like it’s golden

Posted on by kelley

I visited Stone Mountain Park for the first time last week. If you’re passing thru Atlanta or its many suburbs and you enjoy nature beyond The Discovery Channel, hiking/walking and beautiful views, I’d say give it a gander.

Thanks to Josie over at Mind Jo Business for re-sparking my interest in taking this trip! I will be going back since it took less than an hour to get there. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and seeing the sunset from such heights made it extra special. The mile-long hike made me feel like beast! Aaaannd the sore legs the morning after were so worth it.

 Trips don’t always include passports,  pricey hotels or touchy airport TSA; sometimes all you need is a Google search, maybe $20, a snack bag and some free time. Hope you all are exploring and getting outdoors as much as possible.

❤

[P.S. This park is also famous for some nonsense as it still has confederate soldiers carved into the mountain and a confederate flag flying high near the start of the walk-up hike. But we can remove symbols all day, right? That won’t change the hate this nation was built on and perpetuates. That won’t change the hate in people’s hearts [or area where their hearts used to/should be]. But besides those two things, it’s a beautiful park. End rant.]

26 thoughts on “like it’s golden”

  1. Wow! this post is right on time! The Universe is clearly speaking. I will be in Atlanta in a couple weeks for the birthday and I have been looking for something calm and different to do while there. I’ll definitely have to look this place up!
    Thanks Queen!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. You are so welcome. Glad to hear it! You will definitely enjoy Stone Mountain and if you can make it up there to watch the sun rise or set, it’ll be extra special as well as add some great memories and photos to your birthday.

      Like

      Reply

  6. Thank you Kelley! The pictures actually calmed me down. It reminds me of all the times, I’ve hiked the Peaks of Otter Trail up in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I’m a mountain girl and so I love scenery such as that. This looks wonderful and I wish I had been there!

    Good to see you enjoying yourself. We all need to take time to do that and you are so right, we don’t need to go through a TSA checkpoint to find some beauty and inner peace. Thanks for making us aware of this. We do tend to forget that beauty can be close by!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Yes indeed. Nature is pretty much a cost-free restorative that we don’t utilize nearly enough; you know we’re all walking around deficient in vitamin D cuz we’re indoors on our phones and at work all day like prisoners [too often by choice!].

      And you are so welcome! It’s easy to forget the simple things and easier to get caught up in the things that don’t really matter.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. Aww man! You already wrote what I was going to say! Anyways… you’re awesome for saying “Give it a ‘gander'”. I took about a hour walk yesterday without my phone just to clear my mind. If people would get back to the simple things there would be much less strife in the world.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

        1. hehe I mean who says gander, right? I love the word.

          And I think one of my biggest pet peeves is seeing moms [or grandmas, nannies, etc] walking a baby ….on their phone!! ugh! I almost hit a co-worker [with my car] on my way to work party because she walked RIGHT into the street. On her phone!

          I agree we need to get back to nature.

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply

  9. Yes! I made this journey up to the top a couple of years ago, hobbled on one leg – a poignant metaphor for the endeavor that made me appreciate it more.

    What were the lessons that you took in the wake of it?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Definitely!

      We had my three year old nephew with us and he was hyped and kept saying “we did it!” at every landing and “c’mon guys!” And I was thinking I hope he never loses that spirit that so many of us adults do.
      Mother Earth has so much beauty and we should all take time to engage and wonder in it all. Plus arriving at the top and intaking that amazing view was SO worth the sore hamstrings.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  10. Ahhhh I’m so happy you made it! Judging from your pictures, it was an AMAZING trip. I would have loved to see the sunset *sigh* how romantic :D. I loved your meditation pic too – I would love to do that every morning, especially since the weather in Atlanta is usually so nice. Just looking at your pictures made we want to return lol. And YES I saw the confederate flag too. Smh…but you’re right…removing it won’t remove the hate that came with it. When I look at them, I’m reminded of how the ideas and practices of evil people are being torn down (even if at a slow pace). Evil never prevails. Thanks for sharing these – it has made my day.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. haha yes! Clearly I had a blast! I had to share because it was AMAZING. I love little gems like this that you can do in a day or afternoon. We all need to take advantage of destinations like Stone Mtn that are close in proximity, don’t cost much and reconnect us with what’s important.

      So glad you enjoyed the post. Thank you. And thanks again for re-sparking my interest! Come back and watch the sunset!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

say somethin

creator. foodie. lover of books, beards, travel, fashion, black tea, critical thinkers + game changers