Sun, Oct 23 2011 - A walk in the Park (View Original Event Details)
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I was worried all week that this was going to be a rainy day...but my oh my it turned out to be a great day with sunny skies and no wind! Our goal was to keep the pace between 4.5km and 5.0km...how far we could walk in the parks during our allotted time was dependent on our pace. We had three TOC dog mascots with us today, Kelli, Shadow and Woody who made sure we didn't fall behind. Once everyone arrived, we headed into our 1st park, Warden Woods. Nicholas mentioned the last time he was there he saw a deer, but today we weren't so lucky. I was also pleasantly surprised to see that there was still some fall colour in the trees to enjoy! After a brief side bar along Pharmacy Ave, we were ready for our 2nd park on the map, Taylor Creek Park. It was getting warm by this point so we took a break to dress down and take a water break. Smiles abounded that the weather forecast was wrong! Off we go into Taylor Creek Park where Woody had a nice dip in the creek to cool off. Shadow and Kelli thought about it, but chickened out at the last minute! The park was pretty busy today, lots of cyclists, joggers and people out with their dogs. Also lots of puddles and mud to avoid from the prior day's rain, but nothing a little hop over couldn't solve. The group was having a wonderful time, chatting and walking while enjoying the scenery. Lunchtime was here, but everyone was eager to continue on to our next park before stopping. Our 3rd park Lower Donlands Parklands was the busiest for cyclists. It seemed like every two minutes we were hearing a bell giving us notice a cyclist was approaching. Jason even saw a small snake cross the path. Lucky for the snake it wasn't run over! Our lunch stop was Todmorden Mills. It was great spot to stop and relax for a spell. The group had walked 10km by this point and enjoyed some lively conversation while eating a bite for lunch. After our lunch break we continued south on the Lower Donlands Parklands to Riverdale. This was our exit from the park system and our easiest route to Broadview Stn, our designated end spot. It was here where we gathered for our official group shot and then headed up Broadview Ave to Danforth Ave. As we said our good-byes at the subway station, everyone agreed it was a perfect day for "A walk in the Park!"
Drum roll please...the group walked 15.5km with a moving average of 4.7km! Great Job Everyone!
Donations collected: $12
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