When I think of the real start to this fitness journey I think back to our first trail run at Carkeek Park in Seattle. We had just recently got our Garmin Vivoactive HR watches and were becoming more conscious of our heart rate, sleep patterns, activity, and calorie intake deficit. We live close to and had been going to Green Lake consistently with our dog Gizmo for walks and started to go on runs together. After a couple months we decided to expand and look up another park nearby to try trail running. We were blown away by Carkeek Park and it’s amount of woods with steep, but manageable trails, that opened up to a gorgeous orange sunset facing the water. To get to the water you have to cross a bridge that goes over the working train tracks! We felt like we discovered a whole new world within the city and I felt appalled that I had not known of this place before. Needless to say, it is our new favorite local running spot. I HIGHLY recommend going here for the first time during a sunset AND taking the trek to get there instead of parking straight to the bottom, to fully enjoy this experience. This is also a great place to take kids, there is a playground with a separate slide that I am almost positive is shaped as a whale. Also, who doesn’t love a park with a year-round open bathroom. Yeah, we have all been there. I don’t think I even have a negative thing to say about this place, it is fantastic.
Rating:
Likeness: 5/5
Difficulty: 2/5 walking, 3/5 running
88 degrees
3 miles
58:11
423 ft. Elevation Gain
Charlie’s Stats: (Garmin Vivoactive HR)
679 – Calories
136, 180 bpm – Avg, Max Heart Rate
Page’s Stats: (Garmin Vivoactive HR)
527 – Calories
158, 200 – Avg, Max Heart Rate
19:28, 8:57 – Avg, Best Pace
110, 238 spm – Avg, Max Cadence