A modest little group of buildings at the south end of Greenlake houses some real talent: A…read moreperennial powerhouse of rowing, with the oldest youth rowing program in the state, national-caliber masters teams in sweeping and sculling, olympic-level kayaking, and funly program of youth and adult dinghy sailing. A great place to learn all of the above, and spend years honing your skills to the highest levels. All at pretty reasonable prices.... god knows they are saving money on their atrociously unusable webpage--skip the frustration and just call the office.

I recently returned from a beautiful 3 week trek in Nepal with Lakpa Rita Sherpa as our team's…read moreguide. It was magical to see Nepal through his eyes, his hometown of Thames, tea at his parent's house, and his incredible knowledge of the area where he was born and grew up. Our 4 guides on this trip were safe and knowledgeable about the geography as well as climbing/trekking. This was my 4th International expedition with Alpine Ascents and I have climbed many Washington state peaks as well. I've been guided by Lakpa, Pete, Devin, Vern, Ben, Jangbu, Pasang, and many more. They have been fantastic teachers. The Nepal trek has a first class itinerary, the nicer tea houses, and a pace designed for slow travel. The gear list includes everything I needed and more. My guide went out of his way to take us to places we asked about, outside of the itinerary. Highly recommend.

First time with this guide company was on a 3 Day trip up the Muir route of Rainier and for sure…read morethis company knows what they're doing and how to keep everybody safe. We were led by a stellar team with Craig, David, Peter and Matt at the helm. Already signed up for a 6 Day on Mt Baker to get more skills in the mountains, looking forward to going on another trip with this guide company! One of the top outfitters for mountaineering in the Cascades with several international trips available as well!

Powerful vibe. Serene view with memorial benches for Lane Staley and Kurt Cobain. Makes it easy to…read moresee why Kurt Cobain chose that house as it stands peeking through in the background. Parking a couple houses down and around the corner at the park.

This one of those pocket parks in seattle. It's actually two levels with a nice stairway. There are…read morenice trees but the real reason to be c there is no course Kurt Cobain. There's a nice shrine at the picnic bench and you can b nearly see where the now demolished garage was. A piece of history!

I just attended the Live Your Bliss retreat at Haramara Retreat Center in Sayulita, Mexico. I've…read morebeen a lot of places and participated in many different trip styles, and this has been one of my favorites by far. The location was serene, magical, and beautiful. The food that was included in the trip price (!) was delicious, healthful, and satisfying. Every activity during the week was carefully planned and extremely purposeful, however, there was no feeling of pressure to do things that were not of interest to you. The yoga was great. As beginner yogi I felt welcomed and confident even though advanced yogis seemed to be enjoying the classes and flows as much as I did. The yoga also varied daily. It was always interesting and I was consistently benefiting in various ways from the classes. Best of all, Silvia and Malia assisted in so much besides just yoga. There were chakra talks, happiness coachings, astrology readings, dancing, meditating, photo shoots, game playing and scavenger hunts. The days I spent in Mexico flew by faster and more enjoyably than I could have ever anticipated. Whether you are a hard-core yogi and spiritualist, or someone just looking to get away from the stresses of life I would recommend you to Alchemy Tours. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I will definitely be booking with them again!!

Last month I attended Alchemy Tours' yoga retreat in Bali, and I can honestly say it was the most…read morefulfilling travel experience I've ever had. It was hard to come back to reality, and not just in the typical "I've taken much needed time off to relax and it's hard to get back in my routine" sort of way... But more, going on this trip made me understand that there was a much greater disparity between the potential for happiness in my life and what I considered to be my "normal" state than I had realized - and that they were further apart than they ever should be. To me, the experience with Alchemy Tours can be divided into two categories: vacation and personal reflection. As a vacation, it was amazing. White water rafting through a jungle ravine, a relaxing bike tour through Balinese rice patties, beaches, exposure to local culture, great restaurants and a gorgeous place to stay that our group had all to ourselves. It was just organized enough to feel active without feeling too busy. Previously, I wouldn't have asked for more than that in a trip, and it was awesome in that way. But the part that really surprised me was the way Silvia's constant positivity, enthusiasm and no-pressure encouragement would really make me reflect on the person I am, and I began to conceptualize the things I could change to improve my life as a whole. To put this in perspective, I should say that prior to this trip I had not only never participated in a yoga class, but also had absolutely no idea what to expect in terms of the ideologies involved, and may even have dismissed any discussion centering around the word "energy." It's been over a month since the trip, and a day has yet to go by in which I haven't thought about my personal learnings from this experience, and I can't say enough to recommend a trip with Jake and Sylvia of Alchemy Tours.

This is a delightful little neighborhood park upon the Queen Anne hilltop…read more Situated in a corner partially on a hillside supported by a retaining wall and tree border, the center clearing sort of acts like a neat centerpiece. Along the perimeter are some exposed picnic tables, some tree shade, some kids play areas and walking path loop (which connects the upper street with the street down some steep stairs). Peaceful, pleasant and tranquil. I came here to enjoy some food from Koku Cafe + Market and Bounty Kitchen. Nice spot! Will look nicer when the season changes and the grass is green. Plenty of parking on the west side of park along the east side of the tree-lined street hill.

This park is teeny tiny and you probably have to know it's there to be able to go there. Lucky for…read moreme it's right across the street from my house. This is a GREAT park to take your little kids. There is a small jungle gym with some fun looking slides. There are lots of trees around that muffle noise and keep it from getting too hot. The lawn is always nicely manicured and really the whole place seems ridiculously well maintained. There is a steep wooden stairway that leads from the park down to where I live, and it was all overgrown with tree branches, but the city peeps came down and hacked them all away, thus preventing me from whacking my head on a branch. I recommend this place for people who want a small park to take kids, teenagers who need a good make out spot, and people who just want a really pretty place to sit and read a book or chill.

Beth and her program helped me get over my running dry spell these past four years. I've been…read moretrying to restart running again and just could not keep it going, until the Couch to 5k. Her humor, podcasts and encouragement kept me going to to get to the 5k (and this was even after I sprained my ankle a couple weeks into it). Even though I had run before, I was starting from scratch, and this program is great for any level. I would recommend this to anyone wanting to start running.

I just finished 6 weeks of Beth's Bootcamp, and I'm truly sad it's over. All of us can't wait for…read moreit to start up again, and that's saying a LOT! At the beginning, I was dismayed that the classes required so much running, but by the end I could do the loops without stopping - and I'm totally a non-runner. Scratch that - I WAS a non-runner, but now I might almost sorta kinda becoming a runner. :) Beth is clear, understanding, and 100% positively motivating. She makes exercise fun yet challenging for major results. By the end of 6 weeks, I couldn't believe that I was doing moves that I could barely pull off the first week. Totally worth it, a game-changer.

This place is a nice neighborhood gem to zone out. There are more locals spending time here to eat…read moretheir lunch at the picnic tables or benches, people lounging on the grass, neighbors letting their pups stretch their feet. You wouldn't know that it is right off of 15th. In the spring, the cherry blossom trees are gorgeous. I think the only thing that can be discouraging about this park is sometimes you run into folks that stay by the behavioral homes and shelters. They're harmless, but from time to time they we've had a few encounters of them on drugs or yelling at other folks enjoying the park. Other than that, sunny days and an open area in Capitol Hill.

This is a small park, but it does the job for a park when you happen to live right nearby without a…read moreyard and with two dogs! Also it has 3 grills to use that are kept in good condition and benches to eat your grillings at! Depending on the time of day and weather conditions, there are also often many people around with dogs playing off leash! I've been there several times a week for over a year and was never fussed at by any leash troopers!

The difference between a 4-star and a 5-star comes down to convenience!…read more Chief Sealth Trail is a foot and bike path that runs from Beacon Hill to the Rainier Valley. Many of us in the neighborhood have seen the signs identifying Sealth, but surprisingly, few of my neighbors use it--such a shame. It's 3.6 miles long, which means if you live toward the beginning of it like I do; you can get a healthy 7+mile round-trip run/walk/unicycling session in: easy-peasy. Unlikely but true, I do own a unicycle - and the recycled-material paths are perfect to ride on. With that said, Sealth is not for the faint of heart. It's hilly with flat areas that are more or less a tease. You can choose to be hard-core and run up and down the grassy hills and dales instead of the path (excellent for endurance training!) Also, a small part of the Trail is ONLY grass/mud and is at a 35% grade. And...there's a vertical incline at the south-end that is so steep, you can almost walk it faster than run it. The path follows the power lines, which some may find distracting, but I find the views of the horizon, neighborhood and lake (if you're on the dales) so serene, that I don't even see them anymore. You'll pass a few pea patches along the way too! If you should take the path from beginning to end, you should know that it crosses Beacon Ave S as well as MLK too--a true interurban trail. I love running here with my dog, and meeting other people on the path as we go (just make sure to clean up after your pet as you go!) See you there. http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/chiefsealthtrail.htm

Always a fun trail to walk my dogs on. Sometimes there was glass so I would be careful. Going in…read moredaylight is recommended. You can get a great view of the water from certain points!