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Trail Review / Stone Mountain Park, Georgia /

Venable Lake Loop

All the way round the lake below the mountain, half on the Cherokee Trail and half on a connector

Venable Lake sits on the south side of the park, below the mountain, and this loop goes all the way round it. The first half is the Cherokee Trail and the second half is a connector, so it takes in the same mountain, lake and streams as the long loop in a fraction of the time. Depending on when you go, you get all the colors of the season too.

What I love about it is the water. You are right beside it almost the whole way, so there is always a goose or a few ducks drifting by, and the lake is usually still. It is a quiet spot to sit for a while, read a book or think about nothing at all. This is where I used to bring Harley, our little trail guardian. Rest in peace.

I first reviewed this loop here in April 2021, and this page replaces that review. I walked one deliberate lap on October 2, 2026, starting and stopping at the lot by the lake, so the numbers below come from that recording; the two videos from 2021 are kept further down.

Getting There

Location Detail

The loop starts from the paved lot at the west end of Venable Lake, on the south side of the mountain, where the road crosses the water on a short bridge. You can get on the trail right across from the lot, or cross the bridge and get on from the other side. Cross the bridge first and you walk it counterclockwise, the way I do, with the lake on your left. A Stone Mountain Nature Trails map post stands at the lot.

  • Parking pass, $20 per vehicle per day or $40 for the year when bought online; the gate can charge more.
  • Park gates are open daily, 5 a.m. to midnight (checked September 2026).
  • Parking: In the paved lot at the west end of Venable Lake, 26 spaces, 2 of them accessible (my own count, October 2026)
  • Surface: paved
  • No restroom at the lot.
  • There is a drinking fountain at the lot, but it does not work and has not for a while. Bring your own water.
  • There is a restroom at the playground up the road, but it is open only when the playground is, so not around the clock.
  • The only other option is a portable toilet at a smaller lot across the road. You have to leave the trail, climb a steep hill and cross the road to reach it.

Open the lot in Google Maps. The pin is where the walk on the map began.

Map of the Venable Lake Loop as I walked it, cut from the recording of October 2, 2026
The walk, cut from my recording of October 2, 2026, 1.95 mi. The green dot is where it began and closed; the blue is Stone Mountain Lake, Venable Lake and Catfish Pond, from OpenStreetMap, with contours every 20 ft. The markers are listed below; their positions are from OpenStreetMap, except the portable toilet at the smaller lot at the east end, which I placed by hand.
  • PThe paved lot at the west end of the lake, 26 spaces, 2 of them accessible
  • Drinking fountain at the lot, does not work, and has not for a while
  • Restroom at the playground up the road, open only when the playground is
  • PThe smaller lot at the east end, up a steep hill from the trail and across the road
  • Portable toilet at the smaller lot at the east end, usually there

What to Expect

Trail Details

The first half is the Cherokee Trail, marked with white blazes, so everything I say about that trail holds here. It is not a hard stretch, but there are a lot of roots across it, some of them sticking up quite a bit, so watch your step if you run it. It rolls over a few small hills, and in places it is wide enough for three people side by side, narrowing to two in others. The second half is a connector, marked orange, and it is a different walk: narrower in a lot of places, more technical, with more bare granite on a slope. That granite gets greasy when it is wet. You can't see the mountain from that side, but it gets fewer people than the Cherokee half, and the water is right there almost the whole way round.

The Numbers

  • Distance: 1.95 mi (3.14 km), as I walked it on October 2, 2026
  • Elevation change: 37 ft from the lowest point to the highest, 103 ft of climbing in all
  • Time to walk: about 37 min on the move, 39 min with stops

The Positives

  • You are right next to the water nearly the whole way round
  • Quiet, with still water most mornings, a good place to sit and read
  • Geese and ducks on the lake
  • Stone Mountain across the water from the Cherokee half
  • Small streams and waterfalls along the way
  • Short enough to fit into a morning

The Negatives

  • A lot of exposed roots, some sticking up quite a bit
  • The connector half is narrower and more technical
  • Sloped bare granite that turns greasy when it is wet
  • No restroom at the lot, and the nearest one keeps the playground's hours
  • The drinking fountain at the lot does not work
  • The portable toilet is off the trail, up a steep hill and across the road
Elevation along the Venable Lake Loop as I walked it, from the USGS elevation grid
Elevation along the same walk, read from the USGS 3D Elevation Program grid (cells 10 by 12 m) rather than the watch, so every review's profile is drawn from the same ground. The walk climbs 103 ft in all, counting every rise of 10 ft or more on the grid.

Underfoot

On the Trail

What the trail itself is like, in the order the walk reaches it.

September 26, 2026, 9:53 AM, mile 0.3. Roots laced across the Cherokee half. Watch your step if you run it.
October 2, 2026, 9:10 AM, mile 0.5. A rocky stream bed across the Cherokee half.
October 2, 2026, 9:23 AM, mile 1.2. The old stone chimney on the connector half, with its sign.
October 2, 2026, 9:26 AM, mile 1.3. A broad slab of bare granite on the connector, greasy when it is wet.
October 2, 2026, 9:27 AM, mile 1.3. A connector blaze right at the water's edge.
October 2, 2026, 9:36 AM, mile 1.8. Roots and a footbridge near the end of the connector half.

From the Trail

The Views

What I stop for on the way around, each from a morning in the log.

October 2, 2026, 9:01 AM, mile 0.0. Venable Lake from the west end, where the loop starts. The water is still most mornings.
October 2, 2026, 9:17 AM, mile 0.9. The mountain over the lake from the east end.
October 2, 2026, 9:37 AM, mile 1.8. A granite shelf at the water's edge, a good place to sit.
April 13, 2024, 7:06 AM. Before sunrise from the bridge beside the lot, looking down the lake where the loop begins.
April 6, 2024, 7:01 AM. Stone Mountain across the water from the south shore, on the Cherokee half.

On Video

Trail Videos

Virtual Tour

Venable Lake Loop in 3D

Venable Lake Loop in three dimensions: turn it, tilt it, zoom in, or follow the route along the ground.

375 KB on a computer, 116 KB on a phone. Needs WebGL2 and a script; nothing loads until the tap.

Terrain from USGS 3DEP lidar at 1 m, fetched October 2, 2026, drawn at 2x vertical scale with contours every 10 ft. The green line is the loop as the watch recorded it on October 2, 2026, 9:00 AM to 9:40 AM (1.95 mi, walked counterclockwise), draped on the ground and dotted where the ground hides it. The numbered pins are the review's 11 photographs, each where it was taken, by its own GPS or by the watch's track at its clock; following the route pauses at each. Purple pins show the trail itself (6), orange ones the views from it (5). The markers show parking, drinking fountain, restroom and portable toilet, as the review's map does; press one for what it is. Roads from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, fetched October 9, 2026) are drawn in white with their names on the view: Loop Road (Robert E. Lee Blvd), Stonewall Jackson Dr and Mountain Park Trail. Where a road goes by another name, that name comes first and the official one follows in parentheses. Parking-lot lanes, driveways and private roads are left off. Lit from where the sun stood at 9:15 AM, when the loop reached its highest point: bearing 109°, 20° above the horizon.

From the Recording

By the Numbers

1.95 miDistanceby the watch, 3.14 km
37 minOn the Move39 min clock to clock with stops
103 ftClimbin all, by the USGS grid
37 ftLow to Highlowest point to highest
Counter­clockwiseWay Roundthe way I walked it

One walk, the one on the map: my recording of October 2, 2026, from where it began to where it closed. The distance is the watch's track; "on the move" counts the time walked at 1 km/h or faster, so standing still for a photograph does not count, and "clock to clock" keeps the stops. The climb is read from the USGS grid, counting every rise of 10 ft or more. These are one walk's numbers, not a median over the log.

Asked Often

Questions and Answers

How long is the Venable Lake Loop?

1.95 miles as I walked it on October 2, 2026, about 37 minutes of walking or 39 with stops.

How much climbing is there?

103 feet in all, counting every rise of 10 feet or more on the USGS elevation grid, and 37 feet between the lowest and highest points.

Where do you park for the Venable Lake Loop?

In the paved lot at the west end of Venable Lake: 26 spaces, 2 of them accessible.

Is the Venable Lake Loop marked?

Yes. The Cherokee half has the trail's white blazes, and the other half is a connector with orange ones. Walking it counterclockwise, the Cherokee Trail goes right at the fork past the far end of the lake, and the loop goes left onto the orange connector.

Are there restrooms at the Venable Lake Loop?

Not at the lot. The restroom at the playground up the road is open only when the playground is, and the other option is a portable toilet at a smaller lot across the road, up a steep hill from the trail.

Is there water at the trailhead?

There is a drinking fountain at the lot, but it does not work and has not for a while, so bring your own.

Is the trail hard?

The Cherokee half is easy, apart from the roots. The connector half is narrower and more technical, with sloped bare granite that gets greasy when it is wet. I would skip that half after rain.

Can I bring my dog?

Yes, on a leash of 6 feet or less. Dogs are not allowed on the Songbird Habitat trails, which start just south of the lake, or at the attractions and in posted areas.

Can I ride a bike on the Venable Lake Loop?

No. Bikes stay on the park's paved roads, and the loop road around the mountain has bike lanes.

Before You Go

A Word on the Rules

Bikes stay on the paved roads. That is the park's rule, and for good reason. Roots turn a wheel in an instant, tires rut a trail this soft, and the loop road already has bike lanes and one-way car traffic.

Wear proper shoes. There is bare granite on almost every trail in the park, and it gets slippery when it is wet or covered in pine straw. Hiking shoes are best, but at least wear something with good tread.

Dogs are welcome on a leash of 6 feet or less. They are not allowed on the Songbird Habitat trails, at the attractions or in posted areas.

How This Page Was Made

The Record

The words and the lists are mine. The numbers are not typed: the distance, the time and the climb are measured from my recording of October 2, 2026, cut from where the walk began to where it closed, and the elevation comes from the USGS grid, not the watch. Each photograph is from a morning in the log, placed by its own GPS or by the watch's track at the moment it was taken, as the methods page describes.

Sources

  • Hiking Trails, Stone Mountain Park (the park's trails; the loop is the Cherokee Trail and a connector)
  • Rules, Stone Mountain Park (dogs and bicycles)
  • Venable Lake, way 34452380, OpenStreetMap contributors (the lake and the trails around it, under the Open Database License)
  • 3D Elevation Program, U.S. Geological Survey (the elevation grid under the map and the profile)
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