Seattle in June

[Tim Ford]

So, the lil' woman and I are flying out to Sea-Tac in early June. We're staying in some AirBnB dump in Capitol Hill (uncle sam took an arm and leg last month )

Spousal-unit''s a lovely person, but a city girl who likes to shop. My motto, stolen from some movie or something, is pretty much: I'd rather be in the middle of nowhere than any city on the planet.

We also have two sets of friends we have to visit, but they are educators and will probably be finishing up the last days of the school year.

What's a brother to do? Is there any water around? Water is good!

[LarryHoward]

So, the lil' woman and I are flying out to Sea-Tac in early June. We're staying in some AirBnB dump in Capitol Hill (uncle sam took an arm and leg last month )

Spousal-unit''s a lovely person, but a city girl who likes to shop. My motto, stolen from some movie or something, is pretty much: I'd rather be in the middle of nowhere than any city on the planet.

We also have two sets of friends we have to visit, but they are educators and will probably be finishing up the last days of the school year.

What's a brother to do? Is there any water around? Water is good!

Check with the locals. I think summer is the first 2 days of July this year.

Seriously? For a first time visitor. Pike Place market is a must do. Space needle is a it of a yawn. Drive down to Mt Ranier and hike up to Carbon glacier. Hike up on the left side of the stream, cross the suspension bridge and back down the back side. Take the ferry to Bainbridge Island (walk on is cheap) for a view of the sound and beg Kim for a ride on Frankie. Eat planked wild caught salmon. If you can take a long day drive, head down to Mt St Helen's and go up to Windy Ridge. Think about the fact that you are looking at 36 years of recovery from the big one.

One of my favorite places. I'm sure the locals can offer you more suggestions.

[BeauV]

Ferry (or Kim's yacht) over to some of the San Juans. There are some great islands out there.

Lots going on around Pioneer Square.

Go to Lake Union and have a look at the park, Derek's house, sea planes, old boats/ships...

I like being out in the middle of no-where, but Seattle is a fun town/area.

[kimbottles]

Hey Tim!!
We are doing a race on June 18th!!
Seth and Michelle will be here.
Can you join us? (With or without your SU.)
Kim

[Tim Ford]

Hey Tim!!
We are doing a race on June 18th!!
Seth and Michelle will be here.
Can you join us? (With or without your SU.)
Kim

Thanks Kim, but we fly out on the 14th! Is there any place to rent a daysailer, either on the Lake or the Sound?

Also, I consider myself VERY good with geography, but am sometimes befuddled and mistaken when it comes to the American West. How long a drive is it to the trail area around Rainier? Even the wife wants to go there! Couple hours maybe?

Also, THANKS Beau, I'm getting super-excited about the trip!

[Tigger]

If you have wheels ... +1 on the trip to Mt. St. Helens. The scale of devastation is staggering. Wait until you read about the 'Stone Wind' ...

A tour of the Boeing factory in Everett is fascinating.

If you don't have wheels ... there's a vibrant craft beer scene in Seattle!

[BeauV]

Hey Tim!!
We are doing a race on June 18th!!
Seth and Michelle will be here.
Can you join us? (With or without your SU.)
Kim

Thanks Kim, but we fly out on the 14th! Is there any place to rent a daysailer, either on the Lake or the Sound?

Also, I consider myself VERY good with geography, but am sometimes befuddled and mistaken when it comes to the American West. How long a drive is it to the trail area around Rainier? Even the wife wants to go there! Couple hours maybe?

Also, THANKS Beau, I'm getting super-excited about the trip!

Tim, I just did the Google Map and from Seattle to Mt. Rainier is about 2.5 hours without traffic each way. BV

[kimbottles]

Hey Tim!!
We are doing a race on June 18th!!
Seth and Michelle will be here.
Can you join us? (With or without your SU.)
Kim

Thanks Kim, but we fly out on the 14th! Is there any place to rent a daysailer, either on the Lake or the Sound?

Also, I consider myself VERY good with geography, but am sometimes befuddled and mistaken when it comes to the American West. How long a drive is it to the trail area around Rainier? Even the wife wants to go there! Couple hours maybe?

Also, THANKS Beau, I'm getting super-excited about the trip!

RATS! We get back home on the 13th.

[Rob McAlpine]

You've got a busy June! For those who don't know, Tim is meeting me in Bermuda in late June to bring a Hinckley SW51 back to Maine.

[Panope]

Tim, on Saturday June 4th I drop off my wife and daughter at Seatac at 6:00 am. I then fly myself back to Port Townsend (nice 18 minute hop over Puget Sound). Next, I will begin my week long cruise aboard Panope to the B.C. gulf islands. Might make it to Sidney (Victoria) that first day (sailing on a schedule at its finest )

It is conceivable that you (and your bride) could ride along (meet me at Boeing Field in Seattle on the 4th) and be in Sidney in time to catch a flight back to Seattle all in one day.. You might even get Ish to give you a lift from the Sidney marina to the airport unless they botch his knee surgery make a cripple of him.

Alternately, a sure thing would be to drop you off at Friday Harbor (about a 5 hour boat passage). Then catch a seaplane flight back to downtown Seattle (Lake Union, Kenmore air). Might even see Paul (valis) slumming around the docks.

The passage across the Strait of Juan de Fuca in the mornings is often a glassy motorboat ride but with a little luck, a westerly will blow and make for some excitement (especially where the BIG outgoing tide will be running. Woohoo).

Anyway, the above is a totally crazy idea but I haven't met a Scantlinger yet that I didn't like. Could be a fun wirlwind day (or two).

Steve

[Ish]

I would be delighted to drive, if I could. The doctors tell me it's going to be at least 6 weeks after the surgery...right knee replaced, standard transmission=no fun.
I expect to be independently mobile somewhere around July 1. I'm gonna hate this part.

[JoeP]

Tim,

You can rent some pretty cool wooden boats from the Center for Wooden Boats on the south shore of Lake Union which is just down the hill from the Capital Hill neighborhood.
http://cwb.org/rent/seattle-livery/

The ferry ride from downtown to Bainbridge or Bremerton is a nice ride with great views of Seattle. Bremerton is a Navy town so a bit gritty but improving. Winslow on Bainbridge is much more picturesque.

A good day trip would be to take the Fauntleroy ferry from Seattle over to Vashon Island, drive south down the island and take the Tahlequah Ferry to Point Defiance, drive through Pt. Defiance Park, take highway 16 across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge to Gig Harbor, eat lunch there, continue on 16 to Bremerton or further north and then over to Bainbridge Island and take the ferry from either of those places back to Seattle.

Mount Rainier is beautiful, especially if it is clear out. Mt St. Helens is awe inspiring. As you drive up to the visitor center you see the valley below the mountain filled with large hill size mounds. Those mounds are chunks of the mountain which slid down. The drive to St. Helens is longer than the drive to Rainier by maybe an hour.

Edit: Anacortes or Port Townsend make nice day trips too.

Taking a seaplane to Victoria B.C. from south Lake Union (right by the Center for Wooden Boats) would be a great day trip.

If you like glass art the Museum of Glass in Tacoma (Where I live, 35 miles south) is well worth the trip. The Washington State History Museum and The Lemay, America's Car Museum are all within walking distance.

[BeauV]

Tim - I'd take Steve up on his offer. Flying low and slow over the Puget Sound is amazing. Also if you take the Kenmore Air flight back from Friday Harbor take the sea-plane, it's a hoot to land on Lake Union while everyone is daysailing right in front of you. Also, who knows how much longer Beavers will be flying. Everyone should ride in a Beaver at least once.

[Tucky]

Only been to the area once, and that was 20 years ago, but I'll add my voice to the Mt. St. Helens idea. I'd love to see it again, when I was there it was pretty fresh and I wasn't allowed too close.

And no one has mentioned Jimi Hendrix's grave. Right near Sea Tac, just follow the trail of beer cans and roaches- maybe it is cleaned up a bit now, what with Paul Allen and such. On my list to go back, now that I know so many people there:-)

[Ish]

There is an amazing display of Chihuly glass in Seattle; my wife still raves about our visit there. Well worth the effort; if you get there an hour or so before sunset you can see the garden display at night. http://www.chihulygardenandglass.com/

[SloopJonB]

Tim - I'd take Steve up on his offer. Flying low and slow over the Puget Sound is amazing. Also if you take the Kenmore Air flight back from Friday Harbor take the sea-plane, it's a hoot to land on Lake Union while everyone is daysailing right in front of you. Also, who knows how much longer Beavers will be flying. Everyone should ride in a Beaver at least once.

Beavers will be flying forever. There's an outfit at Victoria airport that builds every part for them but the main bulkhead which is a huge casting. They will probably start doing that too eventually.

Those things are 60 years old and no-one has ever managed to come up with anything better at what they do.

[JoeP]

Love the Beavers and the rarest of them all the twin Beaver:

TwinBeaver48.jpg

http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/351/Double-Double--The-Story-of-the-Zwillingsbiber-Beaver.aspx

[BeauV]

Love the Beavers and the rarest of them all the twin Beaver:

TwinBeaver48.jpg

http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/351/Double-Double--The-Story-of-the-Zwillingsbiber-Beaver.aspx

Great April 1st joke!!

[JoeP]

Love the Beavers and the rarest of them all the twin Beaver:

TwinBeaver48.jpg

http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/351/Double-Double--The-Story-of-the-Zwillingsbiber-Beaver.aspx

Great April 1st joke!!

Someone spent a huge amount of time photo-shopping all those images and writing the text.

[Tim Ford]

Thanks for all the suggestions, fellow Scantlingers.

Unfortunately, we don't get into WA until Tuesday the 7th, but thanks so much for the offer, Steve.

Ish, I hope all goes well with the knee!

Joe, I will definitely look into the Center for Woodies!!! wow that is exactly what I had in mind, as our friends who are not sailers (though one's sister did a year in a Tartan 37 getting the husband and kids all the way to NZ...husband single-handed the boat back to Puget Sound) they will want to go sailing, I'm sure.

And yes, Mt St Helens in on the list! Rent-a-car place is 3 blocks away from out apt. (I hear parking is a bear in Capitol Hill though)

I'd love to make it all the out to Cape Flattery, but that's gotta be, what, six hours?

Hendrix grave is a must

Glass museé too!

Thanks again for all your suggestions! The one thing about visiting the West...everytime I do I get home and think...why in HELL do I live on the east coast?

[Tim Ford]

You've got a busy June! For those who don't know, Tim is meeting me in Bermuda in late June to bring a Hinckley SW51 back to Maine.

Lookin' forward to it, Rob! Although, it won't be the same w/o Larry, MoAlf and most of all.....bob.

[Tim Ford]

Great. The 10-Day forecast is highs in the mid-upper 60's and lows in the low 50s. This is what Baltimore has been like for the last 2 and half months.

Come on Seattlites....you can do better than this. Is this "normal" or is it just one more example of Persistent Global Cooling??? I know I know, "the
coldest winter I ever spent was August in San Francisco"...but this ain't SF Bay!

[LarryHoward]

Great. The 10-Day forecast is highs in the mid-upper 60's and lows in the low 50s. This is what Baltimore has been like for the last 2 and half months.

Come on Seattlites....you can do better than this. Is this "normal" or is it just one more example of Persistent Global Cooling??? I know I know, "the
coldest winter I ever spent was August in San Francisco"...but this ain't SF Bay!

You didn't get the memo? You are in June Gloom. Summer in Seattle this year is scheduled for July 30-August 2. The tourist board doesn't take those pictures.....

[Tim Ford]

OK. let's move away from weather.

There is a "specialty beer" store within blocks of our pad in Capital Hill.

What's a good local craft brew? Come on Sea Attlers, step up!

[Olaf Hart]

Packing for a trip to the PNW at the moment, but we are going via Denver so don't get in till 21 June.

Interesting, baggage restrictions and spending a few months on a boat.

Especially as I also want to bring an assy and sock, tillerpilot, safety lines, wet weather gear and assorted boat stuff.

Looks like we will make it though, the Oz connection baggage restrictions are a bigger problem than on United.

[Olaf Hart]

image.jpeg

Max size and weight for checked luggage, had to pick up a couple of cheap bags to make the limits....

Back to Tims trip.

[JoeP]

OK. let's move away from weather.

There is a "specialty beer" store within blocks of our pad in Capital Hill.

What's a good local craft brew? Come on Sea Attlers, step up!

I'm not a huge beer aficianado but my son is and his go to brew is Quilters Irish Death a "dark, smooth ale".

Irish Death.jpg

[Tim Ford]

Excellent! Thanks Joe...on my way to the store next! Plus: it stopped raining!

This town is pretty amazing....do they dispense "friendly and polite pills" to the entire community? Waiters, store clerks, even the panhandlers.

I could get used to this, as alien as it is to my east-coast vibe....

[Anomaly]

OK. let's move away from weather.

There is a "specialty beer" store within blocks of our pad in Capital Hill.

What's a good local craft brew? Come on Sea Attlers, step up!

I'm not a huge beer aficianado but my son is and his go to brew is Quilters Irish Death a "dark, smooth ale".

Irish Death.jpg

'

Uh, Joe, that's not a Seattle beer..... Its an Ellensburg beer! And, yes, its very good.

[JoeP]

OK. let's move away from weather.

There is a "specialty beer" store within blocks of our pad in Capital Hill.

What's a good local craft brew? Come on Sea Attlers, step up!

I'm not a huge beer aficianado but my son is and his go to brew is Quilters Irish Death a "dark, smooth ale".

Irish Death.jpg

'

Uh, Joe, that's not a Seattle beer..... Its an Ellensburg beer! And, yes, its very good.

Well I figured E'burg was close enough ☺