Bethany Lake Park

I love were its located I love that they do small gardening areas for people who sign up it’s very pretty and located in a great neighborhood. The few times that I’ve gone there there are a lot of bugs which freak me out but overall I think it’s a safe great area perfect for biking or going on a nice walk. I love that they fill the pond with fish so the kids can go fishing especially on free fishing weekend so because of that I gave it an extra star.

Small, unassuming open green space. There are some picnic benches along the lake shore and plenty of wide open grass to play soccer or a game of catch in.
Blink and you’ll miss it!

Bethany Lake Park is a beautiful and fun place to go walk my dog and ride my bike.
There is now a problem with people feeding the geese and ducks.
This morning I witnessed 3 people feeding the ducks.
There was an area of the water and shore covered in old mouldy bread that the ducks were not eating. It was disgusting.
The sign at the parking lot prohibiting the feeding of wildlife is not being obeyed.
Please do not feed the ducks and geese. It harms them and does not nourish them.

When i think Tanasbourne i think «strip malls.» Even though i live here and i know there is more out here than just that, but sometimes the malls are overwhelming. An oasis can be hard to find.
Out near the Mad Greek Deli, Albertsons, Rock Creek Corner and Northwest Fresh Produce, Bethany Lake park can look a little underwhelming from the road. The majority of what is visible from the road is a manicured grass park under tall power lines. While that in of itself isn’t very impressive, the stretch of grass goes pretty far back away from the road, is pretty quiet and would be a great place to have picnics with your kids or play with your dog.
What i really love about Bethany Lake park is the paved bike and foot path that extends from one end of the park out to 185^th along one whole side of the lake. Accessible from a couple of the surrounding neighborhoods, it is a beautiful walk and often i will go out of my way to Albetsons instead of the closer Safeway which is only a couple of blocks from my house just because i want to take in the scenery at the park. I often see people jogging, biking, running, or just hanging out along the path, and it is fairly smooth and fully stroller/​bike/​rollerblade accesible. The riparian zone along the lake is unmanicured and wild, you can find wild roses, sedge grass, wild mints, buttercups and various other wildflowers all in one day. One day as i walked i found salmon berries, thimble berries, regular blackberries and tiny wild blackberries… i entered into a paroxysm of wild edibles joy!!! Although i CERTAINLY DON’T recommend eating random berries here unless you are able to positively identify them. i think i spied some nightshade here too, which is a beautiful plant however not so good for your heath, if you have kids keep an eye that they don’t eat any.
The lake itself is quite beautiful too, if kind of small. Portions of it are covered in water lilies which sometimes sport small bright yellow flowers. Depending on the time of year the water varies between almost clear or thick with neon green algal sludge. LOTS of waterfowl live here. Mostly ducks and geese and the occasional swan. Also the lake has fish that are sometimes visible from the banks, the same brown color as the silt on the bottom so they are hard to see.
Often locals can be seen fishing here, often older guys, although i have seen all sorts of folks. A couple of guys i talked to told me that the lake is stocked with fish but only once a year so they start to run out by the end of summer. I think they told me they were searching for Crappie but I’m not sure if that is right, or what else might live in this lake.
If you are sick of the overall plasticine Tanasbourne vibe i would highly suggest packing a picnic lunch and heading over to the park, maybe chat with some of the local fishermen while you are there then head over to the Mad Greek or Rock Creek Corner for a beer afterward.