Days are getting longer, and the dark of winter is already receding. Right? If you're not convinced, here's a cheap way to brighten your day: Ivar's Clam Lights.

Beat cabin fever and get out of the house to Renton's Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park, a pleasant spot with waterfront paths on the south shore of Lake Washington.

After a late afternoon walk in the park, stop in for an affordable dinner at one of the park's two local restaurants: Ivar's Seafood Bar, for fish and chips, or Kidd Valley, for burgers and shakes. Hang out until 5 p.m. and the lights will come ablaze (until 9 p.m., nightly through Sunday, Jan. 1), including thousands of lights in trees around the park, plus the silly and popular marching clams (in lights).

And unlike many commercial light displays, Clam Lights is free, which puts it right in the high beams of the Cheap Fun-mobile.

5-9 p.m. through Sunday; Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park, 1201 Lake Washington Blvd. N., Renton. More information: 425-430-6700 or www.rentonwa.gov.

Brian J. Cantwell, Seattle Times travel staff