Ducks" attraction. It looked like a half bus, half boat vehicle that can ride on land & water. I believe they have these near Boston also. I watched one go by but didn't ride it due to lack of time and only having one day to spend.

Then I drove across the street to the Skylift parking lot and took a few pics of Stone Mountain itself. This picture below is actually taken from the giant grass field in front of the mtn where the laser show is performed.

If you look toward the top/left side of the pic, you'll see the cables running off the mtn that the tram cars run on take visitors up & down the mtn. I decided to hike the 1.3 mile trail up the side of the mtn rather than taking the tram skylift. (More on that later in the trip report). The carving you see on the front of the mtn is of Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and Jefferson Davis from the Confederate army. (I'm personally for the Union myself, but it's history, so, enjoy it ). The entire carved-out section is approx 3 acres in size. Here's a closeup:

Then it was time to hike up the mtn itself. To be continued...

 

[ticktock]

Thanks for posting, I've never been here.

 

[M&N]

Thanks for doing this...it's been years since I was there.

 

[Sir Robin Hood]

Trip Report Continued:

The walk-up trail to the top of Stone Mtn is only 1.3 miles each way, but can get pretty steep toward the top. It's not all rock, as there are some shaded spots along the trail with trees & such. About half way to the top, a hawk flew over approx 20-ft above my head. Here's a shot taken as we were hiking to the top.

The temp on top of the mtn felt significantly cooler, and there was a constant breeze. Once on the top of the mtn, there is a resting area with snack area, gift shops, etc. It's really not that big of a mtn, but sure feels like it. It stands 1,686 feet above sea level and approx 830 feet above the surrounding area. Here is a pic taken from the very top looking back toward the Atlanta skyline:

And another shot looking down on the Stone Mtn lake & campground area:

Overall it was a fun day. Stayed late for the laser show which started around 9:30pm and was shown on the carving of the mtn (see original post). Left the Atlanta area around 11:00pm and got home around 3:00am. Nice roadtrip!

End trip report

 

[GeorgeY]

Hey Sir Robin Hood,

We were there that day as well. We were vacationing in Atlanta for a few days (we live just outside of WDW). Stone Mountain was incredible. We spent Sunday there doing all of the attractions, and waited for the laser show on Sunday night, but it was cancelled. We went to Six Flags Monday morning/afternoon but left to go see the laser show on Monday night.

Just sitting on the lawn waiting for the show was nice. And the show itself was incredible. Our kids tried to compare it to WDW, as we see those evening shows all the time, but they kept having to admit this was great, especially the length of the show.

George

 

[Sir Robin Hood]

Hey Sir Robin Hood,

We were there that day as well. We were vacationing in Atlanta for a few days (we live just outside of WDW). Stone Mountain was incredible. We spent Sunday there doing all of the attractions, and waited for the laser show on Sunday night, but it was cancelled. We went to Six Flags Monday morning/afternoon but left to go see the laser show on Monday night.

Just sitting on the lawn waiting for the show was nice. And the show itself was incredible. Our kids tried to compare it to WDW, as we see those evening shows all the time, but they kept having to admit this was great, especially the length of the show.

George

Hey George,
Glad you all had a fun trip. Yeah I was on that lawn among all the many people Monday night for the show. Any time we go to Stone Mtn we always make it a tradition to end the day with the laser show. We missed Six Flags this trip, but will try to go back in Oct. Goliath is a must.