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In The Practice of the Wild, Gary Snyder calls walking "the great adventure, the first meditation, a practice of heartiness and soul primary to humankind."

Bill Robb/This Week

Pinewood Road is finally blossoming into a busy, and interesting, part of this town.

He adds: "Walking is the exact balance between spirit and humility."

If you seek a great adventure within the town limits of Riverview, one of the most interesting walks is along Pinewood Road.

I entered this road via the Tim Horton's/ Needs Variety Store parking lot at the corner of White Pine Road and Pinewood.

I have often taken this walk, especially when I need to do some shopping at Home Hardware or the Dollar Store, or have a pizza or sub at AJ's or Subway in the Findlay Place Mall.

In the summer, my stop is Ava's ice cream stand, where a generous cone can be had for the normal change in one's pocket.

But now, on these winter days, I walk it regularly again, and it is without doubt one of the coldest, most unforgiving stretches of terrain you will ever encounter when the temperature is double-digit below zero and the wind is howling.

But it is somehow also tremendously invigorating, and I always teasingly remind myself there are trained paramedics found in the Riverview Fire Department when the Pinewood links up with Pine Glen Road.

There are office buildings, dental offices, a bank, and other facilities like an exercise spot, a book store, a quiltery and a credit union headquarters. There is even a new Scotia bank that just opened.

For years everyone know this area was going to become Riverview's industrial park, but nothing happened for a very long time.

It is absolutely wonderful now to walk through this neighbourhood and see new facilities being built, new businesses being opened, and lots of local residents supporting all of them.

There are many stories swirling around town about what else might end up opening in this pleasant park, and I can only hope that in this case, where there's a whisper there's a hope.

Enjoy your walk around the area and support these local businesses.

* Community Walks is a weekly feature which highlights walking trails in your community.

If you have a suggestion for a future Community Walk, email us at thisweek@brunswicknews.com or call 383-2563.