The Best 3 Day Olympic National Park Itinerary
This Olympic National Park Itinerary for a three day road trip gives you a taste of the many unique and diverse ecosystems of this special place. In just three days take in sweeping mountain vistas, cascading waterfalls, hot springs, towering ancient old growth forests, and wild coastal beaches overflowing with...
4 Places to Avoid Crowds in Mt Rainier National Park
Mt Rainier National Park is a wildly popular national park with locals and visitors alike. The opportunity to get up close and personal with an active volcano is a unique opportunity not to be missed. In addition to the mountain itself, Mt Rainier has fairy tale wildflower meadows, dazzling...
Summer Day Trip to Olympic National Park Beaches and Forest
Olympic National Park is a wonderful road trip getaway from Seattle, but if you only have one day to see the park or just want to get out of town for a day, it makes a great day trip too! A summer day trip to Olympic National Park means...
Mt Rainier Summer Day Trip with Less Crowds
A Mt Rainier Day Trip from Seattle during the summer is an incredible way to spend the day! Summer in Mt Rainier is mid-July through September. During this time, all the roads are open, most of the easy and moderate hiking trails will be snow free and this is...
How to Avoid Crowds in National Parks
You’ve driven for hours, or days through cities and traffic an beautiful and solitary open roads and arrived at that iconic national park, ready to have your mind blown by the stunning beauty of nature, to breathe and smell fresh air and trees, and liven up your Instagram story....
How to Ride the Trailhead Direct Bus to Issaquah Trails
This post was originally written it May 2018. It was updated in June 2021. You want to go for a hike, but you don’t have a car. Or you drove in Seattle’s epically bad traffic all week and can hardly bear the idea of getting in the car again...
A Seattleite’s Guide to One Day in Seattle
Planning a visit to Seattle? Newcomer looking for a way to spend your first day off? Family visiting soon? As a lifelong Seattleite, this is my born and raised local’s guide to one day in Seattle! If you’re looking for a day trip from Seattle outside the city, look...
Cowiche Canyon winery hike
What’s not to love about a short, sunny hike to a winery? The Cowiche Canyon winery hike is a wonderful year round escape for Seattleites (especially in the spring and fall). This is one of my favorite hikes in Washington. It’s in the town of Yakima, about 3 hours...
Where to Find Old Growth Forest in Seattle
Looking for some giant, ancient trees? You can find old growth forest in Seattle! Before white people came to the Pacific Northwest, old growth forests were everywhere (before extensive logging to power steam ships and for building). Today there are very few old growth trees left in Washington State...
Cross Country Skiing Crystal Springs to Lake Easton on the Iron Horse Trail
I looked all over to try to find information about skiing Crystal Springs to Lake Easton on the Iron Horse trail, but there wasn’t much information to be had! I’ve been wanting to try going through this route for awhile, but have been deterred by a lack of information about...