Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Quebec’s Highline

When I visited New York last May, I fell in love with the Highline Park; this famous elevated park running through the Meatpacking District. For me, this charming oasis rising above the West side of Manhattan is a demonstration of New York’s creativity and audaciousness, in addition to being an amazing gift to the population (and visitors like me!). I just can’t wait to go back to the Highline to discover the park's new sections (I’ll keep you updated about that).

Obviously, not every city has similar elevated railway tracks to transform into a green area.That being said, I visited my family in Quebec City last weekend and we went for a walk on the beautiful promenade Samuel-De-Champlain, a large landscaped park of approximately 2.5 km along the St. Lawrence River where you can walk, run, cycle, roller skate or just relax. 

This place, with its wood infrastructures and native plant species, reminded me of the Highline Park. 

The project, inaugurated in 2008 for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, was initiated to “give back” the river to Québec’s residents by rehabilitating one of the most degraded river banks of the city. It is a great success for Quebec: the promenade and its facilities welcome each day hundreds of visitors and residents. Here are a few pictures of the western part of the park taken on a sunny Sunday afternoon:

One observation point
The visitors center
A nice view of the river
Rest areas everywhere
The boats pass very close
A view of the promenade from the visitors center

Has anyone seen the new sections of the Highline? What do you think about it? Also, what are your favorite parks around the globe?

2 comments:

  1. This is a great project. While the Highline Park in New York is a great example of creativity, Samuel-de-Champlain is great because it rejuvenates part of the natural habitat. In CA, my favorite stroll is actually the wetlands in Huntington Beach. Here is a link to the recovery project. http://www.scwrp.org/

    Thanks for sharing!

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  2. @Phee's Surreal Cereal - Thanks for sharing this interesting project. I guess I'll have to go back to CA to visit the wetlands. I appreciate the fact that the project works with federal, state and local agencies and non-profit organisations. This is a good example of partnership.

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