It’s national poetry month and what better way to celebrate than by reading haikus while taking a stroll through downtown Tucson.
The Haiku Hike, approximately 1,000 footsteps along East Congress and Stone Avenue, returns for a second year with a new theme, “Living in the Present Moment.”
Twenty haikus, selected by Tucson’s poet laureate TC Tolbert, have been printed on acrylic signage and placed in planters along the route. The poetry, submitted as part of a contest in 2020, will be on display through June 1.
Downtown Tucson Partnership and the University of Arizona are behind the effort to sprinkle poetry throughout the area.
Zach Baker, deputy director of Downtown Tucson Partnership, said taking time to think about the poetry while on the walk provides a break from daily routines.
“Just reading something silently or out loud to yourself, I feel is a great way to destress and just to be in the present moment,” he said.
Baker added that the Haiku Hike allows for people to visit “something that’s free downtown, something you can do safely outdoors with your family or friends, and who knows maybe afterward grab a bite to eat at a local business.”
The Haiku Hike concept launched in 2019, but was postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 700 poems were submitted for consideration before the pandemic.
“At the time they were written, no one exactly knew what we were about to experience,” Tyler Meier, executive director of the UA Poetry Center, said.
“One of the powers of poetry I think is that it can be very much in time and also have elements that are outside of time,” he added.
Find a map of the Haiku Hike along with the winning poetry submissions at downtowntucson.org/explore/events/haiku-hike.
