Olympic Sculpture Park has artworks along a winding pathway with views of Elliott Bay and Puget Sound, including the landmark giant Echo sculpture of a young girl’s elongated face. Gas Works Park on the shores of Lake Union still has the now rusty gasification infrastructure once providing gas for streetlights and homes before becoming a public park. Residents flock there for its splendid views of downtown across the lake. Discovery Park, Seattle’s largest, sits within 534 acres along Puget Sound and is a hot spot for birders looking for glimpses of more than 270 species including bald eagles. “We are always ready to embrace an outdoor activity regardless of the weather, so we need our outfits to match the opportunities,” says Garfield, testament to the fact that I never spotted anyone wearing a suit or even a dinner jacket. “Even casual may be too formal for the typical Seattleite. We dress for comfort and practicality rather than success or to impress.” An important part of the area’s water management is also a popular attraction. The Ballard Locks separate the fresh water of the Lake Washington Ship Canal and inland lakes to the salt water of Puget Sound. Every year, thousands of pleasure boats and commercial vessels wait while the water level drops or rises more than 20 feet before passing through.
Many come to watch salmon swimming up through the glass facades of the Ballard Locks Fish Ladder. “We have three of five species of salmon that are returning to spawn,” says Tish Cameron, a park ranger with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “They start on the freshwater side, come through to the salt water and then return to freshwater. It’s part of their life cycle.” East of Seattle is home to Microsoft founder Bill Gates’ estate, a mansion on the shores of Lake Washington that’s closed to the public but often pointed out during boat tours. A short drive away is the Microsoft Visitor Center as part of the company’s campus in Redmond. The Center delves into the company’s history including the first personal computer all the way to artificial intelligence. Guided tours are available. Attractions along the city’s downtown waterfront include the Seattle Aquarium, the 175-foot-high Great (Ferris) Wheel and Ivar’s Acres of Clams restaurant along Pier 54, famous since 1938 and hands down this writer’s favorite local restaurant for its thick clam chowder. The waterfront is also the launching point for Washington State Ferries used by both commuters and sightseers. Farther north is Myrtle Edwards Park with—when the skies clear—great views of Mount Rainier.
View of downtown Seattle from Gas Works Park
SEATTLE
COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE SPRING 2025 | 25
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