"An upside-down San Francisco"

[JeffR]

So Toronto was once described by architect Larry Richards. My own description would be that it's a city of secret landscapes. There are hundreds of deep ravines, most of which are nameless and unknown to those who don't live near one. Even the larger ones, and some are very large, remain hidden below the otherwise mostly flat street grid, which happily helps to account for why most are relatively unspoiled.

One small specimen is a 10-minute walk from our place, tucked between some winding residential streets and a railway embankment. It's not especially photogenic, though I've shot some colorful macros there every fall for some years. But it is a little breathing patch of wilderness in the middle of the city, "unimproved" except for the wooden steps and the catwalk that extends over a really boggy area at the eastern end of the ravine.

This time I thought I'd take the wide-angle and the plastic fantastic 50mm there on a late summer day. What had been a moody overcast afternoon turned harshly sunny as I walked there, and I found that the high contrast worked better in black & white than color, with one exception. So here's a little secret landscape I wanted to share.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. My dear JeffR!

Well, dayum!

These are wonderful...

I especially like the color one (natch) since there's a stream in it!

You are most fortunate to have such a little bit of wilderness so close to you...

Thank you!

:hug:

[JeffR]

2. Thanks, Peg. It's a nice spot for a short hike with a camera

and especially good that's it's so close I don't have to feel too guilty about deferring work to avail myself of it for a few minutes.

The tea leaves say this is going to be a pretty spectacular fall here on the Great Lakes, and I'm hoping to get to some of the more imposing ravines for some autumn colors. Doubt if I'll be bothering with B&W conversions if it turns out as well as is rumored.

[HappyCynic]

3. Great shots!

I really like the first one, with the paths leading down. There's a sense that it's beckoning you onward to further discoveries.
The tangle of branches is also quite intriguing.

[Adsos Letter]

4. Very Nice! That first one is makin' me dizzy!

:D

[Celebration]

5. I'll play the favorites game

The third one--because the light and shadows in that one appeal the most to me. I like seeing the actual beam of light and the shadows that it makes.

I love places like this..........

[Mira]

6. My 5 cents worth were stated days back, and are not here. Sometimes I don't

properly hit send.
I like the first four fiercely.
The first one is a startling shot. Not one to forget, the other two following simply flesh out the feel of being there so you get to know the place.
And the one with the colorful stream is rare to me in that the water is so very real and brilliant.

Nice outing, JeffR.