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When we did the Walk to Fight Arthritis in early June, it was a big experience for a number of reasons. One of these was that I’ve always wanted to tromp through the woods in the Don Valley. Doing the Walk did not lend itself to stop and photograph the wondrous surroundings. Recently, The Boy and I went back with ample time for a leisurely walk.

We started by wandering around the Brickworks’ Saturday market and then headed towards the ponds. Where another dream came true.

For years, I have admired photographs of dragonflies. I’ve very much wanted the opportunity to photograph one myself, but I live downtown and the odd time I see one, it flies off before I can get out my camera. Turns out that all I had to do was find a pond.

Now I’d like to photograph a dragonfly on a prettier background than pondscum!

From a bit further away, the pond is beautiful.

After the pond, but before you get to the woods, you walk through a beautiful meadow area, gone wild with grasses and wildflowers. And I was completely overwhelmed by all the green. It would be impossible to count all the difference shades of green, so all I did was let my eyes absorb the glory.

This area is not exactly accessible, but if you have a power wheelchair that’s comfortable in uneven terrain, it’s a great place to get close to all the green.

I learned a lot of different things that day in the woods. Among them that there is a quarry in the Don Valley

But enough of all that, let’s get into the woods! Which we did very quickly and for the first time in years, even decades, I was in a decidedly woodsy area. I knew that it was something I’d very much wanted to do, but had no idea how much I’d missed the woods – much more easily accessible in Denmark — until I saw sights like this

There are also signs of human influence, moments that show that these woods are in the middle of the city, but they are so embraced by nature that it doesn’t seem jarring. This culvert, for instance, had created a beautiful little watering hole, complete with waterfall

A bit further down the path, there was a railway bridge, almost totally obscured by trees at each side of the path

Thankfully, it was a beautiful sunny day and that gave me the opportunity to play with light filtering through leaves, one of my favourite things in the world

It doesn’t get much more green than that.

Or this. A perfect moment, just me and The Boy in the woods.

I came home with my soul at peace and feeling a deep happiness. I’ve only been there twice, but this has become one of my favourite places in Toronto.