Urban Walk - Richmond Beach Saltwater Park

• This is a conditioning urban walk. This means that we will maintain a faster, steady pace. It also means that you may carry a bit more weight in your pack if you choose to, but still be able to maintain the expected pace.
• Stats: 5-miles with about 500 feet of elevation gain (according to Gaia)
• We will maintain no less than 2.5 mph. (hills I expect to take slower)
• If you walk faster than 3 mph, or slower than 2.5, this is not the walk for you.  Not sure what your pace is? Take a walk for an hour and track on a device. If you cover 2.5 miles in that hour, you are ready for this walk. If not, I suggest signing up for a walk with the pace that you are at. 
• We will not stop a lot other than at the parks, but will stop as needed for brief rests, views and group pics. Please ensure that you load up your packs appropriately, if you desire to do so, but still be able to maintain the minimum 2.5 mph consistently. This is zone 2 training: steady, able to maintain conversation, yet feel like we're definitely conditioning!  
• We will encounter gravel pathways, asphalted sidewalks, soft forest floor in the Preserve, and areas where there aren't any sidewalks at all, sometimes along busier trafficked roads. 
• There is a very steep section (going up) around mile 4. It's about half a block long.
• We will also go up and down 187 steps for some extra work! 
• Bathrooms located at Saltwater Park and at Kayu Kayu Ac Park

Trip Plan: 

• Start at the lower lot of the Richmond Beach Saltwater Park
• Before the arrival of Europeans, local Native American groups, including the Duwamish and Coastal Salish, used the area for hunting, fishing, and foraging. The name "Richmond Beach" comes from the local word "q'3 q'e' waidet", which refers to the area's abundance of kinnikinic, or Indian tobacco. 
• Climb 186 stairs, and go to the park lookout with views of Puget Sound, and the Olympics (on a clear day)
• Begin walking away from the park and into the town of Woodway
• take a brief walk-through at Woodway's Carla Nichols Reserve through a short and dense forested section.
• Come out of preserve and walk quiet Woodway neighborhood to Kayu Kayu Ac Park. - the first city park that Shoreline named. The City enlisted the help of Edith Nelson, a Duwamish Tribe Elder who lives in Richmond Beach where the park is located. Nelson consulted with a tribal member who is doing language research of the early Duwamish people. The area where the park is located was a well-known area among the Duwamish; it was called Kayu Kayu Ac.

Kayu Kayu Ac is also the Duwamish name for the plant kinnikinic, also known as Indian Tobacco, a beautiful plant that was a valuable resource for personal use, gifting and trading. The supposition is that the area must have been rich in kinnikinic. Kayu-Kayu Ac Park is pronounced Ki-U, Ki-U, Atch: ki like kite, U like the letter U and Ac is atch like in watch.   We will have a snack at this point.

• Continue to walk through the Woodway neighborhood, at times, along Richmond Beach Drive, where we will walk by the historical Cabin Tavern: From a blogger: "Built in 1927 and became a bar in 1933.  It was patronized by hundreds of sailors coming from ships docked at Point Welles as well as tourists.  As the sailors and tourists dropped off, it settled in to be well supported by the locals.  It is right in a residential area and not where you would expect to find a tavern. Across the street the beach is gone and there are now houses on the water.  It apparently is the 3rd bar in Washington State to get a liquor license when Prohibition ended in December 1933."
• From there we will have a short, and steep climb to round back to the Saltwater Park where we will go down the stairs and back up and down once, and end by visiting the beach itself and back to the cars.   

Goals:

• To accomplish an approx. 5-mile urban walk in the Richmond Beach and Woodway neighborhoods.
• To build endurance and conditioning in the off season
• That we have fun, rain or shine in a beautiful north-end neighborhood! 

Expectations: 

• That you're on time at the parking lot, ready and enthusiastic!
• That we stay together as a group and build community and trust with one another. 
• That you prepare for a long urban walk, with plenty of nutrition, hydration and stamina to gain about 600 feet. 
• That we treat one another with respect, compassion and understanding.

Style: 

• I'm an inclusive leader: compassionate and approachable
• While destination focused for this walk, I also appreciate nature and pointing out the beauty that we are sure to see
• I'm a leader who appreciates engaged participants where teamwork and community is priority
• I am firm and definitive with logistics and my expectations, yet able to provide flexibility if the situation allows

• Richmond Beach Saltwater Park: Coordinates: 47.76529, -122.38379
• No parking pass required
• We will start at the lower parking lot. I'll be standing in front of the restrooms.
• Start time: 8:30 am. This means arrive no later than 8:15 am to be ready for introductions and review the details of the morning.