You can reach the San Juan Islands by driving 100 miles north of Seattle on Interstate 5, then going west another 20 miles on route 20 to the village of Anacortes. From there, the Washington State Ferries take you to any of the major islands. A favorite destination with visitors is Friday Harbor, a quaint fishing village on San Juan Island. The voyage takes 60 to 90 minutes and passes some breathtaking scenery as it wends its way through the narrow straits between islands. A roundtrip fare costs $35 for an auto with driver. Passengers and pedestrians pay $10 for a roundtrip ticket.

The best place to view the whales from land is at the Whale Watch Park on the western side of San Juan Island. There is no entry fee. The rocky promontory surrounding the little lighthouse provides an unobstructed view of the Orca’s favorite fishing grounds, and the whales can easily be seen on most days. Some people prefer to rent a kayak from one of the suppliers so they can paddle along the shoreline in search of the pods. A four-hour guided expedition costs about $75 per person. If you are lucky, you can glide right through the midst of a pod and watch the massive black and white hulks rise huffing and blowing spray right beside your little boat.

Some people go to these islands just to relax and appreciate the scenery. You can hike, rent a bike or just drive around the islands visiting the dense redwood forest, the rocky promontories and the tiny fishing villages nestled in the sheltered inlets. Many people go to fish in the adjacent waters with their bountiful schools of Salmon and Lingcod. Some rent kayaks in order to explore the coastal cliffs with their rookeries of wildfowl, to glide through the midst of the mighty killer whales as they cavort in the straits, and to spy the majestic eagles soaring above.

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You can drive from Seattle to Mount Rainier in three hours or less. The shortest route is via route 169 from Renton to Enumclaw. From there, it is a 40-mile drive through beautiful mountain scenery to the Sunrise Visitor Center high on the eastern slopes of the mountain. As an alternative, you can follow route 7 south from Tacoma then head east on route 706 to the village of Ashford which is 6 miles from the Nisqually entrance to the park, about 8 miles from the Longmire Visitor Center and approximately 25 miles from Paradise and the Jackson Visitor Center high on the southern slopes of the mountain. You can also continue further south on route 7 and turn east on route 131 to the village of Packwood, which is 15 miles from the Stevens Canyon entrance to the park and 35 miles from the Paradise Visitor Center.

Mount Rainier National Park encompasses 235,625 acres (95,354 hectares) of forests, meadows and mountains. 97% of the park is designated as wilderness. All of Mount Rainier and many of the neighboring peaks and foothills are included within the park
Mount Rainier

The three main Visitor Centers are Longmire near the Nisqually Entrance at the southwestern foot of the mountain, the Jackson Visitor Center at Paradise, 5,400 feet up the southern slope, and Sunrise, at the 6,000-foot level on the eastern slope. All three facilities offer parking, information, restrooms, restaurants, picnic areas and walking trails. Only the Jackson Visitor Center and Longmire have lodging. Only Longmire has a convenience store. There are hiking trails, walking trails and scenic viewpoints at numerous locations along the mountain roads. Paradise and Sunrise offer the greatest variety of trails and the easiest approaches to the upper slopes of the mountain.

A scenic drive to Mount Rainier National Park is an excellent one-day excursion from Seattle. It is also a great destination for several-days of sightseeing, camping, backpacking, hiking or climbing. The best time to visit is June through October. Many higher elevation roads and trails are closed during the winter months due to heavy snow accumulation, but the road from the Nisqually entrance to Longmire and Paradise is normally kept open for activities such as snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and winter camping. These cold-weather sports begin as soon as the snow accumulation is sufficient to protect the environment.

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Olympic National Park covers a 50-mile circular area at the center of the peninsula plus most of the Pacific shoreline. Much of the land surrounding the Park is National Forest.

The Olympic peninsula is located in the state of Washington, west of Seattle, at the northwestern tip of the lower 48 states. It is a square-shaped peninsula, approximately 100 miles on each side, bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the west, Puget Sound on the east and the Straight of Juan de Fuca on the north.

The rain forests along these western slopes of the mountains are fantastic, mysterious places continuously shrouded in mist. Giant primeval fir trees tower as high as 300 feet above a forest floor carpeted with huge ferns and a wide variety of green plant life. The tree trunks and branches are festooned with curtains of green moss. Be sure to visit one of the rain forests!

The Olympic Mountains rise to just under 8000 feet but are heavily snowcapped and glaciated in all seasons. The constant warm, moist breezes from the Pacific Ocean bring astounding amounts of rain to the western slopes of the mountains and huge amounts of snow to the peaks. The western lowlands and valleys receive as much as 150 inches (380 cm) of rain every year, and the peaks can get over 125 feet (38 meters) of snow.

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On clear days the Cascade Mountains are visible on the eastern horizon and the Olympic Mountains loom across the Sound to the west. The snowcapped volcanic peak of Mount Rainier dominates the southern view. This city is set in the midst of some of the most beautiful natural scenery in the USA.
Lake Union

Seattle Center, dominated by the 605-feet high Space Needle, is located 1 mile north of downtown and is easily accessible via a short Monorail ride. For nine dollars, you can take an elevator to the top and appreciate a spectacular view of the city with its surrounding lakes and mountains. Seattle Center is also the location of the Pacific Science Center, the Children’s Museum, the Children’s Theater, the Opera House, the Bagley Wright Theatre, the Seattle Center Playhouse, the Key Arena and the new Experience Music Project. It also contains an amusement park, a video arcade, a fast food gallery and an assortment of shops.

The climate is surprisingly mild this far north. Warm currents off the Pacific Coast tend to moderate the local weather. Summers are never very hot and winters are not very cold. Little snow falls in the city. Seattle is often called the rainy city, but that is not accurate. The city does not receive a lot of rain, but it does get about 220 days of cloud cover every year, and most of the rain occurs during the winter months. Sunshine and blue skies can be rare from October through March.

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