In my five years without a car in Toronto, I've learned that most of the city is not only pedestrian-friendly, but more interesting on foot. And Mayor Miller agrees: For the month of October, the City of Toronto is hosting a walking festival, which includes Halloween-themed jaunts, foodie and nature walks, and a Live Green Toronto scavenger hunt.

From Nuit Blanche - when most of us walked in pursuit of art - to Halloween, October is the perfect month to walk Toronto.

Of the ghoulish nature, Muddy York Walking Tours hosts a Haunted Streets of Downtown Toronto event every night until October 31. The Toronto Zombie Walk takes off next Sunday from Trinity Bellwoods Park.

Gastronomes can get their fix with various Foodie Walks put on by A Taste of the World.

For nature lovers, Toronto Field Naturalists guide more than 100 walks a year, with 11 in the month of October. The Bruce Trail Club provides public access to the Niagara Escarpment, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, and the Toronto chapter offers bus hikes to the trail as well as urban walks accessible by the TTC.

The City's Live Green Toronto initiative has put together four scavenger hunts to promote walking as a clean, green way of getting around. Guided walks begin and end at a library in each corner of the city (City Hall, Beaches Library, New Toronto Library, and Central Library), and participants can enter to win prizes, including $100 gift certificates for the Running Room (in case you're really inspired by the event), MP3 players, Live Green Toronto prize packs and pedometers. Toronto Public Health and 18 public libraries have teamed up to loan out pedometers free of charge for three-week periods. The walks are about 2km each, just long enough to help most turkey gobblers work up their appetites. Entry forms and details are available on the Live Green Toronto website.

Photo from sthursby on Flickr.