Results tagged “winter”

Looking back at Toronto's skyline from Algonquin Island with the ultimate backyard rink in the foreground.

High Park Toboggan Runs, ca. 1906-1910. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 438."

TTC union reps walked away from the bargaining table yesterday, meaning you could be walking to work as early as next Tuesday. Much like everyone else on the planet, the union is looking for more money and better benefits, but unlike everybody else on the planet, they can force the city into shutdown if they don't get it. As Clint Eastwood famously said in Unforgiven, "Deserves got nothin' to do with it."

Cows cause traffic tie-ups on the QEW. Best line of story: "We have someone en route with rodeo experience." Rodeo experience. To get a cow to move off the damn road. (Did nobody just try waving food in front of the cow's face?)

The streetcar, subway, or bus is never a fun place to be during rush hour, and it’s even worse during those slow, wet, and frustrating during- and post-snow storm trips, where the Better Way can turn into hell on wheels/rails. Between angry drivers, puffy coats, and that strange gentleman who mutters to himself about Polish androids eating his muffins, you’ve got to wonder just how the taking transit could ever seem like a nice ride, even if it did save you from digging the car out of that snow bank that formed on your driveway.

Plagued by complaints, the City of Toronto has finally gotten around to ticketing some homeowners who don't clear the snow in front of their property. A city spokesperson said they prefer not to send out inspectors in the winter because it's so difficult to get around.

So, you may have noticed it snowed this weekend. If you don't believe us, go check out the Toronto Star's website, where nine out of ten local stories are about the snow, people dealing with the snow, and celebrities talking about the snow. Notably absent among them: the probable cause for all of this snow.

The Village of Yorkville Park rang to the sound of chisels and chainsaws on Saturday as ice sculptors took part in the Bloor-Yorkville IceFest Festival Ice Carving Competition.

Snow globes, ice sculptures, and an ice bar...sound like an arctic paradise? Even if you're sick of slipping on the white (and sometimes yellow) stuff, you're still invited to Bloor-Yorkville's IceFest Festival this weekend—and you don't even have to get your feet wet!

Extreme cold alert! Be forewarned that this extreme cold is not extreme in the sense of "it is totally radical like Doritos and Mountain Dew," but rather extreme in the sense of "it can kill you if you stay out in it too long." Environment Canada will discuss the prospects of the extreme cold's effect on totally shredding slopes with your snowboard later today.

The winter sport of slush puddle vaulting is a game we’ve all played before. As an alternative to leaping over the slush filled gutters at Queen and Victoria last week, some inventive soul placed two shipping skids to bridge the puddle. Thank you mystery innovator, as many soakers were certainly avoided.

What kind of people don't like riding their bikes in a Toronto winter? People who have never tried it, that's who. Even as more and more people choose not to get off their bikes when November comes around, many non-cyclists still view winter cycling as unwise, dangerous, or impossible. So as part of its first Bike Winter campaign to raise awareness of cycling as year-round transportation, the City of Toronto is hosting the Coldest Day of the Year Ride on Wednesday January 30, which they say is statistically, uh, the coldest day of the year. Riders will meet at City Hall at noon and filter down University Avenue toward Metro Hall, where hot refreshments will be awaiting the cyclists, sure to be exhausted after their 10-minute ride.

It’s a well-known fact that tobogganing kicks ass. Sadly, the mild weather we’re experiencing is not suited for snow-related activities. What begins as tobogganing quickly becomes slush-bogganing. As conditions deteriorate, you may wind up mud-bogganing, and possibly even mud wrestling.

All photos by Kristin Foster.

What's the most fun you can have in the days following a big snowstorm?

It snowed a whole lot. Of course, you probably didn't need Torontoist to tell you this, unless you've been on a serious World of Warcraft run all weekend. In which case you are probably trapped inside your home, and soon will perish—which probably gives you just enough time to make it to level sixty!

According to Environment Canada, this winter will be the coldest in fifteen years. That news should send us all running for the comforts of indoors, but once again Harbourfront Centre provides the perfect reason to play outside. DJ Skating Nights return for a third year, providing those who brave the cold to skate under the glittering skyline with a soundtrack from local DJs. The five Friday nights of the series will feature five different...

With this morning's surprise snowfall, Toronto pedestrians are once again relegated to nimbly navigating slush-covered sidewalks—an unpredictible process that leaves us carefully weaving through each other like mountain goats passing on a cliff.