New stairway at the top; note the bicycle runnels on the leftWe previously alerted readers here that the Cedar Park stairway walk route (Chapter 4, "Cedar Park and the Burke-Gilman Trail") is temporarily blocked by construction of replacements for the two stairways between NE 42nd Street and the Burke-Gilman Trail. The one at the top, just off NE 42nd Street, was completed and opened several weeks ago. The stairway at the bottom, the final link down to the Burke-Gilman Trail, has been awaiting completion.
We went over there today (Monday, March 25), and met a couple of workers at the bottom stairway. The good news is, they told us it would be opened once temporary handrails are installed - almost certainly by Tuesday.
With the exception of the closed stairway, which we bypassed via NE 125th Street, we completed the main route today (there's a shorter option in the book too). The beautiful Spring weather makes for a gorgeous walk, and it looks like this key link in the route is open at last! The views of the lake from different parts along the route are especially nice this time of year, just before the deciduous trees leaf out.
Here's a slideshow that includes some photos of today's construction work.