Per Matt
With the recent announcements concerning the 2017 Nashville Zombie Walk, it was time to dig a little deeper to take a closer look at the “gory details” for the upcoming event.

Details of the route were already posted on the Zombie Walk webpage and the official Facebook Event page. The undead (and everyone else) will meet up at the Landport, behind Cummins Station, at 10th Ave and Demonbreun at 2 pm on Saturday, October 28th. The herd will depart at 3 pm, beginning at SoBro, walking through The Gulch and winding up at Marathon Village around 4:30 pm. There will be a free After Party sponsored by Lightning 100 taking place at Marathon Music Works, which will feature drink specials, spooky tunes, food trucks and a photo booth. All of this leads up the Paranormal Rocktivity concert taking place at Marathon later that night, which will require a separate purchase, though the walk and After Party are free. The concert will feature DJ Johny Jackson’s Ghoul Satisfaction and Here Come The Mummies (a Halloween favorite of Zombies In My Blog).

Organizers are urging all participants to be sure to register to attend the 2017 Nashville Zombie Walk. The event remains free, partly because this information can help with the planning for next year’s event.

As readers may know, Zombies In My Blog has been actively involved with the urge to get the Zombie Walk to make a return, after an unfortunate stint in the hands of a group who failed to execute any events for the last two years. Everyone on the Nashville Zombie Walk organizational team is honored to help bring back this great community event to the public. We’re trying to bring the best holiday-themed event possible to you, our fans, volunteers and participants. We look forward to building upon this year’s event to bring something even bigger next year. Thank you for your support and we look forward to joining you on October 28th!

Some of the frequent questions from social media were detailed by organizers for us to share here:

  • What’s the purpose of this event? The event’s purpose is to create a good costumed romp as a group and the spectacle that is created (as onlookers get to witness). Second, this is a unique and entertaining way to involve our food drive for Second Harvest.
  • What’s the goal for donating canned goods? For the food donation, we have not set specific goals, as the Walk is returning from a couple years of neglect in the hands of its temporary organizers. We would like to fill a Second Harvest truck, which is where the mark was set from the last Walk. After we see where we come in this year, we can set goals for each year, with personal goals of each participant to help us get there.
  • Why have a Walk that lasts 1.5 miles? Past Walks were about 1.3 miles long. This one is a little more than 1.5 miles. The difference isn’t very big, traveling through three cool districts, winding up at our partner location for the After Party.
  • Do we have to walk the entire length? Folks don’t have to walk the entire length. If you’d prefer to join in later (The Gulch or the Greenway, most likely) or duck out early — like at Grundy St. to possibly visit some of the establishments around 12th Ave. We’re pretty sure once the Walk has started, people will be too wrapped up in the fun to think much about dropping out.
  • If we walk only a portion of it, where should we park/meet? Anyone who joins in the Walk later should park in the Gulch. For parking at the beginning of the Walk, we have made special arrangements for a $10 all-day rate at the lot behind Flying Saucer and the lot on the Landport, where the Walk begins. That’s great in Nashville terms, but if free parking is still something people want to seek out, there are various locations with such, and the Music City Circuit shuttle bus (also free) has a Green Route stop right by the Walk’s origin point at Landport. Parking anywhere convenient to the shuttles will result in a free ride to the Walk. Those run from TSU to Riverfront Park, and from Riverfront to the Gulch, with overlaps in between. There’s lots of great options.
  • Is the Walk handicap accessible? For handicap access, we encourage parking as needed for your situation, but beyond the parking, the buses, walking route and origin lot at the Landport are all accessible. We do encourage the buddy system, as crowds can be less accustomed to wheelchairs, and it’s great to have someone to help look out for that. Also, if people park in the lot behind Flying Saucer, they can go through the fence under the Demonbreaun bridge and use the Landport elevator to get up to the top level. Same with anyone on foot, really.
  • What is new for this year’s Walk? The biggest new element this year is the partnership with Lightning 100. They’ve been able to take an active role in securing sponsors to cover costs, as well as the awesome venue for the Zombie Walk After Party (and Paranormal Rocktivity Pre-Party): Marathon Music Works. They’re also helping get the word out, and we have big plans in the future to use this partnership to expand the Walk into a bigger event itself, with even more things going on before and afterward.
  • Will there be a costume contest before or after the Walk? The focal point for costume contest action will be at the Paranormal Rocktivity concert. We are not doing a contest as part of the free Walk and After Party, but inside the ticketed concert, there will be an on-stage contest. This is something we will add in future years, as more pre-Walk venues and activities come up, but we’re not able to support it this year.
  • As soon as the event ends, what can we expect? At the conclusion of the Walk, we encourage everyone to group up for an overhead photo from the second level of Marathon, looking down onto the group in the parking lot. After that, we will disperse and encourage people to hang out for the After Party.
  • Is this a rain or shine event? Within reason, the event is rain or shine. We will not walk in massive downpours or if lightning is present. If we are rained out, we will still invite everyone to the party at Marathon Music Works. In between any call for rain and the After Party time, we will play by ear on ways to salvage the fun. There is no rain date for the event, as it takes massive prep for the team, as well as those decking themselves out to attend.
  • What kind of After Party details are planned? The After Party is also a pre-party for the Paranormal Rocktivity concert — a ticketed Halloween event by Lightning 100. Participants who have registered for the Zombie Walk get a discount code for the ticket to the show. The Walk and its After Party are entirely free. Lightning has put a great party together for us, with the overhead photo op, followed by drink specials, spooky tunes, a photo booth and food trucks at the After Party. Those who choose to stay for the ticketed show can enjoy “Terrifying Funk from Beyond the Grave” by Here Come the Mummies and a set from DJ Johny Jackson’s Ghoul Satisfaction.
  • Is there anything else participants need to know? The photo potential is rich and there’s a variety of fun Zombie photo ops that abound in the areas we plan to inhabit. And the triumph that is to have a competent team back in charge of the Walk. We are eagerly awaiting people’s photos of posing in front of the famous angel wings in the Gulch or shots from the bridges on Broadway and Church as the Walk passes underneath. People should study up on the options, arrive early and do photos around the origin point and have fun with it.

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