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Water trails group seeks urban system of aquatic pathways
By DEBERA CARLTON HARRELL 
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
OK, so Seattle only has one canal and no gondolas.
No matter. The Emerald City could become the "Little Venice of the Northwest" if a proposal to create a recreational urban water trails system is successful.
The system is the vision of Washington Water Trails Association, working on behalf of boaters who use small, human-powered craft.
The non-profit group has taken the first steps with an inventory of urban launch sites and facilities that could be developed, improved and maintained via cooperation between government agencies, community groups and paddlers.
Ultimately, supporters say, the concept may be expanded to a network of aquatic pathways and accessible launch sites, attractions, eateries and even museums that could be a national model.
"Seattle could be the 'Little Venice of the Northwest,' where people could come and see the city by small boat," said Carey Gersten, board president of the Washington Water Trails Association and an avid kayaker.
Gersten added a more local analogy: "It would be like a Burke-Gilman trail for paddlers or small boaters, but a network as opposed to a specific trail. There are so many places you don't even know about until you start to poke around."
The trail network -- aimed specifically at smaller craft but potentially usable by all -- could extend from Shilshole Bay to Lake Sammamish, winding through the Ballard Locks, Lake Union, Portage Bay, Union Bay, Lake Washington and the Sammamish Slough.
If such a dream comes true, paddlers could cruise the central waterfront of Elliott Bay and pay a fee to lock up their boats while they eat at one of the pier restaurants.
They could float up to the Center for Wooden Boats at the south end of Lake Union and get an espresso at a nearby cafe. Or cruise through the Arboretum after visiting the Museum of History and Industry.
When formalized, the water trails proposal will seek federal, local and private funding and support. It comes at a time of flourishing interest in small, non-motorized watercraft. Dinghies, rowboats, sculls, rafts, sailboats, canoes and kayaks -- all are becoming increasingly popular in Seattle, especially kayaks.
Ted Mueller, co-author with his wife, Marge, of the "Afoot and Afloat" series, is researching an upcoming book about urban sites and attractions that small boaters could enjoy.
"The growth in this sport (small craft) has been phenomenal," said Mueller. "People like the fact they can get in close to shore and see things they'd normally miss in a power boat."
"I think part of what has triggered the growth is that people are getting so busy," he added. "People who work 30-hour days at Microsoft don't have time to go very far for leisure-time activities, but may for close-in activities."
The urban trails proposal is a citified version of another local waterway that has received international attention: The Cascadia Marine Trail. The 140-mile trail was created in 1993 by the state Parks and Recreation Commission following extensive work by the Washington Water Trails Association. It's a network of water-connected campsites, access points, restaurants and attractions extending from Olympia to Bellingham. The National Park Service declared it a national recreation trail in 1995.
Transferring the Cascadia philosophy to close-in waterways makes perfect sense to boating enthusiasts. The Washington Water Trails Association would like to improve and beautify some of the city's currently unused and overgrown street ends, for example. More restroom facilities are on the wish list, as are small parks and more public launch sites.
In a city surrounded by water as well as roads that are becoming increasingly difficult to navigate, the Venetian concept is striking a chord.
"It sounds like a great idea," said Herbie Meyer, co-owner with his brother, John, of the Northwest Outdoor Center on Lake Union. Granted, Meyer's in the small-boat (kayak) rental business. But as someone who has seen interest in kayaking explode and his business more than double in the past 15 years, Meyer also wants people to have the best waterbound experience possible.
"When the water is right next to you and you can see the whirlpools from your blade, and nobody's phoning you -- it's just so relaxing," he said. "You should see the difference in people who have never paddled before. They come back and they're coasting; their movements are fluid and they have big grins on their faces."
While there are plans to create and link more sites, there is plenty for small boaters to see and do in Seattle right now.
You can check out the houseboat on Lake Union where Tom Hanks' character in "Sleepless in Seattle" lived. Or float worshipfully by glass artist Dale Chihuly's Portage Bay art studio, admiring not only his Venetian-inspired glassworks but a deck lined with beautiful hand-crafted wooden birdhouses.
You can paddle up to Ivar's waterfront restaurant and eat fish 'n' chips. Or go through the ballard Locks and have crab Louie at the Yankee Diner, situated at one of the newer street-end launch sites (24th Avenue Northwest) created for small boats.
At Shilshole on a clear day, you can gawk at the Olympics and listen to the sea lions barking. Biologists warn paddlers not to get too close; the mammals, particularly at this time of year, are so aggressive they will charge small boats.
Bill Stewart, a co-founder of Northwest Outdoor Center, recently left the business to start his own boating and restaurant venture on Lake Union. He said the time has come to cater to paddlers and other small-craft boaters.
Stewart plans to do just that with his kayak rental company, the Agua Verde Paddle Club, scheduled to open June 1.
The business, at Boat Street and Brooklyn Avenue just west of the University of Washington's health sciences buildings, will also soon house a Mexican cafe. The club, open to the public, will offer the kind of low dock needed by smaller boaters -- a relatively rare feature.
"I see us tying in to the urban water trails idea in a big way," Stewart said. "There really aren't enough sites that offer public access for small boats, facilities, low docks, bathrooms, a place to eat. There are exclusive clubs for people with bigger boats, but we'll cater to paddlers, giving them a place to hang out and feel welcome."
For some small boaters, such a willingness to accommodate has been a long time coming.
The Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation has worked with neighborhoods to develop small parks and launch sites -- and will continue to do so for future sites, said Kathy Whitman, aquatic manager for parks department.
The recently completed Day Street park and launch site under the Interstate 90 bridge south of Leschi is an example of the city's commitment to accommodate people using small boats, she said.
Many small boaters don't realize that city parks are off-limits unless specifically designated as "hand-carry" sites. This means that Gas Works and Golden Gardens parks, for example, are taboo, as are most swimming beaches.
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