Silver Lake (NW) in Washington

Trip Overview

Silver Lake is a relatively large (compared to other comparable bodies within 5 miles) freshwater lake with good access from local roadways. It's not big enough to draw power boats or PWCs and has a nice put in point from a small city park.

I took my 10' Pelican 100 down there last Sunday morning for a bit of light kayaking exercise. Putting in at the city park on the south tip of the lake, I fumbled with my spray skirt for a few minutes while a crowd of ducks watched... bemused and, I'm certain, laughing at me! I swear that one mallard had a wry grin on his face.

Setting out from the park finger dock, I bore left (clockwise) along the shore, pushing through some water-lilly-like plants. There's some debris under the water (I saw a car tire, for example) and it gets rather stagnant back here with tall trees to block the breeze and a natural cove to trap the water. Following the shore around a small point, I broke into open water which quickly dropped to a depth of several feet. The nutrification of this lake is enough that, even with broad daylight, the bottom became obscured at this point.

Continuing clockwise around the lake, I passed by several homes along the western shore, many of them with nice lawns and landscaping. Plenty of high'n'dry canoes/kayaks sitting out in the sun, too! Lengthening my strokes, I covered this pretty quickly.

Next up was the swimming beach at the county park. There's a concrete platform which stretches out parallel to the shore about 50 feet from the edge of the water. Even at 10am on a Sunday morning, there were several sunbathers out. I don't recommend getting on the platform... apparently the local geese and ducks like to stand on it and there are piles of waterfowl feces. This platform is probably 60-75 yards long. As I cleared it on the inside, I stopped short of a clutch of fishermen on a pier about another 40 yards on. Take note as this looks like a usual haunt for fishermen and a courteous paddler will give them a wide berth!

Getting past the fishermen, I passed some larger homes, including one built out over the water on large pilings. Then you reach the north end of the lake, alongside the road. There's another dock (no fishermen) and some weeds/brush and lilies. As you complete your arc of the north end, there's a peninsula that protrudes out into the lake. I was coasting along this and suddenly had to take some evasive maneuvers! There are large concrete blocks under the water and they appeared to be really close to the surface. This made me back away from the shore a bit! So make sure to watch out for underwater obstacles which could damage boat bottoms along the shore at the north end of the lake!

As you cruise back around the lake towards the city park, there's more fishermen on the finger docks, so I personally stayed about 50-100 yards offshore... but it was a straight shot down to Emory's (their brunch menu is AWESOME!) and then back to the put in location.

All in all, there's nothing spectacular to look at, but it's a good lake with a long coastline, easy access, and a good put in location!

Accommodations:

Restrooms, water, pavilions, a nice dock, gentle sandy beach, 50 yard portage from parking lot to shore

Fees:

Nope

Directions:

To get there from Everett, WA or other points North:


Use I-5 and take the Washington State Road 527 "Bothell-Everett Highway" exit heading south. Travel approximately 3 miles southbound and you'll drive right around the lake (absolutely cannot miss it, the road curves sharply to circle the edge of the lake). After passing Emory's restaurant (great food and it looks over the lake, btw!) you'll see a small city park. This is the best put-in location. Good parking, approximately 50 yard sidewalk right down to the water for an easy portage.

From points south, I'd recommend taking I-5 to the 128th st exit. Exit eastbound, then turn north at Bothell-Everett Highway about 1 mile from the interstate. It's harder to spot the city park from this direction. Just look for the "Everett Clinic" on the left and turn left at that light (the park is on the far left corner of that intersection).

Resources:

Google Map of area