Sasquatch Bound

We were lucky enough to see Phish on a gorgeous August day at the Gorge Amphitheatre, which overlooks the Columbia River in central Washington. The Gorge is one of the most stunning places in the U.S. to see a show, and as the sun sets over the...

Taking just the 'right' wrong turn on a visit to Pike Place Market can land you in Post Alley, where spearmint, wild cherry, and tropical punch bubble gum drizzles down the window panes and grape, peppermint, and lemon ice gum-cicles form from...

Have a fresh crumpet on a brisk morning—you'll learn that their reputation as 'dainty' fare is completely unjustified. In Seattle, "The Crumpet Shop" has been a family-run institution in Pike Place Market for more than three decades. Get some tea...

Seattle's largest public park sits on a sea bluff that's high enough to pierce the city's infamous fog, revealing gorgeous views of the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges. Wander its 11 miles (18 km) of paths through forest groves, meadows...

In Seattle, coffeeshops are for both ritual and rendezvous, a refuge from the dripping grey: caffeination, conversation, insulation, motivation, introspection, observation...

Seattle has become a cupcake town; you can (and I have) had entire conversations debating the merits of various cupcake shops. Cupcake Royale is one of the best, and definitely worth a visit. They have rotating monthly flavors (pictured is the...

Locals may get a twinge of nostalgia remembering Lunchbox Laboratory's original, tiny shack in Ballard, where vintage lunchboxes covered the walls, and they closed when they ran out of meat. Fortunately, their new South Lake Union location is much...

I didn't expect to like the Chihuly Garden and Glass exhibit, because it seemed like yet another overpriced Seattle attraction. But I was pleasantly surprised by this colorful, photography-friendly collection of the one-eyed glass artist's work....

It's an uphill walk to get to Glo's, and, once you get there, you'll have to wait because it's pocket sized. But let's say you sit on the benches outside, watching the busy intersection under grey stormy skies (the only kind you get in Seattle)...

Unicorn is one of my favorite places to take visitors because there's just so much to look at: the lurid circus-painted walls, the costumed and accessorized taxidermy, the lavishly painted bar that seems to have been pulled off a carousel. During...

This "U.F.O. saucer on a stick" is an atomic age baby, dating back to the 1962 World's Fair. If you're lucky enough to catch the city's iconic symbol on a sunny day, take the 41-second elevator ride to the observation deck and behold the sweeping...

The Hotel 1000 is a comfortably modern hotel in downtown Seattle within easy walking distance to the Seattle Museum of Art and Pike Place Market. I'm a sucker for a great bathroom and this is among my favorites. First, there is the great view of...

Cal Anderson Park (named after Washington's first openly gay legislator) is located at the Pike/Pine nexus of gay-friendly, hipster-filled Capitol Hill. With plenty of grassy lawns for picnics, reading, or playing bocce ball, it's no surprise that...

If you say "Ma'ono" to a Seattle local, you might get a blank look — but try "the fried chicken place that used to be Spring Hill," and you'll get a nod of recognition. Back when it was Spring Hill, their weekly fried-chicken nights were so...

When I was a child, the stories of Jonah and Pinocchio occasionally got blended together in my mind--the part about being swallowed by a whale. The wooden boy and Geppetto? The fleeing prophet? I would wonder what I would have done, floating...

Just 25 miles east of Seattle, in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains, is Snoqualmie Falls. Winter and spring are the best times to see the thundering 268-ft waterfall; summer brings sun (believe it or not), but less rain and snowmelt. Although...

Neckties as a way to dress up a cabin window--a bit of much-needed color on a grey day in the Pacific Northwest. Vashon Island is untethered to the mainland. Seattle and Tacoma are near, as the raven flies--but the lack of bridges keeps this...

About 45 minutes east of Seattle is the town of North Bend. Looming behind is the forested and craggy Mt. Si (4167 ft/1270 m); generations of hikers in the Puget Sound area have broken in their boots on this mountain. It's steep (an elevation gain...

Chamber Music in a barn--no, really, it's not a joke! Classical musicians really do perform in this barn on the Olympic Peninsula, For almost thirty years now, summers in the countryside across Puget Sound from Seattle have been synonymous with...

If you have some extra time while in Seattle – and you’ve already enjoyed the must-do Pike Place Market -- I recommend heading a bit east to the suburbs for a different taste of the Emerald City. One great suburb in particular is quiet,...

Summer arrives somewhat late in the Pacific NW--but when sun finally parts the clouds in July, it's glorious. The "Mountain Loop Highway" running east from the town of Granite Falls into the central Cascades is the gateway to numerous hikers' and...

Grits, po-boys, gumbo and pulled pork sandwiches. Stop by this place if you're in need of some delicious soul food.

Seattle's waterfront on a clear summer day is a paradise for bicyclists -- and walkers -- but also for anyone sitting at a sidewalk cafe watching the people strolling and biking on the bay. You're never too far from a shop, a restaurant, a coffee...

On Lummi Island, about three hours from Seattle, you can bike miles of farm roads, search for an ancient Native American petroglyph on Sunset Beach, and take a “wild foraging-and-feasting” sea kayaking trip with Elakah Expeditions to prowl the...

The Elliott Bay Book Company is THE Seattle bookstore and, thankfully, survived its move from Pioneer Square to Capitol Hill five years ago with soul and towering cedar bookcases intact. Elliott Bay lost a significant chunk of square footage...

From the skyscrapers of downtown Seattle, you look out over Puget Sound. Beyond this arm of the sea, the snowcapped Olympic Mountains beckon. Few cities are as easy to escape from as Seattle. Get to the downtown ferry terminal, and you'll be on...

Both residents and visitors to the Pacific Northwest bemoan the region's seemingly eternal grey skies...But summer turns things around. By July, sun is (almost) reliable and the outdoors pulls you away from the indoor pursuits of bookstores and...