Thornton A. Sullivan Park at Silver Lake: The 35-Acre Everett Park Most Locals Still Underuse

What is Thornton A. Sullivan Park?

Thornton A. Sullivan Park at Silver Lake is a 35.3-acre City of Everett park at 11405 Silver Lake Road. It wraps the south end of Silver Lake and offers a swimming beach (no lifeguards), a 9-hole disc golf course, three picnic shelters, self-serve kayak and paddleboard rentals, a playground, waterfront trails, and Silver Hall for events. The park is open 6 a.m. to dusk year-round. Small electric or gas motors (8 horsepower maximum) are allowed on the lake.

The Everett park most locals drive past

Silver Lake has a neighborhood named after it, a shopping district named after it, and a highway exit named after it. What it doesn’t have — in most Everett residents’ mental maps — is the 35-acre park wrapping its south shore that most people haven’t actually walked since they were kids.

Thornton A. Sullivan Park at Silver Lake is that park. If you live anywhere south of 41st and want a day outside without driving to Mukilteo or over to Jetty Island, this is the answer most Everett locals haven’t fully reckoned with.

The basics

Address: 11405 Silver Lake Road, Everett, WA 98208
Size: 35.3 acres
Hours: 6 a.m. to dusk, every day
Cost: Free for day use
Phone: City of Everett Parks, 425-257-8700
Parking: Free on-site lot

No lifeguards are on duty. Life jackets are available to borrow at the beach.

What’s actually here

A real swimming beach

This is the big one. Silver Lake has an honest-to-goodness sand beach at the park — not a ramp, not a pier, an actual walk-into-the-water beach with a sand playground area right next to it. On hot summer weekends this is the default Everett family move for anyone who doesn’t want to fight traffic to a saltwater beach. Because the lake is smaller than a Sound beach, the water warms up faster in the spring, which makes this one of the first genuinely swimmable places in Everett each year.

The city posts water safety reminders prominently: no lifeguards, wear a Coast Guard-approved life jacket if you’re not confident, and swim with a buddy. Drowning risk climbs sharply in summer across all Western Washington lakes — this park takes the messaging seriously, and so should visitors.

A 9-hole disc golf course

Thornton A. Sullivan has one of the better natural-terrain disc golf courses in Snohomish County. It’s 9 holes, forested, free to play, and busy on weekends. Beginners and veterans share the course. If you’ve never played disc golf, this is the most forgiving place in Everett to learn — the fairways are generous enough that first-timers aren’t constantly hunting lost discs.

Self-serve kayak and paddleboard rentals

Whenever Watersports operates a self-serve kayak and paddleboard rental kiosk at the park. It’s app-based — you rent from your phone, grab the gear, and return it when you’re done. The kiosk operates from sunrise to sunset, every day, with no reservations required. For an Everett family that wants to paddle without owning the equipment or hauling it anywhere, this is the simplest entry point to lake paddling in the city.

Silver Lake allows small motorized boats — electric or gas motors up to 8 horsepower. That cap keeps the lake quiet and swim-friendly while still allowing a fishing skiff.

Three picnic shelters

Camp Patterson Picnic Shelter, Silver Lake Beach Shelter, and the Silver Lake Dock Shelter each anchor a different section of the park. They’re reservable through the City of Everett. The main shelter seats up to 64 for large family gatherings or birthday parties.

Silver Hall

If you need to host an indoor event at the park, Silver Hall is 1,018 square feet with a 40-person capacity. It includes restrooms and a kitchen with a stove, oven, microwave, and refrigerator. Reservations go through the City of Everett Parks department.

Trails and waterfront access

The park has a loop trail system around the southern lakeshore with multiple waterfront viewpoints. The loop is short enough to walk with a toddler and long enough to actually count as a walk. There’s a concrete table tennis table in the sand area — a small detail, but the kind that tells you someone who used this park as a kid designed it.

Fishing

Silver Lake is stocked and open to fishing with a valid Washington fishing license. The park’s waterfront viewpoints and the dock area are the most common fishing spots.

When to go

Spring (April–May): The best time for walking the trails and playing disc golf. Water’s still cold for swimming, but the park is quiet and the weather is starting to turn.

Summer (June–August): Prime swimming and paddling season. Weekends get crowded — plan to arrive before 11 a.m. if you want a shaded picnic spot or a shelter without a reservation. Weekdays are dramatically quieter.

Fall (September–October): Disc golf weather is excellent through October. The trees around the disc golf course turn and the park empties out.

Winter: The park stays open at 6 a.m. to dusk year-round. Trails are walkable in most weather. The disc golf course plays cold but plays fine.

How the park got here

Thornton A. Sullivan Park is named for a long-serving parks commissioner whose work shaped the Everett parks system for decades. The park has been Everett’s primary lake-access park since the city acquired and developed the site, and it’s been expanded and renovated in phases over the years. Today’s 35.3 acres include the southern arc of Silver Lake’s shore, the beach, the wooded disc golf corridor, and the meadow zone around the picnic shelters.

What makes the park distinct in Everett’s park system is that it’s one of the only city parks built around a lake — not a viewpoint of Port Gardner Bay, not a city block retrofit, but a park where the water is the point.

Who this park is for

Families who want a swim day without leaving the city. Disc golfers who want 9 holes they can play after work. Paddlers who don’t own a kayak. Anyone hosting a birthday party in Everett who doesn’t want to pay for a venue. Seniors who want a flat, walkable loop with benches. Kids who want a playground with a beach attached.

If you’ve lived in Everett for a decade and haven’t been to Thornton A. Sullivan in five years, you’ve probably forgotten how good this park is.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Thornton A. Sullivan Park in Everett?

The park is at 11405 Silver Lake Road, Everett, WA 98208, wrapping the south end of Silver Lake in the Silver Lake neighborhood of south Everett.

What are the hours of Thornton A. Sullivan Park?

The park is open from 6 a.m. to dusk every day of the year. There are no lifeguards on duty at any time.

Is there a swimming beach at Silver Lake?

Yes. The park includes a sand beach with designated swimming area. There are no lifeguards, so swimmers are asked to wear Coast Guard-approved life jackets (available to borrow) and swim with a buddy.

Can you rent kayaks at Thornton A. Sullivan Park?

Yes. Whenever Watersports operates a self-serve kayak and paddleboard rental kiosk on the lakeshore. Rentals are app-based, available sunrise to sunset, with no reservations required.

Is there a disc golf course at the park?

Yes. The park has a 9-hole natural-terrain disc golf course. It’s free to play and open during park hours.

Can you have a motorized boat on Silver Lake?

Yes, but only small motors — electric or gas motors up to 8 horsepower are allowed. That keeps Silver Lake quiet and swim-friendly while allowing fishing skiffs.

Can you reserve picnic shelters or Silver Hall?

Yes. Camp Patterson Picnic Shelter, the Silver Lake Beach shelter, the Silver Lake Dock shelter, and Silver Hall are all reservable through the City of Everett. Silver Hall seats 40 and includes a kitchen; the largest picnic shelter seats up to 64.