Five Walktober ambles worth checking out

In the 2012 Situationist Walk, attendees concocted
bizarre rules to govern their own behavior as they
strolled through Southeast Portland.
(Photo: Oregon Walks)

Portland’s annual three-week festival of fun on foot, inspired by PedalPalooza, has its first big burst of action this Saturday.

Walktober is run by advocacy group Oregon Walks. Like PedalPalooza, anyone can create an event online; the most interesting will survive.

With lots of good contenders for people interested in exploring, learning more about the city or just sampling many kinds of beer without worrying about the bike home, we thought we’d pull a few highlights from this month’s calendar of walking events.

Beers Made by Walking

Meet leader Eric Steen noon on Saturday, Oct. 11 at Belmont Station, 4500 SE Stark.

Beers Made By Walking invites brewers to make new beer inspired by nature walks around Oregon. On October 11th they are tapping 14 beers at three different locations in SE Portland: Belmont Station, Cheese Bar, and Horse Brass Pub. For Walktober, we are offering a walking tour between the three venues, led by our friends at Oregon Walks. Meet at Belmont Station at noon, we’ll drink some beer before moving to the next bar. The Walk will end by 3pm at Horse Brass Pub. Walkers should bring money for beer, proceeds will benefit the Forest Park Conservancy.

Sign up for this walk here: http://bit.ly/BMBWalking

Shoebomb!

Meet leader “Handsome Carl” 9:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12 at Fluevog Shoes, 1224 SW Stark.

Put on your full-face helmet, pack a snack, and get on the MAX. We’re going to bomb the west hills…on foot! Tighten those laces and hold on tight as we walk briskly around hairpin turns and sashay vigorously down perilous slopes.

3…2…1…SHOEBOMB!

Re-Imagine Lombard Street

Meet leader Kathyrn Doherty-Chapman Tuesday, Oct. 14, 5:30 p.m. at the Lombard Transit Center on Interstate.

More crossings, nicer sidewalks, public spaces, safer speeds…these are just a few of the changes that could make Lombard a better street for people. Join the Friends of Lombard and make new friends while learning about the challenges and opportunities of remaking North Lombard Street. This walk will start at the Max station at Interstate, go West along Lombard St, and end at the Foggy Notion bar at 3416 N Lombard Street. For those 21 and over, we can share a drink and discuss the future of Lombard Street.

This is organized by the former members of the Swift Planning Group, Friends of Lombard, and the Kenton Neighborhood Association!

Jade Distict Walk & Talk

Meet leaders Noel Mickelberry and Todd Struble Wednesday, Oct. 22, 4:30pm at the Division Street Green Line MAX station.

Join Oregon Walks & APANO on a tour of the Jade District (http://www.apano.org/campaigns/jade-district/) to walk (and talk) about the opportunities and challenges for walkability and economic development in this growing and diverse neighborhood. We’ll end at a local restaurant for more discussion and food!

Developing Division

Meet leaders Sara Morrissey and Neeley Wells Tuesday, Oct. 28 at 4 pm, 3810 SE Division.

Join Oregon Walks for a short tour of SE Division Street in Portland to see mixed use development up close. Neeley Wells (Urban Development Partners) will describe the ups and downs of several projects as we walk about half a mile. Plus join us immediately after for a no-host happy hour at Sunshine Tavern.

Check out the full Walktober calendar and don’t be shy if you’d like to host a walk yourself.