Going on a Joy Diversion

Sam Milsom
Sep 4, 2018 · 3 min read

Joy Diversion is a public meetup run by Open Data Manchester. Using maps of Manchester City Centre and Salford from 1848 as a starting point, people propose expeditions, then set off in groups spending the afternoon rambling, mapping and generally exploring the cities.

Each team is given a backpack containing notepads, compass, maps, string, and lots of other things useful for an expedition.

Teams are given a small toy plastic animal, which becomes their mascot. They’re encouraged to document and photograph their expeditions along with their animal and team hashtag so we can follow them on Twitter.

It’s not neccessary, but some people use Open Street Map to chart their journies and note down any new discoveries.

Teams then return to HQ (The Federation) at a given time, where they then present their findings.

Planning expeditions using maps of Manchester and Salford from 1848

On Saturday 1st September 2018, we ran our thirdJoy Diversion — my second since joining Open Data Manchester in July.

People arrived at 11am, and spent about an hour looking at maps of the cities from 1848, caffeinating themselves and generally chatting away. They were encouraged to write anything interesting down on a post-it note and add to the ‘Adventure Wall’. These would then become the stimuli for the expeditions.

The Adventure Wall with ideas for expeditions

Initially, three groups of around four people each were formed and set off at around midday (as well as a late-arriving group of one!) and they then set off for a good three hours of exploring in the sun.

Wildlife and greenspaces formed a unifying theme for the day’s expeditions. The Pomona flats played a big part, particularly in light of the recent building developments there, with almost all teams meandering their way towards the area.

Teams were encouraged to live-tweet their expeidtions, so there were lots of photos of the wildlife and green spaces that they found along the way.

A favourite of mine was the idyllic city-centre oasis of Barbirolli Square by Bridgewater Hall, which I must have walked past thousands of times but never really knew existed.

Another was seeing photos by Team Moose of some rather pretty plants growing out of one of the locks.

Some teams tried to take only back alleys, which led to some interesting discoveries. Did you know that the Rising Sun pub can be used as a shortcut between Queens Street and Lloyd Street, and from Lloyd Street you can cut through the Nag’s Head to Jackson’s Row? (Although perhaps so as not to annoy the landlord, you might want to stop for a drink — although that may add time to your ‘shortcut’ somewhat!)

Back at Joy Diversion HQ sharing the day’s findings

In keeping with the Pomona theme, we also watched this lovely documentary short about the flatlands. It’s very moving, particularly given all the development that’s now going on there. It’s well worth your time if you have fifteen minutes spare.

And here’s a small Joy Diversion of my own — did you know that the Pomona flats were once Pomona Palace and Pleasure Gardens? I didn’t. I learnt that from the same website where you’ll find that documentary above. There’s so much history right there, just waiting to be found, and plenty of people with different backgrounds and different knowledge to share with.

And that’s what I love about these Joy Diversions. They’re such a great way to get to know your city, and you’ll always be surprised by something new.


A roundup of the day’s tweets & photos:

https://twitter.com/i/moments/1036526628472606720

Pomona Island (2014) Documentary:

http://www.theskyliner.org/pomona-island-on-film/

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