[URBAN NOTE] "Your Guide to Jane’s Walk 2014"

[rfmcdonald]

I took part last May in a couple of the Jane's Walks with my father, a former Garrison Creek route, the first (upstream) tracing the legacies of the buried stream and the second (downstream) trying to make a case for restoring the watercourse to the surface. We both had a lot of fun.

That's why I'm pleased Torontoist pulled together a selection of especially interesting walks this year.

When Jane’s Walk first launched in 2007, a year after the death of urban activist Jane Jacobs, the Toronto Star listed 23 strolls. Christopher Hume noted that “though [Jacobs] was one of those people who refuse all honours … Jane’s Walk might well be the one sort of attention she would have appreciated.”

Since that modest start, Jane’s Walk has grown in leaps and bounds. While those initial walks covered only the pre-amalgamation City of Toronto, this year’s edition offers over 130 strolls across the 416. And these are only a fraction of the walks that will be held in over 150 cities across the globe this weekend, covering all continents except Antarctica (though we wouldn’t be surprised if one were to take place there someday).

The number and range of scheduled of walks can be intimidating, so we’ve pulled together some themes you can use to build your Jane’s Walk experience.

My curiosity is especially piqued by the Bloordale walk starting at Bloor and Dufferin Saturday and the graffiti tour on Queen Street West Sunday.

You?