Ranger Jonah's Fall at Mason Mill Park, and the Trail Now Growing Out of It

For years, the South Peachtree Creek Trail has run about 2.6 miles. It links Emory University with Mason Mill Park and Medlock Park, and PATH Foundation describes about a mile of it as boardwalk through forest and over a wetland, with a bridge over the railroad. If you start from the Sagamore Hills side, you hit an end point fairly quickly. You either turn around or wander into the soft-surface trails that loop through Mason Mill.

That is starting to change. DeKalb County's August 2026 SPLOST progress report lists two South Fork Peachtree Creek Trail extensions as out to bid. It also lists a new $4.5 million tennis center at Mason Mill as the next contract up for award. Further out, money is set aside for the pieces that would carry the trail to I-85 and North Druid Hills Road. Mason Mill is turning from the place the trail ends into a junction, and the county's own naturalist is already running a free weekly-ish calendar there this fall.

Two Trail Extensions Are Out to Bid

The county's SPLOST program report, prepared in August 2026 by program manager Atlas Technical Consultants, groups projects as completed, in design, out to bid, or under construction. Under "Three Trail Projects Out to Bid," two are extensions of the trail Mason Mill already sits on.

The amounts show which project is the big one. The Medlock to Lulah Hills piece has nearly 18 times the authorized money of the Briarcliff piece, and it points east, toward the long regional trail to Stone Mountain. The same report lists "trail projects now out to bid move into construction" among the milestones to watch over the next twelve months. That is a twelve-month watch list, not a groundbreaking date. Until a contract is awarded, no one can say when crews will show up.

The eastward push also matches the county's long-range thinking. When the DeKalb County Commission adopted its trails and greenways master plan, Decaturish reported that the plan ranked the proposed Farmers Market Trail second among its priorities. That trail would link the South Peachtree Creek Trail to the Stone Mountain Trail, and the plan specifically names its connection to "Medlock and Mason Mill parks" and to the DeKalb Farmers Market. Its cost was estimated at about $9.7 million. The Farmers Market Trail is still a master-plan proposal. The Medlock to Lulah Hills bid is the funded step in the same direction.

The Pieces Further Out, by Year

The northward extensions run on a separate track with its own money. In March 2026, Urbanize Atlanta reported that Decide DeKalb approved $951,600 from the Briarcliff/North Druid Hills Tax Allocation District's Urban Renewal Fund. The money pays for right-of-way acquisition and design of two more sections, which together add roughly 8,900 linear feet, about 1.7 miles.

• Segment 3 would run from Briarcliff Road to Interstate 85 and is meant to link up eventually with the Peachtree Creek Greenway in Brookhaven.
• Segment 5 would follow Knob Hill Drive NE and Mount Mariah Road NE from Margaret Harris Comprehensive School to North Druid Hills Road. It would serve the Briarcliff Heights neighborhood and lead to the Target on North Druid Hills Road.
• Segment 2 was in design as of that report.

The project is estimated at $2.6 million overall and also includes upgraded intersections, traffic calming and buffered side paths.

1. 2027: Design and permitting expected to wrap for Segments 3 and 5. DeKalb County also expects final design of the Peachtree Creek Greenway Connector Bridge over I-85 to be done in late 2027.
2. 2028: Construction anticipated to begin on the connector bridge, which would link Emory's Executive Park with the Greenway, and construction expected to start on Segments 3 and 5.
3. 2029: Decaturish reported that construction on Segments 3 and 5 is expected to be completed.

The July 2026 county announcement put Emory University's contribution to the bridge at $15.8 million over the next 10 years. It also said no residential property taxes will be used to design or build it. Rough Draft Atlanta reported in May 2026 that the Atlanta Regional Commission awarded $13.5 million in federal funding for the 1.1-mile Phase II of the Peachtree Creek Greenway in Brookhaven, with no construction timeline attached. Phase II is funded but not built, so a continuous ride from Mason Mill to the Greenway is a project for the end of the decade.

The Park Itself Is Next in Line

Mason Mill has projects of its own on the county's list. DeKalb lists the park as home to a recreation center, a senior center, a community garden, tennis courts, pavilions, a playground and more than six miles of trails. Today's Mason Mill Park DeKalb Tennis Center has 16 hard-surface courts, 10 of which can be converted for pickleball. Agape Tennis Academy manages it and runs lessons, leagues, camps and tournaments.

The SPLOST report lists Mason Mill among the parks where tennis-court resurfacing is complete. Separately, it lists the Mason Mill Tennis Center as out to bid, with bids under review. A "bid award for a new $4.5M tennis center" is on its list of what's coming up. The report gives no construction dates. If you play there, Agape is the place to ask how the work will affect court schedules.

A Naturalist Is Already on Staff

The bike-and-stroller crowd will feel the trail work later. The part of Mason Mill that works like a nature center is already running. DeKalb County's recreation page lists a Mason Mill Naturalist Program led by Ranger Jonah McDonald, with nature walks, birding sessions and environmental education events. The county has publicly named McDonald as its Park Naturalist since at least a March 2021 announcement.

Many of his programs show up on the South Fork Conservancy's event calendar as partner events. The conservancy's calendar is also the easiest place to see what's happening along the whole creek system in one list.

On the Calendar Between Now and the Holidays

These are the listings still ahead as of this week. Times and locations come from the event pages, so check each one before you head out.

• Saturday, Oct. 24, 9 to 10 a.m.: W.D. Thomson Park plant-removal workday at 1760 Mason Mill Road. Organizers say to stay as long as you like, with water, snacks and tasks for all ages.
• Saturday, Oct. 24, 9 a.m. to noon: Tucker Rivers Alive cleanup on South Peachtree Creek, based at 4315 Cowan Road in Tucker, with breakfast and lunch provided. The listing is marked "NEW DATE," so reconfirm before you go.
• Monday, Oct. 26, 7 to 9 p.m.: Full Moon Night Walk at Mason Mill Park, starting from the South Peachtree Creek PATH trailhead at 1400 McConnell Drive.
• Saturday, Nov. 7 through Saturday, Dec. 19, 5 to 6 p.m.: Stories & S'mores, family storytelling around a campfire with Ranger Jonah at 1406 McConnell Drive. Check the listing for the specific dates in that window.
• Thursday, Nov. 19, 8 to 10:30 a.m.: Bird Stroll with Ranger Jonah, a two-mile walk on Mason Mill's trails, meeting at the Mason Mill Playground, 1340 McConnell Drive.

The bird stroll covers about the same distance as a round trip on the boardwalk, and it stays on the paths the county is now extending east and north. In 2026, those trails still stop at Medlock and Emory. The bids under review would carry them toward Briarcliff Road and Lulah Hills.

We keep up with the trail bids and park projects around Sagamore Hills because they shape how the neighborhood feels day to day, from your morning walk to your evening stroll. If you have questions about how the Mason Mill and South Peachtree Creek projects fit with your own plans, the partners at Atlanta Turtle Group are happy to talk it through. Let's Start a Conversation.