The focal point of Kirkland is without doubt
Marina Park. The park opens out in an inviting crescent at the foot
of Kirkland Ave, and is a romantic destination for boaters, bikers, joggers,
and weekend strollers. Sunset inevitably draws a crowd, and evening
finds love struck couples confiding or caressing on the convenient benches
that encircle the park.
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Jutting out from the south end of the park
is the Kirkland Commercial Tour Boat Dock. For a small fee
boaters can moor for the night and take advantage of Kirkland's many shops,
galleries, clubs, and restaurants.
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The commercial peer is the permanent home
of the renovated 1924 ferry Argosy, one of the original Lake Washington
car ferries that carried 22 cars and 250 passengers from the bustle of
the city to the calm rural parkland of the East Side. Now she embarks
on 3 tours a day carrying sightseeing argonauts on leisurely tours of the
lake.
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On sunny afternoons the park is alive with
visitors. Tourists, families with strollers, bikers, and skaters
meander the park's curving walkways. Dog owners walk their pets along
the shore. Young girls working on an elusive Seattle suntan lounge on its
inviting lawns. Children play among the boulders scattered along
the smooth pebble beach, and frolic in the brisk, clear water.
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Thanks to the City of Kirkland, the Gazebo
on the north end of the park hosts a variety of events throughout the summer.
Ragtime and Jazz bands, jugglers, classical and folk music, and a diverse
assortment of local talent entertain the crowd. These events are
part of the Kirkland Summer Performing Arts Series, and are funded by ther
community and through charitable donations.
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A mallard and her ducklings cruise for handouts.
The lake is home to an exciting and endlessly entertaining variety of bird
life. Bald Eagles pass lazily up and down the shoreline, or circle
overhead, looking for unsuspecting fish just below the lakes emerald surface.
Gulls and Ravens dive and swoop on the inevitable lake breezes. Ducks
and Canadian geese make themselves at home in the grassy parks and sheltered
harbors along the shore.
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On clear days the mountains of the Olympic
peninsula reveal themselves on the horizon, blue and mysterious beyond
the Seattle skyline.
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Sunset on the lake is a special time.
In the hour before sunset a small crowd slowly grows, filling benches
and lounging along the breakwater. On weekends the excitement builds
as the park plays host to Lake Washington mariners, energized teens, diners
in formal dress, and partygoers decked out for a night of dancing.
Kindred souls, drawn by the magic of the waterside, gather to bid the day
good-bye, and celebrate surviving another week. Weekdays as
the sun sets, the lakefront grows quiet, and breathes a sigh of relief
in a moment of calm on Seattle's dynamic East Side.
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