Piedmont Park Evening Hike + Free Outdoor Atlanta Symphony Concert

This writeup and photo are taken in large part from ones written and led by Charlie Cottingham, an AOL trip leader and an extraordinary multi-talented person.  Charlie died on February 12, 2025. The AOC owes much to the brilliance and dedication of Charlie Cottingham who led and created many unique and interesting events over the years.  Delores and I cannot hope to duplicate his knowlege of flora, fauna, music, the park, etc. 

We AOC hikers & music lovers have had a blast together on these Piedmont Park summer evening "double-header" outings in past years.  We're excited about offering this one on Wed September 9. Hope you can join us for this leisurely ~2-mile   hike through historic Piedmont Park, with a  bonus afterward! - an  outdoor Atlanta Symphony Orchestra concert.   The free performance will take place in the beautiful grassy "Oak Hill" section of the Park adjoining 10th Street (see Photo above and "What to Bring" etc. for the concert below).  Anyone who loves classical music and the Park is welcome to attend this open-air special performances at no charge.

EVENT DETAILS:  Let's all gather "ready to hike" a few minutes before 6:00 PM on the sidewalk at the shady corner of Elmwood Drive and Monroe Drive.   In the past we've always found plenty of free street-side parallel  parking along Elmwood within a couple of blocks of Monroe.  (See Directions & GPS info below and please be on time,  allowing for Atlanta's insane rush-hour traffic.)  After introductions we can conveniently walk together into the Park with our concert items, etc. in about 10 minutes - see suggestions items to bring below.  At the beautiful Oak Hill concert venue (above photo) we can stake out prime viewing space for our AOC group with a clear view of the stage & good acoustics - then continue the hike.   We can ask an AOC volunteer to watch our stuff until  we return in time for the concert.   During this hike segment  we'll explore a bit of the  "wild side" of Piedmont Park via some of its lesser-known scenic trails, including a few shady pathways just east of the Atlanta Botanical Garden and perhaps a section of the Atlanta Beltline - then return to our Oak Hill seating area in time for the 7:30-9:00 concert.  Hope you can plan to stay with us for at least part of it, and if so you're sure to enjoy the relaxing but festive experience! During the evening free to "split" from the group at any time if you like, provided you let us know.  We'll be glad to direct you back to our Elmwood/Monroe gathering area or other destination.

SYMPHONY CONCERT PROGRAM:  The program includes music from Beethoven: Symphony No. 6; Weir: Forest; Haydn: Symphony No. 82; Mozart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik; Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 2; Vivaldi: Summer from The Four Seasons; and Smetana: Die Moldau,  For more details see the website of the Atlanta Sympony at aso.org.

MORE about PIEDMONT PARK:  More than 125 years old now, it became world famous in 1895 as the site of Atlanta's "Cotton States & International Exposition."  Hundreds of member volunteers from the Piedmont Park Conservancy deserve much credit in recent years for the park's dramatic improvements and excellent maintenance. The thriving Atlanta Botanical Garden has also been a big plus for the park's popularity & reputation since its founding in the late 1970s in the NW corner of the 200+ acre property. 
  For an excellent interactive Color Map of the park click here:  https://www.piedmontpark.org/ma ps/
    and also for more info visit the main site:   http://piedmontpark.org/ 

DIRECTIONS to our SIDEWALK GATHERING SPOT at the MONROE DRIVE/ ELMWOOD DRIVE corner:
For a zoomable map & satellite view of this shady corner and quiet residential area click the Blue & Green "Event Location" icon near the top of this article.

GPS DATA for GATHERING SPOT:   GPS or Google.com/Maps users can enter either of these as your Destination address (to augment Driving Directions below):
- Street Address at SW corner of Monroe & Elmwood:  1096 Monroe Dr NE, Atlanta, GA 30306
- Lat/ Lon Address of same corner: (Be sure to include Comma and Minus sign.)  33.7847, -84.3679

DRIVING DIRECTIONS, assuming you begin by driving  southward toward Atlanta via I-75 or I-85:
    (+ Advice about FREE Street-side PARKING along ELMWOOD DRIVE)
1. As you near the I-75/ I-85 interchange  (about 2 miles north of downtown Atlanta) get into the second lane from the Interstate's righthand side.
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 & 14th Street).
4. Turn Left onto 10th Street and go 1.3 miles eastward to the traffic light at Monroe Drive (crossing Peachtree Street, Piedmont Ave, etc.).
5. Turn Left onto Monroe Drive and go just 0.2 mile northward to Elmwood Drive.  (You've gone a block to far if you reach traffic light at Park Drive.)
6. Turn RIGHT onto Elmwood Drive and park in any of vacant street-side spaces.  (In the past we've always managed to find free parallel parking along this quiet tree-lined residential street, esp. in the first couple of blocks just east of Monroe.)
7.  Assuming you park in that area,  walk via the Elmwood sidewalk to the shady corner at Monroe Drive  where we'll begin gathering at about 5:45 PM.
8.    After introductions we'd like to begin our group Hike into the Park by 6:00 PM, carrying any concert- related items in our daypacks, etc.

Free event, with free entrance into the Park, free Concert Viewing, and free (suggested) parallel Parking along Elmwood Drive.