Saint Edward State Park borders northeast Lake Washington in Kenmore, Washington. It encloses Bastyr University on all sides except the northeast. Meanwhile, the nearby Inglewood Benchmark is the city’s high point.
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Saint Edward State Park at a Glance
Access: Bastyr University (park info)
Round Trip: 5.3 miles
Elevation Range: 20′-438′
Essential Gear: none
GPS Track: available
Dog-friendly: yes
Playlist: Latin
Exploring the State Park by Bastyr University
Over the years, I’ve done numerous voice projects at the university chapel with fellow musicians. But all that time, I somehow neglected that a state park sat next door. So it was great to pay a visit after having driven past it a hundred times.
The morning forecast wasn’t favorable. But starting early in the day would ease the anxiety of being in an urban park with a dog. After witnessing two vicious attacks, I’ve been wary of entitled owners letting their dogs off-leash.
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Taking the North Trail to the Beach
For maximum mileage, we looped around the park via the perimeter trails. Tree view soon followed the glimpses of business signs along Juanita Drive. Two runners passed us as the path dipped toward the water.
Dozens of ducks scattered after sensing our presence. The golden sunrise glistened on the west while we endured wind chill in the low teens in the shade. The broken shoreline forced us to continue back on the trail.
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Through Saint Edward State Park High Point
The South Ridge Trail climbed steeply uphill and soon brought us through the high point. The familiar sight of the university chapel appeared before we returned to the beach via Canyon Trail. En route, there was lots of black ice down the steep path.
We followed Grotto Trail back to the plateau to see The Lodge, which was much larger than I pictured. However, views out to Lake Washington no longer existed due to tall trees. Before long, we finished the inner loop to the parking lot via Perimeter Trail.
See more trip photos here.