Saturday arrived and so did the rain, but a little rain
never hurt anyone. Determined to keep my
promise of going to the park, I commanded my kid to grab her Hello Kitty doll
and added, “No rain is going ruin our day!”
Fish sandwiches, juice box, snacks, moon pie for me, and lunch
was loaded into the car with child. I
programed the GPS to Kayak Point, dialed into some REO Speedwagon, and hit 0-30
out of suburbia.
Traveling north and a left off of Hwy 5 from exit #199,
enter the Tulalip Reservation. The roads will excite your driving senses with
their winding and lifting. 13 miles from
the Hwy exit, and a couple of miles after entering south Stanwood, the park is
on the left. The pay station will be
around the curved road.
To get into the day use area there is a $10 fee. So you are there, you can’t see the actual park,
it’s raining, you start to doubt and ask if its worth the investment because
you cant see the park from the pay booth, and the pressure builds because your
kid is quizzing you on My Little Pony as you think about skipping the fare all
together as you look around for witnesses or cameras that may try to hold you accountable. You commit and you grudgingly pay.
My one problem with this place, and businesses like it, is
that it’s wrong to charge someone prior to seeing the goods. The park cannot be seen from the
entrance. Therefore, the buyer does not
know the value of the experience that they are investing in. Two things will happen causing this park to lose
money, potential customers leave or they will drive in ignoring the payment altogether. It’s a huge problem in my opinion. How to fix it? Drop the day use fee to $5 or allow the
Discover Pass and post this blog review for visitors to read.
Overall, the park is worth its day use value, even on a
rainy day. Its beauty upon entrance will
put your bad purchase thoughts at rest.
The property is spread out evenly with plenty of running room for sports
or sitting and dancing room for mini concerts.
Kids will love the play area situated in the center of the park. Parking
is wide open right now, but it’s safe to assume that it will be limited during
summer. Walking along the rugged
coastline of rock and driftwood, the salt water accentuates the aroma of the
air being thrown from its currents.
The picnic shelters rent for $50-$150 per day, a little inflated
for non-summer weekdays. I didn’t view
the camping area due to the rain, but I am certain it’s just as well maintained
as the day use area. The property and
restrooms were clean and looked well managed.
The pier was long and felt spacious enough to handle quite a
few fishing enthusiasts or midday wanderers.
Here the park seems to be missing an opportunity for a profit. At the entrance of the pier sits an unused
structure built for concessions or something commercial. Why not rent out kayaks here? There are no kayaks at Kayak Point and it’s a
perfect location for this activity. It’s
an excellent opportunity to bring in some extra money that could potentially
add more to an already wonderful space.
