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Walking the Northend
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Walkability
"In urban design, walkability is the measure of the overall walking conditions in an area. Factors which are commonly part of walkability studies include land use mix, street connectivity, residential density (residential units per area of residential use), and retail floor area ratio. Other factors which are also believed to affect walkability include access to mass transit, quality of sidewalks and pedestrian crossings, local aesthetics, nearby local destinations, air quality, street "furniture", and traffic flow." ~ Wikipedia
Walking the Northend
I'm not sure about all of the factors listed above or what "New Urbanism" might actually be, but what I do know is that the Northend is easy to navigate on foot. The grid layout allows for multi-directional movement through some of the coolest streets you will ever see. There is something around every corner - some weird, sublime and otherwise uniquely Northend. Not everyone appreciates the diversity - on one block you wil lbe confronted by a hippie house, all organic and seemingly out of place next to a mutli-million dollar "urban estate". You see the old neighborhood grocers every 5 or 6 blocks with names like the Elkhorn Market; and gardens everywhere!
The Northend is also criss-crossed by canals. Many of them are submerged but there are still several that popup and run under streets, houses and through park like yards. Most of these are fed by Crane Creek, where you will still see an occassional Crane and goes underground at Greenwood's Ski Haus, and Hulls Creek that occassionally dumps over into Camels Back Park.
Foothills Walking
Just a few steps away from the urban setting of the Northend are the Boise Foothills. The Foothills Plan and Initiative has provided unobstructed corridors into the Boise Front and access to relatively "natural" plant and animal habitat by foot and mountain bike.
The ultimate guide to walking and riding in the foothills above the Northend is the City's Ridge to Rivers website.
What to Look For
The Boise Front is home to everything from deer to mountain lions, foxes to falcons! Many of them visit the neighborhood from time to time and care should be taken. The Northend is also home to many transplants such as racoons. The racoon population of the Northend is estimated at nearly 500! Most live in the storm drain system and come out at night to forage - mostly on garbage, cat and dog food and whatever they can find. Some of these intelligent and fiesty creatures have been known to move into attics and crawl spaces, so be careful.
Along the trails of the Foothills are dozens of species of wild flowers and shrubs, sage bush, wild oak and pine. The foothills have also been invaded by manu, a non-indiginent species of weeds. Some of these species are drought tolerant and thrive after grass fires while the native species struggle.
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