With all the amazing remote sensing technologies available today, we can rapidly capture features in 3D, build digital twins of entire cities, and immerse ourselves in augmented reality experiences. Such models are becoming essential to realizing the benefits of the much-needed digitalization of AEC: BIM, GeoBIM, 4D construction, et al. But we are still, in many ways, our own best “reality capture” system. And perhaps, to keep a balanced perspective on our world, we should regularly immerse ourselves in our communities, from a ground level vantage, and at a pace that lets us truly soak in the wonders thereof.
We can live in a community our whole lives and only experience, first-hand, a fraction thereof. From the comfort of an auto, or public transportation, we are focused on travelling the most direct route, but miss out on so much of the physical and human geography beyond. Cycling brings the pace down somewhat, but I find nothing fills the senses and understanding of local geography than explorations on foot.
I have embarked on urban hikes my entire life. My father took our family on many, and I carried this tradition with my own kids. And, whenever visiting a different city or country, time spent exploring on foot has yielded the most insightful experiences: meeting locals off the well-tread routes, discovering culinary and art delights, and connecting the geography with history.
We can pour over maps and datasets, analyzing spatial aspects of community, culture and socio-economic influences, but our mental map of a community, like any other dataset, can only benefit from some “ground truth”. Through such explorations, I have found instances when first-hand observations counter what thematic maps and analyses suggest.
2020 brought so many societal disruptions, not the least of which is work from home (WFH). Our community was early beset by the pandemic but was also at the fore in implementing precautions and measures seeking to slow the spread. This meant a rapid transition to remote work, and with it, challenges to staying active. For me, increasing the frequency of my urban hikes helped tremendously. I set out in the early morning, pick a direction and destination through unfamiliar parts of our city, and hike for many pleasant hours of solitude, reflection, and wonderment.
Initially, I would use mobile apps to select routes and estimate duration. With the use of a pedometer app, I compared my walking time with what apps like Google Maps estimate. After determining the range of walking speeds such apps seem to use, I found these quite accurate, with exceptions mostly occurring from varied terrain, frequency of controlled pedestrian crossings, and time of the day. I have also found the OsmAnd app to come in handy. This uses Open Street Maps, and you can download entire cities’, states’ and countries’ maps for offline navigation. This was especially the case in China where a lot of apps I take for granted would not work, and other places with limited or no data service.
I have since dropped the use of map apps, and find that choosing a distant destination, navigating by dead reckoning, puts me off-the-beaten-path and yields some of the most interesting finds. There were instances in distant lands that changed the direction (no pun intended) of my visits. Once while attending a geosciences symposium in Chengdu China, I decided to walk from the venue to the hotel. The shortest route follows the main commercial street, lined with designer label stores. The route seemed bland and looked much like similar corridors in other cities around the world. Stepping one block off the main thoroughfare, I discovered much more local fare and character but was not as interesting as the third street over. Amazing street food, art, night spots, and groups gathered to eat, drink and play Mahjong. The friendly people there suggested other destinations, and my return routes varied each subsequent day.
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Back home, early weekend mornings are my favourite. These are also the best time to observe urban wildlife. Though many months have passed, these forays into the offbeat sections of our diverse community have only increased.
I have discovered public and private art which I didn’t realize existed, amazing front gardens, numerous mini libraries (neighborhood book exchange boxes in people’s yards), and quite a bit of errata that defy simple explanation. Like the diving bell sitting in an unrelated business’ side lot, a huge concrete sculpture of Troll under a bridge. But also, long abandoned trolley tracks from century ago, and raveling pavement sections revealing original cobblestones.
Variations in the cityscape inspire geographic sleuthing. For instance, why do some streets diverge from the regular grid pattern? What are the origins of some street and place names? What traces of cultural elements from indigenous peoples, early settlers, and historic commerce routes have left indelible marks on the geography?
Exploring historic maps and photos, of obscure parts of town, sometimes reveals that they might have been the hub of past industries and transportation corridors. I sought books and materials online about our community and have gained a deeper appreciation for local history. Of course, being a surveyor involved in engineering projects, I will stop to contemplate how some elements of local infrastructure, like a drainage system or road design might have been influenced by not only the topography, but also the shifting human geography of bygone eras.
“Take the long way home…” – Supertramp
Explore!
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