Seattle Off The Beaten Path Tips by glabah Top 5 Page for this destination

Dr. José Rizal Park Downtown Seattle Review

For tourists the most interesting feature of this park is that it offers a view of the Seattle skyline. The bad news is that this view does not offer any sort of look at the Space Needle these days, as the skyline of Seattle has grown to the point where downtown stands between the Space Needle and this park.

However, the good news is that on a clear day you can see parts of the Olympic Mountains, through the industrial southern part of Seattle sits in the foreground, along with the stadiums and a vat freeway and highway interchange.

The park also has a few artworks in it, as well as a picnic shelter, various benches and picnic tables, a small playground, and a small monument to Dr. José P. Rizal, who was executed for supposedly being involved with the Filipino insurrection of 1896 but had significant contributions to society and science.

The lower part of the park on the hill is a fairly large off-leash dog area, protected by spring-closed gates.

The park also is crossed by the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trail.

The main photo for this tip shows downtown and Elliott Bay and the stadiums as viewed from this park. However, no mountains are visible due to the typical winter weather view being offered that day.

%How to Get Here:

Easiest on Bus Route # 36, which is a fairly frequent trolley bus route. Going south out of downtown the closest it gets to the park is 14th, which is two blocks to the east of the park. Going north back to downtown it is right at the park. Driving requires going east on Jackson and then south on 12th through a bizarre intersection to continue on 12, then swing over to 14th.

Website: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/park_detail.asp?id=433

International Children's Park Downtown Seattle Review

Located in a somewhat out of the way location for the International District, this small park features a playground and open space, themed around the Asian influences of the International District. The park doesn't have a huge amount of interest in it other than the Asian themed features.

There is a small shelter in the park and it is a popular lunch place for those getting takeout from the surrounding restaurants, if it is a reasonably good weather day.

How to Get Here:

Located at Lane and 7th Avenue South, it is only a matter of going somewhat south and east from Union Station. The nearest bus service is on Dearborn, which is bus route #42. However, a number of other buses are a few blocks north on Jackson Street.

Website: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/park_detail.asp?id=364

Hing Hay Park Downtown Seattle Review

This small plaza is a popular place for lunch during dry, and especially warm, days. There are various events held here from time to time (see the events section of the city of Seattle parks pages), including street performers of various types during warm month lunches and some evenings.

The Grand Pavilion in the center of the park was designed and built in Taipei, Taiwan. It is part of a celebration of the International District (which is a merging of a large number of different Asian cultures).

You will also find a small map of nearby artwork and other features of the International District. This is located on a small stone post at the center of the south side of the park.

There is a community bulletin board for finding out about local events at the far southeast corner of the park (see photo 1).

There is a dragon mural (see photo 2) on the building just north of the park.

The coldest of winter months (January and December) have far less activity here than during the rest of the year, for the most part.

How to Get Here:

Like much of downtown Seattle parking is a bit of a challenge as it is densely populated. Parking is available at a pay parking structure south of Union Station. Fairly frequent bus routes 7, 14, 36 and 99 serve Jackson Street, just north of the park.

The park is located at S. King Street and Maynard Avenue South.

Website: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/park_detail.asp?ID=358

Seattle Interactive Media (Video Games) Museum Museums / Theaters Review

The Seattle Center has a number of facilities in it. Some of these are world famous (The Space Needle for example, or the much newer Experience Music Project) while others are maybe not as well known but still attractions in their own right (the various theatres and performance venues on the north side) while others are world class places at what they do, but just not that well known (the Pacific Science Center and the Chihuly Garden and Glass).

Other facilities in the Seattle Center are essentially completely unknown, and require that one really know the facility in order to find them.

The "Seattle Interactive Media Museum (essentially a video game museum) is one of these institutions located on the grounds of the Seattle Center that is almost impossible to find unless you are actually looking for it.

This is a very new museum, having had a home at this location for less than a year. Things are still getting settled in, and therefore when you visit things may be very different than when I visited on December 1, 2012.

When I visited on that day, in the evening, there were several video game systems set up and running, allowing the visitors to play those games. None of the operating systems were newer than approximately 1990. See photo 2.

The museum currently operates on a shoestring budget, and there is no entrance fee. There is a donations box near the entrance for those who wish to make a donation.

How to Get Here:

Towards the center of the Seattle Center there is a fairly large building that contains the various on-site restaurants. This is the only surviving building on the site from before the World's Fair: the 1920s Armory Building. This is where the Seattle Center food court is located. You will find a pizza establishment and a Starbucks (who else?) on the south side of this building, facing the Chihuly building. To the west of these to restaurants look for the opening in the wall that marks the entrance to the Seattle Interactive Media Museum (see photo 1). The entrance faces the Starbucks, but the new institution is in the southwest corner of the south side of the building, close to the south side entrance in the middle of the building.

Website: http://www.thesimm.org/

Seattle Pinball Machine Museum Downtown Seattle Review

With a very deep room filled with pinball machines, this tiny and relatively unknown museum in the International District is most certainly one of the places few people hear about when considering attractions in Seattle. However, if you want a good rainy day place to visit that isn't too expensive ($10 for all you can play) this is certainly one place to consider visiting.

While some of the games are fairly new, some of the others date back to the 1960s (these are currently undergoing repair).

Refreshments such as beer and soft drinks are also available.

The museum is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Website: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Seattle-Pinball-Museum/131237786915560?sk=info

Waterfall Garden Park (Pioneer Square Area) Downtown Seattle Review

This is definitely one of the more unknown parks in the downtown Seattle area, but it is a nice quiet place to relax, and an attractive location though it is surrounded by a large steel fence.

This location marks the starting location of what would become United Parcel Service, which started somewhere beneath the sidewalks in a basement office at this location.

Today the park features tables and chairs, and of course a large waterfall at the west end of the park, which does a lot of good in blocking out the noise of the surrounding city. It is kept fairly clean and on warmer days is a popular place for people to bring their lunch or snacks.

The park is not open very long compared to surrounding city parks. The shortest hours are during the winter months, when it is open 8:00 am to 3:45 pm.

How to Get Here: The park is located on the Northwest corner of 2nd Avenue South and South Main Street, 1 block north of the Gold Rush Museum. A large number of different bus routes are within walking distance of here. Many of these are only a block away on S 2nd Avenue Extension, which runs diagonally across the street grid east of this location. Bus route 99 from the waterfront is 1 block south on Jackson Street. The streetcar (tram) line no longer operates here, though the tracks down the middle of the street are still there.

Volunteer Park Watertower Observation Deck National/Local - Parks/Gardens Review

Located inside Volunteer Park, one of the city's oldest water towers has been rebuilt with an observation deck at the top. There is no elevator, but the two half-spiral staircases that lead to the top will provide you with lots of free exercise as you climb to the top. There is no elevator or other alternative to climbing the stairs as the structure and its use as a viewpoint predate the common provision of such amenities.

From the top of the water tower, it is possible to have a true 360 degre view, of sorts. Downtown, the Space Needle, the Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainier, Lake Washington, and the ridge of the Cascade Mountains heading north are all visibile from up here.

Best of all?
Getting to the observation deck is absolutely free of charge, unlike the Space Needle or the Columbia Center Skyview or a few other locations with a great view.

I found it necessary to turn the camera upside down in order to get through the grates over the windows for some of the photos I took. If you bring a step stool or ladder and carry it up all 170 steps to the top of the tower, you could also get over the top of the tightest grate and possibly get better photographs that way. The grate that is higher up has a much larger grid pattern, and would be easier to get the lens of a camera through. It would require considerable effort to drag something like that up here, however.

NOTE: On a clear day you can see Mt Rainier just fine with your eyes, but to get it to show up with your camera (digital or film) you will need UV filters or other specialized equipment, or come here when the light is set exactly right such as near sunset. This has to do with the way standard photographic equipment works over such long distances and through air with smog in it. The photos that I have posted here are fairly typical of this phenomena: there should be snow capped mountains in photos 3 and 5, but they don't show up on film or digital camera.

As for the hours of operation, the signs say "Open Daily at 10 AM, Closed Evenings by Security Service" without any idea as to when in the evening the doors are closed.

The best time to get photographs of the views around Seattle is near sunrise or sunset, as that is when the mountains are most visible. Sunrise isn't going to happen at this water tower as the opening time is 10 am. In the summer, sunsets are not possible either due to the tower closing much too early. Sunset can be as late as 9:45 here. However, a rare winter clear day can provide a wonderful opportunity, as the sunset happens before 6 in the evening. For some results of this, please see my Photos from Volunteer Park Water Tower travelogue. This travelogue also features a look at one of the windows and how it is a bit hard to take photos through it due to the protective barriers. Only certain angles and certain photo equipment work (think small camera with zoom lens that can protrude between the wires, and being very selective about the angles at which you can shoot).

The signs do say that it is possible to call 684-4555 for more information about the water tower or Volunteer Park. It does not, however, give an area code for this phone number.

The observation deck also has a set of historical plans and documents relating to the creation of the Seattle parks network, and the plans created by the Olmstead Brothers, who made a special trip from New York to explore Seattle. At the time they said that there was nothing from stopping Seattle from becoming one of the top cities in the world in terms of its parks system.

I can't possibly imagine dragging the park benches and display boards all the way up here on those staircases!

The web site below is for Volunteer Park and not specific to the water tower.

How to Get Here:
The official address of the park is 1247 15th Ave. E. The best bus route to take to get here is bus route 10, which also serves the Capitol Hill community. You can drive, but on a really clear day it will be difficult to find parking as everyone else will be here for the views and to enjoy the sunlight. Bus route #10 is somewhat slow, but it does run fairly frequently.

See also:

My Volunteer Park Tip
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/p/m/1e6da4/
The outside of the water tower is shown in photo 3 on this tip.

My Photos from Volunteer Park Water Tower on 26 December 2009:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tt/c250a/
These were taken near sunset on a winter day, so it is possible to see the snow on the surrounding mountains in some of the photos. It is also possible to see the limitations of the windows installed in this structure in the very last photograph.

Phone: 684-4555

Website: http://www.seattle.gov/PARKS/park_detail.asp?id=399

Pier 66: Port of Seattle Viewpoint Waterfront Review

While much of the port activity in Seattle has shifted away from the downtown waterfront area and now takes place just south of the waterfront, the Port of Seattle main offices remain at Pier 66, which is reasonably close to Belltown and Pike Place Market.

The structure is a combination of several different things.

However, one of the lesser known but very useful (especially during sunset) is the observation deck on the roof of the building.

This rooftop observation deck comes equipped with a number of tables for those who would like to relax outside and have a bit to eat here from one of the restaurants down below, benches including a few that are raised slightly, and binoculars that are free to use.

This may be accessed from the elevators and staircases from the waterfront sidewalk, or from the overhead bridge that passes over Alaskan Way and connects Pier 66 to downtown Seattle.

The observation deck may be closed due to cruise ships occupying the pier, or various other Port of Seattle activities.

From below on the waterfront sidewalk there is no sign at all that this observation deck exists, and the only way to know that it exists at all is to already know that it is there.

Carl S. English Jr. Botanical Garden National/Local - Parks/Gardens Review

Located right next to the Ballard Locks, this garden is a wonderful park-like collection of trees, flowers and other plants. I happened to get my first visit in May, when all the rhododendron were in bloom.

Most of the trails are paved, but there are one or two that are not paved.

The gardens were created on the former barren wasteland construction site of the Ballard Locks, and in all over 40 years were spent collecting and planting them. There are over 400 species of plants.

Benches are spread throughout the facility, and you can find a spot in the sun or shade (assuming, of course, the day happens to have enough sunlight to create either). The gardens are very well maintained, and on a warm day you will find locals having a picnic lunch here.

On the south side of the garden, there is a set of terraced steps for those who wish to sit on the grassy slope and watch the ships and boats go through the Ballard Locks. However, there is little shade in that particular section of the garden, and it can get hot there on a summer day. See my Ballard Locks tip for a photo of this area, as it is one of the better places to watch the boats go through the locks. It is the big green grass area in the foreground of the first photo.

The official address is 3015 NW 54th Street, Seattle Washington. It is located on the grounds of the Ballard Locks, and maintained by the same United States Army Corps of Engineers group that maintains the locks. See web site, below.

There is no charge to enter the garden grounds, but there is a standard city parking meter at the parking lot out front.

How to Get Here: From the Ballard area, head west on Market Street until it branches into two one way streets. The Ballard Locks parking area is one block west and one block south of this division in the road. Bus routes #17 (from downtown Seattle) and #44 (from the University District) are the two most frequent bus routes that serve the area. It is also a fairly easy walk to get here from the main Ballard business district, though much of the route is next to busy Market Street.

Website: http://www.nws.usace.army.mil/PublicMenu/Menu.cfm?sitename=lwsc&pagename=garden

Woodland Park: the rest of the park National/Local - Parks/Gardens Review

You will hear of the Seattle Zoo referred to as the "Woodland Park Zoo" and so it is, as that is the name of the city park where it is located.

However, you will find that aside of the zoo, this park is nowhere near as busy as the zoo implies. People think of Woodland Park as being the zoo and zoo only, and forget that there is a "rest of the park" to Woodland Park.

The main body of the park outside the zoo area includes a number of walking trails, picnic areas (both covered and uncovered), and an outdoor but covered horseshoe area (see photo 5). As the name "Woodland Park" implies, much of the park is in forest, though there are also a number of large expanses of open grass.

Organized sports use facilities here for lawn bowling, bocce, and 6 wicket croquet.

The forested area of the park is connected to the zoo, rose garden, and war memorial area by way of several pedestrian bridges that cross over the top of Highway 99, providing a wonderful traffic-free way of getting to the various popular attractions on the west side of the highway and the much more quiet forested area on the east side of the highway.

To the east of Woodland park, the park adjoins Green Lake Park. This is also a very popular park with a walking loop around the entire lake. However, the road between Woodland Park and Green Lake Park is busy without any crossing method available other than just wait for traffic and hope for the best. No traffic signals, no pedestrian bridges, no nothing other than hope for the best. This method can take a very long time, if you run across a lot of drivers that are in a huge hurry to get places.

Other Places inside Woodland Park include:

+ The Woodland Park Zoo (as mentioned)
+ The Rose Garden (just east of the zoo entrance)
+ The War Memorial

Getting Here: highway 99 north from downtown Seattle. You can follow signs to zoo parking, but parking there costs $5 per car. For park itself, parking is free if you turn right off of highway 99 north of the pedestrian underpasses.

Bus route 5 runs past the entrance to the zoo, and several serve the area around Green Lake Park. Route 358 has a stop several blocks north of the very north edge of the park. Route 44, Ballard - University District is several blocks south of the park.

Website: http://www.cityofseattle.net/Parks/park_detail.asp?id=292