Stone Mountain in Georgia is Now Snow Mountain

Atlanta -- Has anyone seen snowfall in Atlanta recently? In any area of the southern United States for that matter? It is rare for people in the south to see any type of snowfall, so when we get the chance to, we get all that we can out of it (except for that blizzard in '93 which killed power and blew apart trees like toothpicks). Well, the wait is over.

Some of you may have heard of the famous Stone Mountain residing in Atlanta, Georgia. It may sound boring, but it's more than just a chunk of granite. Every year, thousands of people flock to Stone Mountain Park to watch its laser show, one of the most famous attractions in the nation. It seems that too many people have experienced the laser show, and now it's time for a change. It's time for SNOW Mountain.

How much snow? 200 tons of it. Originally drawn out to drain water from the public water supply, the plans were dropped after deciding that the drought season is still active. But since Stone Mountain is located right next to a large lake, park officials have decided to freeze some of the water, making essentially real snow, and spread it around the grass at the base of the mountain. Before any of that is done, the water will be treated with state of the art equipment, making sure it's clean of impurities and safe for people of all ages. Once it is treated, the water will be filtered into snow machines, which will chill the water until it becomes snow, and then sputter it out onto the park grounds (just like on t.v.!). The grassy expanse of the park grounds will have snow nearly 200 feet wide, divided up into 11 tubing lanes.

The attraction is set to open on December 31, 2008, a fitting way to start the New Year. It will run for 2 months, during which park-goers will have a chance to ride on the lanes and play in a 30,000 square foot separate play area with no time limit. Tickets start at just $15 for members and $25 for all others.