Jan. 18, 2012 - Issue #848: City of champions
Cold adventure
Take a wintery walk on the wild side
» Walking in a winter wonderland / Winter Light
"We've really been wanting snow," says festival director Pamela Anthony. "One of the guiding principals of this festival is to celebrate winter ... the walk is magical when the creek is filled with lots of snow."
The adventure walk, now in its fourth year, is a "mysterious and magical journey" along a short trail in Mill Creek Ravine Park that sparkles with light installations, she explains. Local artist Dylan Toymaker has transformed a walk through the woods into a snowy spectacle for adults and children of all ages.
Guided by a cast of weird and wonderful woodland creatures, visitors enter a giant living fairytale and adventure through the light-filled trees, lanterns in hand, as the story unfolds.
"It's an open air story, an original work, about Aurora, Queen of the Northern Lights and her animal friends," Pamela enthuses. "We have a huge public lantern display and the entire creek comes alive with lights ... it's wonderful to see grownups and kids with stars in their eyes."
Adventurers join the trail just north of the Mill Creek Pool and are met with warming fires and free hot chocolate. There's also a lantern-making tent, where attendees can craft their own guiding light using materials provided and become part of the shimmering light parade. Dressed in carnival-style costumes, a crowd of entertainers and singers are on hand throughout the walk to guide visitors on their way and tell them Aurora's tale as they journey toward her Winter Meadow.
The walk isn't designed to be a strenuous hike, Pamela adds, and an alternative trail is available for those with strollers or mobility issues. Attendees should wear sturdy winter boots and dress appropriately.
The Mill Creek Adventure Walk is free of charge and will take place on Friday, January 27 and Saturday, January 28, from 7 pm – 10 pm. Visit winterlight.ca for more information.
More stories in Snow Zone »
vueweekly.com comments: powered by DisqusPrivacy Policy:
Vue respects your privacy. We will not forward your personal information to any other organization except as required by law, and will use your e-mail address only to respond to your comments. We reserve the right to edit and remove comments for length, clarity and/or if they are illegal or inappropriate. Your email address is never shown to visitors to vueweekly.com. Read the whole policy at: http://vueweekly.com/privacy
Comments policy
Comments go online directly without first being seen or reviewed by editors at Vue. Don't personally attack people, don't be defamatory, don't be spam-atory, don't hawk your band, don't pretend to be someone else, be clear, be on topic, be nice. Read our extended comments policy here. »
We use Disqus for our comments system. What's that all about?
We found that managing the comment community at Vue was easier to do with a system like Disqus. If this isn't straightforward to you, get help here.