Art Attack!!

Its kind of fun to create some 'aerial art' for the overhead flyers. 
 In the 90's there was a show on tv that aired everyday called "Art Attack!"
Episode of Art Attack!  From approx 5:49 - 7:35 in the clip, you can see his aerial artwork from start to finish! It's really cool and I remember watching it with my kids when they were small and thinking what happens to this work afterwards? Some of his shows he literally goes around a large gathering of food on picnics tables and uses the food as props! The end result is stunning from an aerial perspective and www.youtube.com has lots of footage of the show.  The host of the show, Eric Bucannhan was rumoured to have died (from an art attack?).  I did some research and infact he's alive and well, but not exactly sure what he's up to.  I decided to do a bit of my own aerial artwork with some landfill around the Tommy Thompson Park, and all I could pretty much carry were multi-cultured bricks! I did manage to spell out have a nice day..Unfortunately no one could quite get high enough over the artwork to really revel in its beauty !  :^P

Tommy Thompson Park (additional photographs)

unfilled landfill :)

  I went back to the Tommy Thompson Park for a ride..mostly because I just can't get enough of this place.  I rode for about an hour from home and instead of following the path to the Vicky Keith Lighthouse (see Tommy Thompson Park on this blog) I explored a little and tried to find paths closer to the shoreline.  It was a windy night, but a warm wind and just hours after the 5.8 earthquake that Toronto and surrounding areas including Quebec experienced.  I must have been in a 'safe zone' because desks didn't shake, or rattle, or roll 

and I was pretty much oblivious to what had happened until I heard the buzz from people talking about it.  

Confused Geese...

Nothing spells the end of summer like the shorter days

 and the early confusion of geese swarming around dusk.  I remembered my grandfather used to tell me when I was a child that we could learn a lot from the animals, especially the birds (yes he was Native ;).  They were altruistic and would be able to give me all the warnings signs I would ever need for the weather ahead.  Judging by the way the they swarmed, almost manically back and forth and hovering at times, I figured there was going to be a bad wind shift happening in the near future. Canadian weather is always so unpredictable anyways. I rode to the end of a gravelly road and looked around for miles without seeing a soul in sight. I was a little concerned with my bike tires because of the rubble, so kept the weight off them.  The shoreline was littered with building remnants and construction waste.  It is a landfill site after all, and in time this too will be covered with grassland and wildflowers.  The ducks didn't seem to mind...    

trails of geese 

Tommy Thompson Park Trail (Leslie Spit)

Once you reach the end of the trail at Lakeshore you can turn eastbound on the trail towards the Martin Goodman trail or you can veer right at Leslie street and follow the road straight down to the end.  There  you will see the opening to the Tommy Thompson Park Trail (or the "Leslie Spit as Torontonians call it). 

Who ever thought garbage could look so good? The Tommy Thompson Park Trail is a landfill site.  It is flourishing with an abundance of wild flowers and grassland covering what appears like rolling hills and valleys.  It is surrounded by the beautiful Lake Ontario.  As you can see the trail has a lot of beautiful scenery and there are many off road paths that take you to the waters edge.  Many secluded spots for exploring or having a lunch break.

At the peak of the 'spit' you will see an old lighthouse, called the 'Vicki Keith Point Lighthouse'.  (named after the Canadian swimmer, who swam across all 5 great lakes for charity in 1988).

The Tommy Thompson Park trail is open for cyclists, joggers, walkers, roller-bladers, and boaters on weekends and holidays.  During the week, it is bustling with dump trucks offloading and extending the park further.


I couldn't believe the number of birds that I saw, until I read up later and found out that the park is through one of the largest bird sanctuaries in Ontario. 


I love it here, next time I 'll come back with a pen and paper and just write. It's very peaceful and secluded and there's just so much you can take in and leave with.  



    

I remember when I was a little girl, my grandmother told me that she had been all around the world 4 times after my grandfather died.  She told me that Toronto was the most beautiful city in the world. I look back at all the trails and parks that I have been through in the past 5 months.  I honestly can't believe how much nature surround us 5 million people here.