What a beautiful site. My group of reenactors used this sight for a day event at the end of May…read more The park and the sight are beautiful with plenty of parking and easy access to the barn and surrounding fields. The Barn provides a nice shelter with some character and had plenty of space for all our activities and food. I truly hope we keep returning to this site.

It's a famous line from a mediocre movie: "That's not a knife, THAT'S a knife!"…read more The movie of course is Crocodile Dundee staring Paul Hogan. It is utterly forgettable and in fact, I have forgotten everything about it, except when I visit my neighborhood's biggest tourist draw, the Wedgwood Rock. "That's not a rock, THAT'S a rock!" Standing 19 feet tall and deposited by glacial ice sheets tens of thousands of years ago, the Wedgwood Rock is a humbling reminder of just how little control we humans have over our grand Mother Earth. According to Dr. Terry W. Swanson, of the UW Department of Geological Sciences, the Wedgwood Rock has its origins on Fidalgo Island, near Anacortes, about 75 miles north of Seattle. It was carried 75 miles and by ice sheets and then deposited in little old Wedgwood as the most recent ice age ended (source: http://bit.ly/WcjCNQ). Admittedly, the Wedgwood Rock doesn't quite rank up there with Seattle's top tourist draws, but it's always a lot of fun to take visitors on a drive by and watch their eyes bulge as we round the corner to 28th Ave NE and the rock comes into view. Kudos to the neighbors of the Wedgwood Rock who have assumed the role of caretakers for the iconic boulder, from enforcing the climbing ban, to gardening around it, to making sure graffiti gets cleaned up promptly. It's a bit ironic, of course, that the Wedgwood Rock isn't actually in the Wedgwood neighborhood, which is widely considered to encompass the boundaries of NE 95th St to NE 75th St, between 45th Ave NE on the east to a combination of Lake City Way, Ravenna Ave NE, and 25th Ave NE on the west (Source: http://bit.ly/Wcm6vI). Technically I suppose it would be the Ravenna neighborhood that the rock actually resides in. Still, that bit of trivia doesn't detract from the neighborhood's love for its most famous attraction, nor its appeal to young and old alike. Tip: While the Wedgwood Rock may be the neighborhood's largest and most famous glacial erratic, it is hardly the only one. Check out the Wedgwood Rock's modest sibling located in a tiny park known as Wedgwood Square at the corner of 31st Ave NE and NE 82nd Street.

I used to live several blocks away from the Wedgwood Rock and liked occasionally walking by it…read more I wouldn't drive a significant distance to come see it, but it's still pretty cool to have this this huge rock just sitting there in an urban residential neighborhood. I've read that this rock has a pretty rich history as a landmark for native americans, a picnic spot for families, a place for hippies to hang out and do drugs, etc... right now, however, it's just a big rock on the corner with houses all around... and apparently you get fined $100 if you're caught climbing it.

Where you learn about where your water comes from. Good place to take the kids!…read more There are tours for adults and field trip options for 4th and 5th grade students. Note: This place is currently closed due to the pandemic so check the website when it opens back up.

The Cedar River Watershed Education Center is located just down the road from Rattlesnake Lake. I…read morecame here with a friend on the 25th of August 2018 to do some exploring and learn about the watershed in Western Washington. The presentation of information was well done. Some sections were also very interactive! When we entered one area we picked up a ball. We then proceeded through the area putting our ball in different tubes depending on what water pathway we wanted to learn about and the ball would levitate/flow to the next station corresponding to a next stop on the water cycle or something of the like. That was very neat! I could easily see spending a few hours here. We rushed it a little, but it was still fun. The graphics for understanding the local watershed were very cool. Videos complemented a light up topographic model of the area and we got to see where our fresh water supply comes from. There was also information available about individual water towers in the Puget Sound area and we found one of the ones we had both driven past growing up. Informational brochures and handouts were available with water quality reports and tips for different water related issues such managing storm water. A very enjoyable and informative place to visit.

This is a fantastic structure that brings so many questions to mind. If you get the chance, take a…read morewalk over it as its is the easiest way to get from the Arboretum to Montlake. You can get onto this structure by walking East from the Montlake Freeway Bus Station (West SR 520), or from the other end located close to Lake Washignton Blvd. (47.64199,-122.297346).

The Globe Building also known as the Bee-be Building was constructed in 1901 by James Clise for two…read moreSyracuse New York investors (Clifford Bee-be and William Nottingham). The buildings architectual style was Italian Renaissance, designed by architect Max Umbrecht. The building was the center of James Clise business empire. The Globe Navigation Companys ( ship building operation offices) were located on the upper floors as well as offices for "Clise Investment Co./ Washington Trust Co/ New York Commercial Co./ & the architectual offices of Max Umbrecht. In 1917 James Clise moved his operation into the the new Securities Building Downtown. This gave small local businesses an opportunity to secure retail space on the lower level. The upper offices became hotel rooms of the Windsor Hotel which soon became the Globe Hotel . The Globe Building was one of the first structures to be restored during the Pioneer Square Revival which began in the 1960's. After many years of neglect, the Globe Building was finally registered in the National Registry of Historic Places in 1982 and then fully restore in 1996. Today the lower level retail space is home to many local businesses "Storyville Coffee, Art Gallery & Hotel Bar & Cafe . The upper floors remain rooms of the now "Alexis Hotel." Thanks for reading ! Live/Love/Travel !

The collection here is huge and varied. It's really all about life in Black Diamon and is staffed…read moreby local volunteers with lots of stories to share. You can take a quick stroll through or spend a couple of hoirs here. Black Diamond was a company owned town. Coal mining company that is. They owned everything. Miners came from all across Europe to mine coal here. Welsh, Croation, Italian and many more. The company eventually closed and sold the property. Many of the shops in business during the company days are still here and many decendants of those miners live here still. Exhibits include local history, mining history, day to day items. Just so much information. We spend a fair amount of time looking through the several rooms and speaking with the volunteers. They have so much information to impart and were all lovely. Parking is street side, just past the museum. Be sure to check out the out building and the memorial garden as well. If you are really keen, drive down the hill and check out the Union Stump memorial. Definitely worth a stop to learn the local history. Open Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

Located near the Black River Riparian Forest and the South Treatment Plant, the Waterworks Gardens…read moreare a fun show of form and function. It's a great place for a walk, not only though the official garden itself, but the Springbrook Trail. As you most likely guessed by the name: this place is way cooler when it's wet out/they have the system turned on! Lots of various ponds fill up, might see some frogs (probably most definitely some mosquitoes :-P) and there are a series of places where the water can flow throughout the main installation. Definitely a nice place to start or end a walk!

Cute little park. Short trails going through​ it, half of which are very flat, the other half has…read morean incline. It connects to a longer trail system though. Doggie bags are provided, so please clean up after your pet. Interpretive signs provide information about the water reclamation system.

If you ever been to Pikes Public Market in Seattle Washington, you surely walked pass the "Silver…read moreOkum Building ". The three story brick building was built by "Ben Silver" in 1910. Ben Silver manufactured and sold okum on the first floor. The upper floors were apartments and a hotel. Okum is a type of fiber. When mixed with tar, it is used as caulking in shipbuilding. Unlike naming the building after himself, Mr. Silver encorporated his product "Okum" in the building's name. Silver Okum Building is also registered in the National Registry of Historic Places. Thanks for reading! Live/Love/Travel !