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Last summer, the launch of a new app changed the London pub game. Called Sunseekr, the handy platform showed which of the capital’s pubs are in the sunshine at certain times of day. Created by self-described ‘sun-obsessed architect’ Mo Dawod, it launched in London and is now available in dozens of cities around the world (for the non-drinkers, it also covers restaurants and cafés).
Earlier this year Sunseekr was updated to show sunshine on specific pub terraces and gardens. And now Dawod has unveiled yet another handy feature – this time for sun-seekers on the move.
If you want to level up your sun-bunnying, here’s just the thing: Sunseekr now shows you the sunniest walks in London. That’s right, if you’re really, really desperate not to get caught in the shade, the app will lay out the sunniest way to get from A to B, based on real-time shadow calculations.
The new feature, which is called Sun Paths, shows walking routes between two locations. Not only can the time can be adjusted, meaning you can walk the sunniest route at any time of day, but users can choose how sunny they want the way to be (‘light’, ‘balanced’ or ‘sun-maxx’). If you don’t mind walking longer to stay in the sunshine, it’ll plan that route, too.
Sunseekr works by simulating shadows, taking into account the position of the sun in the sky and the height of nearby buildings. Naturally, it also works for people who’d rather stay in the shade (and London is set to get pretty toasty over the next week or so), with Sun Paths having a shadiest walks option.
Commenting on the new feature, founder Mo Dawod said: ‘Every day on my commute I walk along the river. On sunny days I’d somehow end up in the shade the whole way, while the opposite bank was glowing. It drove me mad. I wondered if I could fix it.
‘London gets so few proper sunny days. SunPaths is built so Londoners can enjoy every inch of the ones we do get.’
The feature is currently only available in London, though it’ll be rolled out across the UK this summer. You can check it out on Sunseekr here.
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