Kirkland, WA
Half marathon along Lake Washington.
About the race
A great end-of-season half to cap off your year of running.
The Lake Washington Half marathon is a beautiful loop course that starts and finishes in Juanita Beach Park in Kirkland. You’ll run along the shores of Lake Washington and through the charming neighborhoods of Kirkland.
Produced by Orca Running, the Lake Washington Half is a great end-of-season half to cap off your year of running. Come run with us!
The Course
A beautiful loop course that starts and finishes at Juanita Beach Park in Kirkland. You’ll run along the shores of Lake Washington and through the charming neighborhoods of Kirkland.
The Lake Washington Half course is USATF certified. Due to continued construction on the Cross Kirkland Corridor Trail, there is a change to the course in 2026, and that change means the 2026 course loses its certification.
The race starts in 4 waves, 2 minutes apart.
Aid stations serve water, GU gels and Tailwind electrolytes. Runners hit them at approximately 1, 4, 5.7, 7.3, 9.4 and 11.8 miles.
Pacers are available for the following finish times: 1:40, 1:50, 2:00 and 2:15.
All Orca races are cupless — bring a handheld or grab a small reusable folding cup at the start.
Entry
Bib mailed to you ($4.50) — Select the option during registration
Race morning, from 6:30am — Consult the schedule and anticipate long lines
Thursday, October 15th, 2:00pm – 6:00pm — REI Bellevue
There will be aid stations on the course serving water, GU gels and Tailwind electrolytes. Runners will hit the aid stations at approximately 1, 4, 5.7, 7.3, 9.4 and 11.8 miles.
Free gear check is available at the Lake Washington Half. In an effort to reduce waste we will not be providing drop bags, so please bring your own bag. We will have identification tags for you to use.
Overall awards will be given to the top 3 male, female and non-binary runners based on gun time, not chip time — so you should start near the front of the pack. We also give out age group awards in 5-year increments, so be sure to check your results at the Orca Running tent. We do not mail out awards after the race; they must be picked up at the race.
3.5 hours
Want guaranteed parking? The Peter Kirk Municipal Parking Garage has 420 parking spaces with 4 hours of free parking. We will be running shuttles from 7:00am to 7:30am from Kirkland Ave to Youth Eastside Services, which is a short walk to Juanita Beach Park. The shuttles will begin running again back to the parking garage at 9:00am until 11:45am.
Parking is at Juanita Beach Park and in the surrounding neighborhoods. The earlier you arrive, the closer you will be to the start/finish line, so plan ahead.
Parking is no longer allowed in the field across the street, so please take the shuttle from downtown Kirkland, use public transit or a ride share service, and plan ahead.
Want guaranteed parking? The Peter Kirk Municipal Parking Garage has 420 parking spaces with 4 hours of free parking.
For those of you making a weekend out of this event, we recommend the Heathman Hotel in downtown Kirkland — 220 Kirkland Avenue, Kirkland, WA 98033. The shuttle pick-up and drop-off is just one block from the hotel.
Can't make it in person?
Run and log your race any time after your swag arrives. Virtual participants receive a shirt, medal and bib in the mail, shipped the week after the in-person race. Limited to 50 participants, and it counts towards your R-Pod medal.
Where your entry goes
Rise Up and Read began when pediatrician Dr. Susanna Block, working in a Matamoros clinic, saw that families under extreme stress still deeply cared about their children's language and emotional development. She gathered a network of friends to create a program supporting these needs, which grew into Rise Up and Read, guided by a dedicated board of experienced professionals.
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Good to Know
The fine print
We have a clear set of policies that we uniformly follow for all races. Entries are not refundable, but you can defer your entry, transfer it to another race, or transfer it to another participant. You can review our full set of policies here.
There are no higher stakes than being kind to the earth; we care deeply about keeping our planet viable for the next generation. To that end, we organize our events with an eye towards minimizing our impact on the planet. Read more here.
Orca Running want to make sure that everyone feels welcome and safe at our running events and in our community. We have a non-binary registration option and a non-binary category for overall awards. If you have a suggestion or idea for how we can improve our events in this regard, please let us know!
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