Winter Walk: Freezes the Hands, but Warms the Soul
Donovan Armstrong
LSP 110 Kalin
11/22/2020
An Unanticipated Beach Day
Not unlike Chicago, the city of Milwaukee is home to a rather unforgiving weather cycle; humid summers of high temperatures are followed every year by frigid, ferocious winters that leave MKE’s residents no choice but to pack shorts and sandals in their closets next to jackets and hats. From late April to early November, the city’s sidewalks are filled (or they would be, if not for the omnipresent Corona virus) with pedestrians, who are determined to spend as much time outside as possible before the impending arrival of winter. At this point, the most bitter season on our calendar is right around the corner, and the sidewalks in my community have dried up for the most part. Today however, the sun was out, and despite the near-freezing temperatures (35 degrees), I actually saw quite a few walkers. On my walk, I set out to prove that some of the joys offered by Milwaukee’s East side that are typically enjoyed only during the summer months, can actually be appreciated in the winter as well. Thus, I set out for the beach, the most popular attraction in this part of town when it’s warm out, and began walking Eastward down Webster street. The air was cool and dry, and I found myself immediately wishing I had brought a hat along. I pulled my mask out of my pocket and donned it for a bit of extra warmth. I notice that almost all of the leaves have disappeared from the tree branches by now, though some green, yellow and orange trees remain, peppered sporadically throughout the neighborhood. Sun beams shone down in between the buildings that lined the block, creating small patches of warm light on the sidewalk every twenty feet or so. These patches felt amazing to pass through, as the rest of my walk down Webster was spent in the shadows of the towering apartment buildings and complexes. I didn’t see many people walking down this street, but when I turned onto the road that runs adjacent to Lake Michigan I saw a surprising number of people milling about. This area has huge houses with gigantic lawns, expensive cars in the driveways and freshly paved streets, and many of the people I saw here looked like they lived very close by — as in they were all white with dressed up hair and expensive designer clothing. Milwaukee is a town plagued by segregation and racial economic disparity, and seeing this made me think of Brent Staples’ essay, Black Men and Public Space in which he describes an episode of racial bias he experienced in Chicago’s Hyde Park, in which he scared a woman into running away from him simply by walking down the street. As he puts it, “My first victim was a woman — white, well dressed, probably in her early twenties.” (Staples 19) How would this Milwaukee neighborhood by the lake react if Staples strolled through? Might a similar ordeal transpire? How would they react to journalist Zach Stafford, who wrote for The Guardian, “I benefit from this privilege even as a black person, because I am able to live here, in a “white” neighborhood. But I’ve also had drunken north-siders tell me and my friends to ‘go back to your side of town.’” (Stafford)? I have a bad taste in my mouth as I turn off of Wahl Avenue onto the Oak Leaf Trail, a peaceful path that winds all the way down the massive hill that stands between the East side and the lake, which lies one hundred some feet below Wahl. I have only ever come to this trail in the summertime, whether at night to do illegal things or during the day to use it as a shortcut to get down to the beach, so seeing the path at the tail-end of autumn was a new perspective for me. The fallen leaves unfortunately exposed a sickening amount of litter lying throughout the woods, which was upsetting. Aside from the trash strewn about, the site would have been tranquil and serene, and probably very relaxing…however the extremely active N Lincoln Memorial Drive was bustling along ceaselessly below me, creating noise and unpleasantness that disrupted the peaceful scene. I was reminded of the Vox video we watched for class, in which many negative effects of highway construction were identified, such as the noise and air pollution they generated. Though my situation was not exactly the same, the constant flow of cars on the street below me disturbed my ability to appreciate the nature around me with noise pollution, and as a result I was able to make this connection to the course material. According to the video, “85% of Americans now drive to work every day.” (Vox) If this were not the case, that street most likely would have been less busy. I take the foot bridge over Lincoln Memorial to the Bradford Beach complex. It always feels so strange to see cars pass under you as you walk across the bridge. The first thing I took notice of when I set foot on the beach, as is usually the case, was how beautiful the sky looked, especially as a backdrop to the downtown skyline across the cape. The sky was a soft purple color, nearly light enough to be considered periwinkle, with some brush strokes of warm orange and pink here and there across the canvas. There were other people on the beach, taking selfies and enjoying the sunlight with smiles on their faces, even though it was even colder at the waterfront than it had been farther Westward. I spend some time walking on the sand, appreciating the natural beauty of the water and the sky. I even knelt down to build a small sand castle, which truly elicited memories of the summertime. The water looked so inviting that I could almost convince myself that it really was the middle of July, and the water would feel amazingly refreshing to jump into. Alas this was not actually the case, but I was still able to enjoy my trip to the beach just as much, not more than I would have had it been warm outside. In the cold, I even had more privacy, as there were few people around, so there were actually upsides to the timing of this adventure. I made my way back to my apartment, content with the knowledge of the fact that I had proved a winter day in Milwaukee could be savored and cherished just as a summer day could be.
This is a video of me enjoying myself at the beach as if it were a summer day, even despite the cold weather. I built myself a sand castle and enjoyed some time next to the waves on the sand.
Here is a gif that displays an example of a beautiful view that can be found while walking during any time of the year, at any temperature.
This photo does not do the beauty of the city’s skyline against the sky any justice, but it still captures a fraction of this scene’s calm elegance.
Here is a picture showing the transitional period we are in currently, regarding the seasons; a few of the trees and bushes in the neighborhood are trying to hold on to their leaves, which can help with creating the illusion of a warm summer day, however most of the trees are already bare, signaling the coming of winter.
Here is the Oak Leaf Trail, which I took to get down the hill to the beach. Despite the litter and dead vegetation, the path was just as beautiful as it looks on summer days, and added to the warm pseudo-summer atmosphere I was looking for on my walk.
On the beach, I saw what looked to me like the tracks of a snake, leading from the water towards the city…should I call the authorities? What a scary find! This is proof that animal and wildlife activity continues in Milwaukee in the frigid winter as it does in the summer.
Across the street, outside of Mad Chicken, there are two people sitting outside sharing a coffee. This was a refreshing sight to see in the 35 degree weather, as from the picture one would easily believe that this could have been taken in the summertime. More evidence to lend itself to my mission to prove that a winter’s day in Milwaukee can be enjoyed just as a summer day can be.
On Prospect Avenue, I saw this camper parked on the curb in front of someone’s house, suggesting that someone is planning on going camping somewhere…not a typical cold-weather activity, but the weather isn’t affecting this person’s ability to enjoy their trip!
At the courts at Maryland avenue school, people are always shooting on the baskets, year round. The only thing that stops these hoopers is snow on the blacktop. This picture could have been taken in the summer time, however it was taken on my walk during the 35 degree weather.
The sun shining down in between buildings on Webster street, creating warm patches on the sidewalk that almost transport one to a summer’s day. If the sun had not been out today, my walk would not have felt half as much like the summer as it did.
Here is the map of the walk I took. Lake Michigan acts as a directional landmark, signifying the East end of the paper. From simply looking at the map, one could not possibly tell whether the walk had taken place during the winter or summer (unless they looked at the title), and thus it was a perfect way to summarize my journey, as well as the point of my journey. The fun I had today on this walk, as well as the beautiful sights I saw, could have been things I experienced at any time of year, winter or summer, which is exactly what I had set out to prove by taking this walk. I will remember this lesson forever, and will hopefully be taking more walks through my city this winter with a new perspective.
Here is the group I saw at Bradford Beach, taking selfies in a circle. They looked frankly ridiculous to me, but nonetheless served to prove my point beach can be enjoyed during any time of the year, as they were clearly having fun.
Seeing this extremely shaggy dog on my walk made me think about how he might actually be MORE comfortable under the current cold temperatures, as he had one of the thickest coats I had ever seen on a dog. As a result, I received yet another perspective on winter in Milwaukee, once again in favor of my theory that the winter can be enjoyed just as easily as the summer in the city (or in the dog’s case, enjoyed to a greater extent than summer).
