by: Joanne Coutts

This map combines the classic Detroit hand map with an outline of Detroit’s buried creeks – sketched from tracks recorded while following the creek routes on my bike – to share my relationship with Detroit.

The hand map is the first map I created of Detroit after attending a DETROITography event in 2017. The map focuses on places that were and mostly still are important to my life in the city. My house, the African Bead Museum, and Belle Isle Beach are all places I still go regularly. Thankfully I have a washer and dryer now so my visits to the laundromat are not as frequent.

The outline map of Detroit’s Buried Waterways represents how learning to navigate the city from the perspective of water, rather than concrete, has expanded my relationship with Detroit. Following the creeks on my bike has taken me to neighborhoods all over the city and introduced me to thriving communities, emergent marshes, and resilient people and nature.