Time and Place: Beltline tunnel

• Joeff Davis
• 10:28 a.m., June 15, 2015, Atlanta Beltline Southeast segment near Milton Avenue

While the Atlanta Beltline Eastside trail is neat and all, my favorite places on the Beltline are the ones that are not paved and are still a little wild. The gigantic tunnel that covers the train tracks off of Milton Avenue in southeast Atlanta is one of those special places.

The brick tunnel is a sanctuary from space and time. Once you enter it, it is as if you have entered some sort of alternate reality. Everything is amplified, the air suddenly becomes cooler and sounds take on new dimensions. We celebrated this spot with a video about an off-the-grid music show that took place there back in 2011, I am glad to say little has changed since then.

When this photo was shot I was there for a photo shoot with Beltline visionary Ryan Gravel (pictured above) for Creative Loafing’s Atlanta City Guide. Another rail line runs above the 260-foot-long tunnel. According to Gravel, that railroad was built in 1882. The one that travels through the tunnel was built in 1899. The tunnel is more than 100 years old.

This spot is one of my favorite places in Atlanta.