Accompanied by a four legged-companion, a morning jogger circles Green Lake on the first jog of the winter.
Green Lake Park is a 320 acre park in north Seattle that encompasses a 250 acre lake. It has a 2.8 mile path for walking, jogging, skating or riding. A 3.2 mile path for jogging also circles the part. The lake is not manmade, but has been significantly altered over the years. It has been dredged, lowered and used as a repository for fill from construction projects. It no longer has inflows or outflows. Development around it has eliminated the creek that used to feed into it. Green Lake is now fed by rainfall, storm runoff and the municipal water supply. The lake currently has a mean depth of about 13 feet and a maximum depth of about 30 feet deep. When originally named "Lake Green" in 1855 it was prone to algae blooms. As a stagnant lake in the middle of an urban environment that problem hasn't gone away.
Over the years the lake's recreation use has varied considerably. The park is currently popular for swimming, tennis, basketball, non-motorized boating, jogging, walking, biking and fishing. Previously the lake and park have been used for hydroplane races, aqua follies 'swimmusicals' and concerts. It even has its own nature reserve. Duck Island is a manmade island in the lake listed as a reserve and is off limits to people.
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