Lake Washington

Hiking: Washington Park Arboretum

Victor Lazlo — Wed, 14 May 2008 10:23:43 -0600

One of my favorite walks in the Seattle is the Washington Park Arboretum. It's an easy stroll through some of the nicest botanical gardens in the city. It is a wonderful urban green space containing the nation's largest collection of Maple trees. Each section of the park contains s lovely landscaped garden of particular plant species, such as Rhododendrons, Witch Hazel, Japanese Maples, and more.

Paddling: Pontiac Bay to St. Edwards Park

Victor Lazlo — Thu, 08 May 2008 11:17:06 -0600

I am often inviting family and friends along for a leisurely afternoon paddle, so I'm always on the lookout for rental locations. When taking the scenic route home along Sand Point Way, I'd noticed a building with a half dozen brightly colored plastic kayaks propped up on the roof, as if to say "we rent kayaks here!". A little sleuthing and I discovered that, indeed, Seattle Raft & Kayak has an outfitter and rental shop in the Magnuson Park complex.

Paddling on a Sunday afternoon

Victor Lazlo — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 12:32:43 -0600

There are a million things I could have been doing on a Sunday afternoon - chores, house projects, etc. Instead of doing any of those things, I found myself renting kayaks down at Agua Verde Paddle Club for an afternoon of delightful exploration of the Washington Park Arboretum. The arboretum is the default route for anyone renting at Agua Verde, but it is also one of the most unique paddling experiences in the Seattle area, because you are not only floating through a protected wetland, you are paddling under the Hwy 520 bridge.