December is a rocket of a month, passing quickly in a blur of holiday preparation, parties, and travel until we’re unceremoniously dumped into the first week of January. The music has stopped, the lights have been taken down, and everyone seems grimly prepared for a cold, dark winter.

An annual bleak scenario, but it doesn’t have to be this way.

Though we are a northern city that experiences actual winters some years — this one is shaping up to be a good one — we do everything to forget it, a kind of collective winter denial. Just look at architectural and planning renderings for proposed buildings and public spaces: the images most always depict perfect June days.

Other Canadian cities are much better at enjoying their winters rather than just slogging through them, but there are things we can do in and around Toronto to embrace our winter city.

Our networks of interconnected ravines are even better in the winter as parts previously off-limits become accessible. If you look at a map you’ll notice in many places golf courses block continuous connection, but when the ground is covered with snow, the golfers and their fast-flying balls are absent, so the territory is open for the rest of us.

A favourite winter walk is through the city-owned Don Valley Golf Course. Beginning on Yonge St., just above York Mills Rd., meander north by northwest along the frozen fairways by the West Don River, underneath the four massive, cathedral spans of the 401 high above, and connect to Earl Bales Park. There is a fence between the two, but it’s porous and if you’re intrepid you’ll find a way into the park and soon end up at bottom of the ski hill. Take the lift up to the top if it’s running.

With the leaves off the trees, the heretofore hidden homes along the edges of ravines are also uncovered, making for revealing walks, especially interesting in Rosedale and other mansion-filled and architecturally adventurous neighbourhoods. The bare trees also let more light into the ravines at night. Coupled with the reflecting snow-covered ground, winter night walks are much more luminous than in summer, especially when the moon is full and the air is crisp and clean.

Don’t be afraid to check out unexpected winter-friendly places either. Rent some snowshoes from Mountain Equipment Co-op and head to the Leslie Street Spit. In rough weather the roiling waves and water mist cover everything with a thick layer of ice; beautiful, but without the power outages and broken trees our recent ice storm delivered. The skyline across the water, with steam coming from the tops of so many skyscrapers into the cold air is a fine sight, like being in deepest Algonquin Park but with civilization in view at all times.

With natural areas like this weaved throughout the city, our bars and restaurants should look like lodges in Whistler, with skis and snow shoes lined up out front as people take a break from enjoying their city.

Resistance to winter is deep though. The chronic oversalting of GTA sidewalks is another kind of seasonal denial. Shovelling — actually dealing with snow — has been abandoned, replaced with dumping piles of rock salt on the concrete that sting dog paws, gum up wheelchair works, and kill trees and plant life.

Embrace the blizzard, but maybe a shovel too.

Shawn Micallef writes every Friday about where and how we live in the GTA. Wander the streets with him on Twitter @shawnmicallef

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