Much to the relief of those of us south of Irwin St, the Edgewood Ave. bridge is still on track to reopen by the end of April. Once again residents of Inman Park, Cabbagetown and Reynoldstown will be connected to the rest of Atlanta west and north of us without having to do some crazy zig zag route via streets like Airline and Ezzard. Best of all, it’ll be simple again to bike to Miso Izakaya, Lotta Frutta, Church or any of the numerous restaurants and bars along Edgewood once we can ride over … [Read more...]
Outdoors on the BeltLine
When it comes to outdoors and the BeltLine, we’ve got two words: Parks and Recreation.
Parks? We got ‘em. Described as Atlanta’s Emerald Necklace, the BeltLine is a linear park it’s own self. But like any good, growing thing it has sprouted several other parks on what was once blighted urban grayfields, including Boulevard Crossing, D.H. Stanton, Gordon White, Perkerson and the stunning and brilliant Historic Fourth Ward Park.
On the recreation map you’ve got H4W Skate Park, kissed by the Eastside Trail, hugged by a large athletic field, and blessed by the High Priest of the Half Pipe himself, Tony Hawk.
The appeal of the rail trail is that it’s a level, safe path built on an old railroad. It has inspired a surge in bicycle culture (which we unabashedly celebrate) and an explosion in active lifestyles with scores of folks burning calories instead of carbon via every conceivable mode of human-powered transit.
My BeltLine Sojourn of ’94
In his remarks at the BeltLine Eastside Trail dedication, Mayor Kasim Reed expressed mock surprise at not uncovering dead bodies while clearing the former rail corridor. For too many years it was that sort of urban wilderness, a scary place where only outlaws and the homeless would go. This I know from a sojourn down those tracks in the spring of 1994, No, I did not imagine that morning rails-to-trails redevelopment, a distinction belonging to Ryan Gravel. My selfish purpose had more to do with … [Read more...]
New Horizons: Adair Park and the Westside Trail
Let me just say from the outset that I’m a park guy. I devote a lot of energy to preserving old and establishing new greenspace in the urban landscape. The BeltLine is a linear park, so you'll understand my affinity. When I moved to the Old Fourth Ward in 2004, the BeltLine was a vision, but the reality was a corridor covered in kudzu – wrong kind of greenspace. Parts of the neighborhood had begun to show some life, but from where I lived a walk to Cabbagetown was the closest beer. Edgewood … [Read more...]
Experiencing the BeltLine From Inside and Out
Whether Biking, Walking or Taking a Bus tour, the BeltLine is an amazing journey You know how things come in bunches? Like all of the sudden a name comes up in conversation several times in one day that is from totally unrelated people. Well that’s what happened to me with the BeltLine. I of course have known about all the progress on the Beltline from all the press releases and e-mail updates I get from the BeltLine folks all the time. After all, Southeast Green has become a destination … [Read more...]
ATL Snow Jam ’14: Another Case For Walkable Intown Living
As I walked to my meeting at Condesa Coffee, I noticed that the accumulating snow was starting to get slippery. Not a big surprise, I thought, as the temperature was dropping fast. Less than an hour into my meeting the Barista said that they were closing early, due to worsening travel conditions. That’s when I noticed the stalled traffic on Boulevard, waiting to get on the 75/85 Downtown Connector. As it turned out, many of those drivers would have been better off not using the Interstate … [Read more...]
Historic Fourth Ward Park, Meet Eastside Trail
Although they're only separated by a couple hundred feet, Historic Fourth Ward Park and the BeltLine Eastside Trail have seemed worlds apart due to steep and brambled topography, fences, the ruins of an old railroad trestle, and a cave dwelling troll. Just kidding about the troll. There is simply no direct way for those enjoying the 12 acre park, playground, and pond to access the linear park that is the Eastside Trail, or vice versa. That is soon to be remedied with a "gateway" trail. The … [Read more...]
Atlanta BeltLine Bicycle Shop
Location, location, location – we’ve all heard that joke and Atlanta Beltline Bicycle Shop (ABBS) is LOL. Every day the Eastside Trail of the Beltline is heavily used by active urbanites. Some of these urban travelers are bringing bicycling back to the ATL. In the late 19th century there were more bike shops on Peachtree Road than banks. Bike races at the velodrome were bigger than baseball with the Atlanta Crackers, and ladies and gents rode their bicycles out to picnics and parties. Today … [Read more...]
BeltLine’s Best Restaurants: TWO Urban Licks
TWO Urban Licks is one of America's best outdoor restaurants according toTravel + Leisure. The accolade is earned from a patio that opens up to the BeltLine Eastside Trail, bocce ball courts, an herb & vegetable garden, and killer skyline views of downtown Atlanta. Inside is quite dramatic, too. The dining room's central feature is a high energy kitchen with a floor-to-ceiling rotisserie and open wood-fire pit where the meats and fishes are grilled to perfection. A few of the more … [Read more...]
Our Atlanta Botanical Gardens Adventures
There are many wonderful advantages to living just two blocks from the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail, one of them being an enjoyable bike ride to The Atlanta Botanical Gardens! It first occurred to us to pedal to the petals this summer when we took a little “stay-cation” to celebrate our 23rd wedding anniversary. Turns out it was a very good idea. We rode the Eastside Trail to Monroe and stopped for lunch at Woody’s. We each had a Polish Sausage Dog and a Sweetwater 420 - DEELISH! Then, … [Read more...]
Saturday Morning on the Eastside Trail
That's Sugar pictured above. She loves to walk...and meet people….and eat. So do I! That’s why we spend our Saturday mornings on the BeltLine Eastside Trail.. We start our morning routine on Auburn Avenue in the King Historic District in The Old Fourth Ward which is just a couple of blocks west of the BeltLine. We stroll past Lotta Frutta offering a nod and a “Good morning” to the folks sitting outside enjoying their Latin American fruit cups, smoothies, and breakfast fare. Then we cross over … [Read more...]
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