The park and lake were clean and beautiful, not unlike many other Washington parks. However, it…read morewas a unique feeling to stand next to a freshwater lake on a small island in the Puget Sound. We were next to freshwater, yet a short drive away in any direction would lead us to saltwater. Based on the number of homes on the opposite side of the lake, many people enjoyed that feeling. We were there on a Fall weekend afternoon and the island was quiet, including the park. I wonder if it is much more active in the Summer.

An absolutely pristine little family park, located on a tiny lake, at the terminus of a long, shady…read morelane. There is a pontoon raft, a small beach, a hilly embankment, picnic tables and barbecues on metal posts. I rode my bike over on the ferry with a beach towel around my neck, prepared for a swim. The beach is very clean and sandy--not pebbly. There was only a dollop of mucky bits, and those were easily avoided. Be careful if your preferred mode of ambulation has two wheels. You'll earn your swim after coming over the hills, and there a few blind spots, twisty corners, and roundish things. Come thither. Bring a sandwich. Enjoy life!

Fun to kayak out to! The bathrooms are a bit gross. Neat little island to explore. Be careful…read moreduring windy days. Kayaking the sound can be dangerous. There are a lot of weird currents around Steamboat Island and the bridge.

This is now my favorite state park. We tied-up to the last mooring buoy available on the south end…read moreof the island then paddled the short trip to shore in our kayaks. Our mooring ball was a little exposed and we endured a few large wakes, but the visit to the island more than made up for it.

This was my first time swimming in a lake. And I think the lake life is the life for me!…read more Weather was a perfect 87 degrees and little humid so jumping in the water was so refreshing and much needed. So much fun jumping in from the decks. I was shocked at how deep the lake was -- 15 feet near the dock and 25 feet towards the buoy. Many lifeguards and use of life jackets for the kids. So they could enjoy the deep end, as well. I wish we came to this lake every day of this trip :) instead of my last day :( We brought some pizza to eat for lunch and was here for hours. I had the best time!

This park is nice to go fishing or take your dogs for a walk on/off leash or watch your kids play…read moreor have a big family reunion under one of the many pavilions. The bathrooms are clean and the walking trail is nice. Grass can be a little muddy sometimes though. You can also watch the ducks swim or sometimes catch a view of a couple getting married at the Community Center. As I am a stickler for parking, if the park is busy, as it has been since it's summer and Washington has been getting it's 10 sunny days out of 365, people are out and about and grillin' n chillin'. So, the parking lot lately has been full, so you have to park in the grass directly behind the regular parking spaces. As mentioned, the grass can be muddy so if your car has a tendency to get stuck, you may not want to chance the grass. Overall, it's a great place to bring a lawn chair or a blanket and just relax.

Lovely park. Huge grassy area, great playground. Lots of wasps trying to share our food, though.read more

came here with Adam for veterans day because I have been saving this place for when the weather is…read morenice. did not get to bike here, so :(, but it was still a really good time with getting to know Adam. very serene with the calm waters. lots of ducks, especially nearing the state Capitol building side, and I think that there were two of them fighting. Straight up pecking at each other...and not the sweet, cute kind. Adam and I just watched like :( because why can they not click with one another? The fight was so deep for what? Anyway, there is a mini hike from here and up to state Capitol building, if you want some sort of challenge, but there is a paved sidewalk to go along if you just want to enjoy the nature and take cute pictures like Adam and I did. parking availa Le, but quite a bit of visitors, so had to park in a lot that was $1.10 an hour (it says $0.75 an hour on the sign, but not true). speaking of parking, the parking timer for that website where you pay actually started at 58 minutes, smh. would rank higher if parking more readily available and if they made it clear with signs about how the mini hiking trail goes.

Since there aren't really any public outdoor pools and the weather usually isn't cooperative to be…read moreconducive for a public pool, the Heritage Park Fountain is a perfect place to cool down for free. It's nestled between the roads that lead in and out of downtown Olympia. The fountain shoots water jets up from the pavement at different intervals so it keeps you guessing where the water will come from. I believe I've seen signage that they do treat the water so it's sanitary as well. It stops the water jets every couple of minutes to keep up with the filtration. One thing I love about this park is that there is a variety of people of all ages and backgrounds that come to play in the fountain or make use of the park benches. Young couples, hipsters, older married couples, families, all the single ladies, non-binary folks, and even people in business suits. It's not just a cool fountain that lights up at night, it's a place for people to commune and I think that's great since downtown Olympia often gives off that vibe. So, If you don't feel like going over to the plaza in front of the Children's museum to get wet during the summer, head over to the Heritage Park Fountain right across the street from Capitol Lake Park.

Lovely and quiet. NOT accessible. You cannot drive to where you can see, let alone dabble your feet…read morein, the water. You can not drive to a restroom. The road going in is too steep for a wheelchair or a scooter. There is 1 picnic table at the parking lot, but no water, restroom, or garbage can. I was so disappointed that I couldn't access the water. The website didn't mention lack of access.

Frye Cove County Park is on the Eld Inlet, which is close to Olympia as the bird flies, but driving…read morethere gives you the feeling of seclusion. There is one main road, Steamboat Island Road, heading up the peninsula that has consistent traffic, but not so much to think that you are actually close to the state capital. Leaving Steamboat Road, you head deeper into this forest. Frye Cove lies at the end of one of these roads. There were an assortment of smaller trails at the park that ran along the water. We did see one fisherman there, a fly fisherman, and I was going to ask him if he was having any luck but I noticed that he was trying to finagle his fly out of a tree. This didn't seem like the ideal time to ask him if he was having any success, so we kept walking. My inclination was confirmed in the parking lot. He didn't have any success. Except for the truly knowledgeable fly fishermen, flyfishing is more of a way to appreciate nature's beauty rather than to reel in big fish.

Eld Inlet is located at the Southern Edge of Puget Sound in Olympia. It's about 6 miles long. The…read moremost southern edge of the inlet is called Mud Bay. We stayed at a beach house here during the long 4th of July weekend for some much-needed relaxation. It's so close to the city yet secluded enough so it feels like a small vacation away from home. The weather was perfect. We took advantage of paddle boarding and kayaking. We were even greeted by a curious Sea Otter and a humongous Jelly Fish that seemed like it was 2 1/2 feet wide. *shivers* The water and the view were amazing!! There's a considerable difference between low tide and high tide so I'd keep an eye out for the tide tables. During low tide, you can go for long walks along the beach and do some beach combing. During high tide, that same beach is non-existent. Perfect time to take the paddle board or kayak out so I don't have to walk the length of the beach to get in the water. I would frequently see Oyster boats go by. Apparently Eld Inlet is known for growing the richest oysters. Something about the algae in the inlet gives the oyster meat its yellowish creamy color... buttery. The same conditions in Eld Inlet that grow sweet oysters also produce very thin shells. There are also several Sandy beach areas in Eld Inlet that are open to the public.

No bathrooms here except one honey bucket. I'd suggest going to the restroom before you come here…read moreso you don't have to use that facility (yuck). The area is very beautiful where you see the lake and also green grass on the side. When you walk onto the beach, there are so many oyster shells that have been chucked to the side. The beach in itself is kind of smelly so be prepared for it to smell kind of unpleasant. You need to wear big boots that pass your ankle because when you go into the mud, your foot can get trapped. The texture of the mud is kind of like a clay so when you sink your foot in, you might get stuck. This happened to me several of times. The Manila clams are a good size and really easy to get. You need to bring gardening shovels and lots of plastic bags/water and hand sanitizer. It gets pretty messy digging from clams here.

Lots of clams to dig up during low tide. Look for the air holes. Really muddy here, bring boots…read moreand garbage bags. Need some small gardening tools like hoes, rakes or mini shovels. The clams are really muddy with only muddy water to clean them. Watch out for clams that are empty with mud inside or with holes in the shells. Oysters are here too, they are not very plentiful and not worth going here for. You should go to Belfair to get oysters.