Boston Globe: A 27-mile community-made trail brings urban hiking to Boston

"Like many fresh ideas in recent years, the inspiration for an official urban hiking trail in Boston came during the COVID-19 pandemic, said Miles Howard, who would go on increasingly longer walks to feel the “escape of a hike” without leaving Greater Boston.

“We really had to make the most of what we had here in our backyard,” Howard, a freelance journalist who has written for The Boston Globe, said of his treks in 2020. “These adventures became kind of a pastime during the first year of the pandemic.”

Then, Howard took a hike on the Crosstown Trail, which connects opposite areas of San Francisco through hidden trails, public parks, and shopping corridors. Upon returning to Boston, Howard set out to create a similar path that would use existing parks, streets, and landmarks in the city.

The result was the Walking City Trail, an unofficial trail mapped by Howard through existing walkways that stretches 27 miles across 17 neighborhoods from its origin in Mattapan to its finish at Bunker Hill."

Continue reading the article at the Boston Globe (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/07/24/metro/boston-walking-city-trail/

A 27-mile community-made trail brings urban hiking to Boston

Yes, there is such a thing as "Walking Soccer"

"The physical demands of soccer — a fast-paced, high-intensity sport known for lots of running — prevent people such as Clark from participating after a certain age or an injury.

The game requires rapid accelerations, decelerations, turns and stops, which take a toll on players’ knees and ankles. A standard soccer pitch, at 115 yards long and 74 yards wide, is larger than an American football field. Players cover, on average, nearly seven miles, in a single match.

So when a variant of the sport with no running allowed emerged in 2011, some laughed it off as a joke.

Walking soccer, however, has become a global phenomenon."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required) -> 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2023/07/18/walking-soccer-rules-health-benefits/

The Barnet WFT (Walking Football Team) in England boasts 140 players between ages 50 and 87. (Shaun Sherrick)

Maria Popova: "In Praise of Walking: A Poetic Manifesto for Our Simplest Instrument of Discovery, Transformation, and Transcendence"

"When you walk, you move more than the body — you move the mind, the spirit, the entire system of being. As you traverse spatial distance, you gain vital spiritual distance with which to see afresh the problems that haunt your day, your work, your life. 

Ideas collide and connect in ways they never would have on the static plane. 

Pains are left behind in the forward motion. 

Doubts fall away by the footfall. I do my best writing on foot — the rest, what happens at the desk, is mere transcription. 

Nietzsche saw the link between walking and creativity. “There is nothing more revealing than to see a thinking person walking,” wrote Thomas Bernhard, “just as there is nothing more revealing than to see a walking person thinking.” A passionate walker herself, Rebecca Solnit has defined the act as “a state in which the mind, the body, and the world are aligned.”

Continue reading Maria Popova's post -> 
https://www.themarginalian.org/2022/12/18/in-praise-of-walking-thomas-a-clark/

Art by Paloma Valdivia for Pablo Neruda: Book of Questions

"Housing choice is mismatched to need" & 15 minute city model

Two graphics to help inform our local zoning discussions

One

"Housing choice is mismatched to need."

Shared from Twitter -> https://twitter.com/SouthernUrb/status/1624086236561375234

Southern Urbanism "Housing choice is mismatched to need"

You can visit DataTown at the Mass Housing Project to get our local stats ->  https://mhpcenterforhousingdata.shinyapps.io/DataTown/#

Two

"The 15-minute city model is the idea that cities should be designed, or redesigned, so that within a 15-minute walk or bike of home, people should be provided the opportunity to access many of their daily needs like work, food, health, education, culture and leisure."

The 15-minute city model

Shared from Twitter -> https://twitter.com/berkie1/status/1624381496348794883

For more about the 15 minute city model -> https://www.15minutecity.com/

Lifelong Community Learning: Winter/Spring Exercise & Wellness Classes Starting Soon

Don't Be Left Out. Register Today

‌ Lifelong Community Learning Exercise & Wellness Classes Winter/Spring 2023 Starting SOON Don't be left out! Register today! REGISTER NOW Mindful Monday - Fight Stress & Find Serenity This class is designed to provide you with the tools you need to develop your own meditation practice. You will find it is perfect for beginners, or anyone who wants to get re-focused on meditation and incorporate a mindfulness meditation practice into their daily life. 10 Mondays, beginning January 9 $99/person Yoga Classes Yoga, which has been around since the 15th century, helps to quiet the mind & improve health, for all levels - whether you are a beginner or experienced. Join us for a great way to spend winter/spring! Vinyasa Flow Yoga, Hatha Yoga, AND/OR Yoga For Anyone 10 Wednesdays AND/OR Thursdays, beginning January 11 $99/person - per class LaBlast Dance Fitness, Partner-free LaBlast is an energizing dance fitness program that uses easy to follow ballroom dance patterns. Students will learn the basic steps of several dance styles, while enjoying music from all genres. Classes are low impact and for all levels of fitness. Partner-free and no experience necessary.  10 Tuesdays, beginning January 10 $99/person Country Line Dancing Test your dance moves. No partner needed! Line dancing is a group dance standing side-by-side in one or more lines while performing a series of choreographed dance moves in unison. While it is often done to country music, line dancing can also be done to pop music by artists such as Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran.  10 Thursdays, beginning February 16 $99/person Tai Chi Tai Chi is an ancient martial arts practice that has its roots in health, wellbeing, and spirituality. This class will introduce you to the art of Tai Chi and its many benefits. 5 Mondays, beginning January 23 $60/person Qigong Qigong is an ancient energy exercise used to not only enhance the body's energy flow, but also to reduce stress and increase flexibility. This is a very gentle exercise and does not require any prerequisites.  5 Mondays, beginning March 13 $60/person Ladies Snowshoe/Trek Join this invigorating winter 6-week class for the physically fit hiker! Embrace this part of the year. Hiking trails are serene during the winter months and fresh fallen snow only adds to the calorie burning magic! 6 weeks, beginning January 12 $30/person Community Walking Open to the public, September 19, 2022 thru May 25, 2023 Walk on the FHS indoor track or in the first floor hallways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM FREE - Annual Registration Required For more information & additional details visit www.FranklinLifelongLearning.com Find us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter

FPS - Lifelong Community Learning | 218 Oak Street, Room 137, Franklin, MA 02038 Sent by lcl@franklinps.net powered by Try email marketing for free today!

WALKING CITY TRAIL: a 25-mile hike through Boston's parks and urban woodlands

"Today's (06/16/22) the day, folks. I'd like you to meet the WALKING CITY TRAIL: a 25-mile hike through Boston's parks and urban woodlands. The trail is divided into four sections that are accessible by public transit. Here's where the trail will take you.... "

Follow the trail through Boston in the Twitter thread here

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Jwq6IvTpxv-MF5c0yh3OF0VbCU37PAp5/view?usp=sharing

Visit the website ->  https://www.bostontrails.org/

 #walkingcitytrail

WALKING CITY TRAIL: a 25-mile hike through Boston's parks and urban woodlands