Post #38937 by Selector Lopaka on Thu, Jun 12, 2003 11:25 PM

Wow, great recommendations y'all. I must agree about Pike Place Market in the AM, though anytime is good, it's an amazing place. We are light on tiki here in Rain City, but we still have much to offer. Here's a few more options that you might want to add to your list of activities:

Outdoor activities in Seattle:

Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill: killer view, and you can park right there.

Discovery Park in the Magnolia neighborhood: short hike to a beautiful view of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains from a bluff. Park on the street near the south entrance on W. Emerson St. to avoid too long a walk. There's a nice loop trail through the woods, and a hike to the beach for the more ambitious.

Golden Gardens beach and the Locks in the Ballard neighborhood: Golden Gardens has a similar view to Discovery Park, but at sea level. You can build a fire on the beach if you can score a designated fire pit. At the Locks you can watch boats make their way from fresh to salt water, and you watch the salmon run at the fish ladder.

Gasworks Park in the Wallingford neighborhood: another sweet park with another great view, climb up to the top of kite hill and check out the huge funky sundial. Look to the east from Gasworks and see the dilapidated art deco ferry, Kalakala.

Renting kayaks: Two places I've rented from are the Northwest Outdoor Center on Westlake Ave. and Agua Verde Cafe and Paddle Club on Boat St. near U of W. If you rent from Agua Verde you can have some unusual, but tasty, Mexican food afterwards at the restaurant above the paddle club. Seattle has lots of houseboats and maritime activity, and the water you'll be paddling is relatively calm, but there's constant activity and sites all around you.

Walking around Green Lake: a 3+ mile paved path surrounds this lake, and joggers, walkers, rollerbladers, and bicyclists flock here. It's a good place to people watch while mildly exercising.

Seattle rock n' roll mini tour:

Hendrix's gravesite in Renton, south of Seattle: I guess there's a "new and improved" memorial now. His original gravestone was stolen a number of times.

Viretta Park on Lake Washington Blvd.: This is the closest thing to a Kurt Cobain memorial. Courtney kept his ashes, and an official memorial has never existed. This tiny little tranquil park is right next door to Cobain's house where he was found dead, and is where his fans flock to when in Seattle.

Experience Music Project: a bit expensive, but worth it if you're a music geek. Plan on spending the day there if you want to immerse yourself. The restaurant and the bar are both pretty good.

[ Edited by: Selector Lopaka on 2003-06-12 23:35 ]