Food & Drink
The Twisted Tales of Seattle
New ‘tourism’ book highlights bizarre, infamous, and obscure historical sites
By Rob Smith September 19, 2023
This article originally appeared in the November/December 2023 issue of Seattle magazine.
You’ll never hear Seattle tourism officials bring this up, but, like it or not, Ted Bundy is part of the fabric of this region. So is the Green River Killer, the suicides of musicians Kurt Cobain and Layne Staley, the murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata, and the ship pilot who crashed into a West Seattle drawbridge back in 1978.
All these and more can be found in an updated edition of the Twisted Tour Guide to Seattle and Puget Sound. The book identifies bizarre narratives rarely profiled in tourism industry directives. As author Marques Vickers says, “Many of the narratives defy believability, yet they are true.”
Also included are gambling haunts, historic scandals, catastrophic disasters, and other local legacies and hidden discoveries. Readers can visit sites and learn about the distinctive stories behind many of these macabre events.
Vickers has published 11 Twisted Tours Guides profiling international urban cities. If you’ve got the stomach for it, paperback editions are available through Amazon, and electronic editions through numerous e-book online sales outlets.
Follow Us
A Big Win for Pioneer Square’s Small Businesses
New grants fuel neighborhood establishments as downtown changes and pressures mount
The federal government is pulling funding from important community services, research and nonprofits. Across the region, organizations are scrambling to stay open — or closing for good. Small businesses are getting hammered by tariffs and recession fears. But in Seattle’s oldest neighborhood, there’s a different story unfolding. The Alliance for Pioneer Square, a nonprofit focused…
The Pulse: Smells Like Spring
Surveillance debates and a Jurassic-sized surprise
It’s been warm enough to eat outside, so we did: enchiladas and cucumber salad on the deck last night, with a light chicken manure breeze for ambiance. No shade to the neighbors — it’s garden season, and I support it 100%. Here’s what’s going on around town… Spice Waala’s soft serve flavor this week? Turmeric…
Spot. Snap. Identify.
Help Seattle win a worldwide wildlife challenge just by taking pictures
Grab your phone, open your camera, and start looking for bugs. Or birds. Or that weird plant you always see but have no idea what it is. Seattle-Tacoma is back in for the world’s largest bioblitz, kicking off April 25. Around here, spotting an eagle during the afternoon commute or a strange mushroom on the…
The Pulse: Too Nice to Work
An elk who knows he's hot and a vending machine that understands us
It’s been offensively nice outside this week. We’re all acting like the past six months of rain never happened and won’t happen again. I love it. I had a colleague once tell me, “No one works past 3 p.m. on Fridays in the Northwest when the weather’s nice.” I’ll be observing that sacred tradition today….