Canoe Landing at minus 10?

Bring it on!

This week, I had a good reason to take my friends to Canoe Landing Park on a little night stroll, in the cold. A production team from Montreal and Ottawa needed night shots of the cityscape to enliven a potential new series called J’habite ici, where my friends and I were to talk about what it feels like to live in Toronto as francophones. Spoiler alert: It feels good!  

But baby, it’s cold out there

When you know you’re going to be in front of the camera, you make vanity-based decisions: no big chunky winter boots, no hat, no shapeless coat. It took the team over an hour to film all the takes they wanted around Canoe Landing's very cool public art by Douglas Coupland: giant fishing bobbers, beaver dam and a big red canoe overlooking the traffic jam on the Gardiner. 

By that time, my friends were frozen, but they are good sports (I had bribed them with the promise of some wine). I convinced them that it would warm us up to walk to the Puente de la Luz, the pedestrian bridge running over the train tracks, just north of Fort York Avenue. It offers a great design enhanced by dramatic lighting. And looking up as we walked, we could see that the tops of surrounding condos are adorned with coloured lights. Then, there’s the unavoidable CN Tower with its own set of changing lights.  

On our way, I had noticed a new restaurant which wasn’t there last time I visited in the summer (it opened last September): Hunters Landing, at the corner of Fort York and Capreol Ct. We decided to check it out, attracted by the burning fire on the outdoor patio.

Inside, we went for delectable sweet potato fries (not on the menu but we asked for them and they obliged) and warm mulled wine (a mix of spiced whiskey, red wine, clove, cinnamon and ginger), which succeeded in thawing our little gang. It was the perfect ending to our outing and a bonus in the neighbourhood.

This summer, the large outdoor patio will definitely add to the fun of this stroll (the walk #3 which I call LAKE SHORE Land of the Giants Stroll in Toronto Urban Strolls 1).

 

Sobeys to the rescue

There’s basically no street parking in the area but your way around it is to park in the underground parking lot of Sobeys (off Telegram Mews, follow the red P sign). Once inside, there’s a section for visitors on your right. The parking was $8 after 6 p.m. on a Friday night, and Sobeys reimbursed $3 off our parking ticket because we spent at least $10 at the supermarket. (Take half the parking stub with you after you've parked.)

Toronto by night around Canoe Landing

In the land of the giants!
The perfect urban summer night walk

A few weeks ago, I had two teen visitors over for five days. I let them do the first things that come to mind to teen girls: the Eaton Centre, the Beach, all the gelato shops within a 30-minute walk, etc. Then, on the last night, I took them on my Land of the Giants Stroll included in Toronto Urban Strolls 1. 

I cracked the code!

I think I cracked the code on the best way to enjoy a night walk around Canoe Landing and Concord Place. It's a fun stroll to admire lighting effects on the public art but an impossible place to find street parking. 

The way to go is to take advantage of Sobeys' indoor parking lot (evening max from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next day is $8, unless there's a special event, then the price is cranked up). We arrived around 9 p.m., enjoyed our walk for two hours, then shopped a bit inside the grocery store, open until midnight. 

I spent over $10 (scored on discounted items I needed anyway!), which allowed me to get a $3.50 refund on my parking ticket (when you get your ticket from a machine in the parking lot, you place part of it on your dash and show the other part at the cashier as a proof of payment to get the refund). 

A fun circuit

I first led them to the other side of Spadina and to the gorgeous sculpture Barca Volante, over a reflecting pool (off Bremner Boulevard on the east side of Spadina, turn right on Navy Wharf Court).  

We walked back to the Sobeys and turned right on Telegram Mews towards the train tracks to reach the new pedestrian bridge, quite sculptural under the lights.

 

Then we went southbound to the big park of Canoe Landing. After a little peep at the giant canoe, we reached the staircase on the west side of the park and walked down Bathurst to the lovely public art under the overpass.

A bit further down is T.O. Tuck Shop, a convenience store (also open until midnight) serving good coffee, hot sandwiches and all kinds of items appreciated by the condo dwellers. 

We ended the stroll by going up the path on the south side of Canoe Landing, facing the CN Tower. The three girls agreed it was a pretty cool walk!

For another cool stroll to enjoy Toronto by night, read:
Toronto by night around Yonge and Dundas Square