Green Lake Park

Grand entrance to Green Lake Park March 2013

Green Lake March 2013

Green Lake March 2013

Mallards on Green Lake March 2013

Green Lake Park March 2013

Green Lake Park is probably the most popular place to walk in Seattle. Green Lake is surrounded by a 2.8 mile path. The path consists of an inner unpaved trail and an outer asphalt path with two lanes, one for pedestrians and one for bicycles and roller skates. The inner pedestrian lane is bidirectional, while the outer wheeled path is unidirectional, counterclockwise. There is also an outer unpaved 3.2 mile path along the edge of the park.

Green Lake has a surface area of 259 acres and a maximum depth of 30 feet. It has been dredged to maintain that depth. The lake lacks both inflow and outflow. It once drained into Lake Washington via Ravenna Creek.  But in 1911, the water level was lowered by 7 feet to create parkland in accordance with the Olmsted plan, causing the creek to dry up. Ravenna Boulevard was constructed over the creek bed. The lake is now fed by rainfall, storm runoff, and Seattle's municipal water supply.  There is a continuing problem with algal bloom, when the lake is closed to swimming and wading.

The bathhouse, built in 1927, is now home to the Seattle Public Theater at the Bathhouse. Across the lake from the bathhouse, in the northeast part of the park, the community center was built in 1929. It contains two conference rooms, a gym with showers and bathrooms, and a stage. Tennis courts were added in 1945, then Evans Pool in 1955.

The Green Lake Aqua Theater was built for the first Seafair in 1950 for the Aqua Follies, which continued to run during Seafair until 1965. In the summer of 1962, coinciding with the Century 21 Exposition, the Aqua Theater saw its greatest amount of use. After 1965, it was mostly abandoned, then partially demolished in 1970.  It makes an impressive ruin. The southwest corner of the park, near the Aqua Theater, connects to Woodland Park.

In the summer, Green Lake is popular for swimming and boating. Motorized boats are not allowed. The Milk Carton Derby is held annually on the lake as one of the opening events of Seafair. The Green Lake Small Craft Center, a Seattle Parks facility, is located on the south end of the lake. It houses both Green Lake Crew and the Seattle Canoe and Kayak Club.

Within the lake is a small artificial island called Duck Island. It was built by the WPA in 1936 as a wildlife sanctuary.  It is off-limits to people.

This information is from Wikipedia.

Union Bay Natural Area

Union Bay Natural Area January 2013

The University of Washington from the Union Bay Natural Area January 2013

The shore of Lake Washington at the Union Bay Natural Area October 2011

Pond at the Union Bay Natural Area October 2011

Union Bay Natural Area December 2013

The Union Bay Natural Area is located near the University of Washington in Seattle.  It consists of marshy terrain on the shore of Lake Washington at Union Bay.  It covers 74 acres with 4 miles of shoreline.  It is the second largest natural system left on Lake Washington, the largest lake in western Washington.  Bird watching is particularly good here.  A wide & level trail can be accessed from the Center for Urban Horticulture on NE 41st Street.  I think this is an excellent place to visit during freezing weather, when the ponds are covered with ice & the rocky lake shore becomes partly frozen.  In summer, you can see Western Painted Turtles basking on logs in the water.

Picardo Farm P-Patch

Picardo Farm P-Patch in September

Picardo Farm P-Patch in September

Picardo Farm P-Patch in September

Picardo Farm P-Patch in September

Picardo Farm P-Patch in September

Picardo Farm P-Patch is the oldest community garden in Seattle.  The P in p-patch stands for Picardo.  The Picardo family, Italian immigrants who arrived in Seattle in the 1890s, bought this property in 1922 in what had been the Ravenna Swamp & farmed it until 1962.  The swamp was essentially a peat bog & the soil here remains exceptionally rich in organic matter.  It is one of only 2 historical farms preserved in the City of Seattle.  This p-patch & the p-patch program were established in 1973.  There are 302 plots on 98,000 square feet owned by the Seattle Department of Parks & Recreation.  It is located in the Wedgwood neighborhood of northeast Seattle along 25th Avenue NE between NE 80th & 82nd Streets. 

In 2013, resistance to the new policy limiting the size of individual plots was centered at Picardo Farm.  It was said that one gardener there had more than 2,000 square feet of space, 10x the size of the average plot.  The P-Patch Program sets maximum & minimum plot size for each p-patch based on 2 criteria, the average wait for a plot & the p-patch size. In December 2013, 45 gardeners in 13 gardens (2% of all gardeners) had to reduce plot sizes.  Plot sizes are generally 50 to 200 square feet.

Acclimatized: Heaven & Earth 5 at Carkeek Park

Spiritual Play Tower by Alan Fulle in September 2013

Tree Pods by Elizabeth Gahan in September 2013.  These are made from campaign signs.

As I walked with a friend through Carkeek Park on the beautiful 1st day of September 2013, I was surprised to find art strewn about.  I'd seen temporary art installations in parks before.  And in fact, this was the 5th year art had been presented in the park.  But it is always arresting to see art where usually there is none.  This outdoor art exhibition was orchestrated by the Center on Contemporary Art, better known as CoCA.  There were 14 artworks.  I found these 2 to be most attractive.  I want a gazebo like this in my garden.

Here is what CoCa has to say about this exhibition: In addition to the obvious reference to climate-change adaptation, Acclimatized: Heaven and Earth 5 hinges on the skill of 14 intrepid artists in placing various eco-artworks in the park that are designed to withstand the intensity of scrutiny by an estimated 100,000 summer visitors to the park. Acclimatized is one of the region's only venues for site-specific artwork in an urban forest setting where part of the exhibit includes a walking tour of an hour or more.