Toronto Parks in the fall; Riverdale Park Magic!

well I dropped my camera "from a height" It refuses to do more than open and close briefly and then turn off. So, blog post with no visuals.
I live by a huge natural river valley. On the West side is a deeply canopied slope that houses an urban farm, parkland and a Victorian Cemetery. A river still runs through the valley and I am a resident on the East side. It's a really long wide sweeping boulevard along the East side of the valley. It runs about a kilometre and a half of unobstructed view and what you can see as you head along this street is exceptionally beautiful. This long street is aptly named Broadview. It is a natural feature that has been a landmark in this city since the first non native settlers branched up away from the shores of the lake. There also are still archaeological traces of truly ancient human habitation all along this ridge of land.
The landscape here could tell you so many stories!
It is an intersection of a prominent natural feature: (a deep river valley with sloping hillside banks;) and a long standing area of human development.
This is a Park and a parkland and a natural landscape too. It serves so many functions for groups of people and individuals. It would be possible to focus on this area alone, and create a daily post just based on everything that happens here.HOWEVER!!! I am not doing that!
I really just wanted to talk about the way that the natural landscape and the urban city work so very well together here.
I am going to take it lower and deeper than that too. I am really interested that I use the landscape of the Valley as my own personal guide ...By that I mean that I consciously and intuitively turn to the signs posted by the landscape itself to help me navigate through my day. WHAT??? are you talking about Alex!!???

I am certain that this happens to you also. I pass along Broadview every single morning to bring my daughter to school and I read the signs as I go. First; the signs of the urban environment. How bad is traffic? Looking over at the D.V.P I can assess a quick account of the flow of traffic and get a sense of the energy of the day that way.The quality of the light and the amount of cloud cover in the sky also give such an accurate gauge of the weather patterns coming in. The pollution level in the air : the haze around the tops of the buildings....and more subtly than that the view is so wide and covers so many levels of development that you get even the sense of temperature and wind . A brief glance across the valley at the amount of foliage ON the trees at any point in the season is a great gauge of where I really am in regards to the feel of the day. Right now I see that the trees have recently lost most of their foliage and so I can now see the ground as well as the trees themselves. The new more sombre colours of this view also create an emotional response as the season moves from growth period to the rest time of Winter. That soft steel grey of the trees also echoes the color in a sky that is pending snow.
Here is place that allows the voices of the natural world to speak to us urban dwellers and act as a guide to us. The distance between nature and human development is not too great. I think that there is an undercurrent in a city like Toronto. We have a large amount of parkland and green space all around us . We are also fortunate that much of the development of the city falls along the river and ravine trails that run down to Lake Ontario. Many of these areas are naturalized so we still have local birds in season; local animals and native plant species too. I think that many Torontonians use these areas just as I use Riverdale Park. These pockets of natural energy allow us to remain connected to the rhythm and energy of our local season. We are a City in a Park! I ask you to observe your own relationship to the green carpet under the cement!!!

Port Credit Parks development plan 2009-2010

http://www.topca.net/news/news.htm

copy and paste in your browser...all the community input on the Port Credit area parks / waterfront development...

Port Credit; Lion's Club Memorial Hall. Remembrance Day

I was trying to give a sense of scale here:
First you can see the Volleyball court and then I panned around to the huge cranes overhead: and back to the Volleyball courts.
You can see that this is a modest facility but it really has a lot of charm once you go in. There's a generous second floor hall with high ceilings, wood floors, a kitchen.
This facility is slated for "renovation" in 2010. Lets hope it is treated with some respect and not just used as a cash cow on the suddenly very valuable piece of land it sits on!It is a MEMORIAL HALL...most certainly there is some history here to remember

Port Credit Lion's Club Facility Nov 2009

This facility is located out in Port Credit at Lakeshore and Hurontario.
In the summer it has a sweet and very sheltered pool. There's a Vollyball Court!!! Sand!!! There's Tennis too. It's out amongst some charming old lakefront area bungalows .
At my last visit, there was a cage of cranes circling the little Lion's Club!!!
so much development is happening out in the West End! It will be a very different neighborhood once the condo towers are up. Take a trip out if you can and enjoy the way it feels now; quiet, homey and in scale with the landscape .....

A parade of natural beauty NOV 2009

enjoying all the subtle colors and textures of this season

Fall Color in Toronto! November 2009

Hello November! It's a whole new season....Pumpkins on Parade 2009

Well, Halloween is done. It's such a wonderful chance to get out on the street and see your neighbors! sadly, there were many many fewer kids out this year. I believe a large part of this was fear. People are really afraid of the Flu Pandemic.
I spent the evening with my family and especially my daughter. It is her most favorite holiday.
Out at dufferin Grove Park,all the pumpkins end up on parade at the end of the night...
http://www.blogto.com/city/2009/11/sorauren_park_pumpkin_parade_the_biggest_yet/
copy and paste this link inyour browser for a thousand jack o' lanterns on parade!

More Dog and skater news in Toronto Parks...October 26th 2009

On the happy side of things it looks as if East End dog lovers will be able to have their pets off leash all winter (2009 -2010)at Kew Beach, Woodbine Beach and Balmy Beach...
are you pleased about this? possibly a member of the Toronto Beaches Dogs Association? If you are, and also if you are not; I'd love your input on this. Here at parkblog I recognize that the urban landscape is described by the "official" people in Toronto a lot. However; urban green spaces are small pieces of nature in our midst and cannot be 100% under the control of official governing forces. There are just as many secrets in the park as their are officially sanctioned activities!
There is inevitably a push and pull between these two forces in our city and that is really obvious on the open streets and the urban greenspaces. Is it more valid for a Mom and baby to picnic on the grass at noon or for teens to party in the Don Valley on a summer evening..?
Also, the new skateboard park at Ashbridges Bay seems to be missing DRAINS. The skatepark has major puddles when it rains... Apparently the contractor didn't think to put drains in.
I have no wisdom for you on that one, people!

Harmony Dog Park Oshawa October 2009

check out this link if you are dog lovin' park user...or anyone who is interested in living with acceptance of other living creatures....

go to www.harmonydogpark.ca and learn how the Oshawa Durham Area Walkers Group (ODAWG) and the City of Oshawa have worked together to create a large off leash park that is good for a lot of reasons....

or try the archives of the Toronto Star,Tuesday October 13 2009 , page GT5 article entitled "It's a dog meet dog world"

Dogs in Parks Toronto October 2009

How do you feel about this sign?
As a parent you may agree that dogs should not be allowed into a child's park because they are potentially dangerous to young kids and they also poo and pee all over the place! Why, how many times has a giant hound charged across a park straight at your wobbly 2 year old while the dog owner waves from across the grass and mouths "he's friendly".... It is also unpleasant to glitch across a plastic bag full of pet waste with your foot. The real unbagged stuff is worse...
Now, of course there are lots of families with young kids who also are dog owners. more than likely the pet in question is considered as a cherished family member. So, there comes into play some juggling; as dog runs are handled as part of the daily fabric of family life. Some parks have areas where your beloved canine can play in safety (because there's danger in the city for animals too and not just young humans) while the kids can do their thing too in their area.
And some folks believe that the best solution would be to have fully mixed parks for humans and beasts to play together!
What do you think?
more investigation over time on this subject.....