Local Getaways

The Best Scenic Fall Road Trips in the Northwest

The Best Scenic Fall Road Trips in the Northwest

Autumn colors, mountain vistas, idyllic island treks and the back roads of wine country

The forest and mountains near the brilliant blue waters of the North Cascades’ Diablo Lake come into view along a drive on the Cascade Loop

Seattle Magazine Staff

The Cascade Loop Is One of Washington's Most Iconic Drives

The Cascade Loop Is One of Washington’s Most Iconic Drives

The drive takes you through a stunning and varied landscape of farms, mountains and sagebrush

See craggy Liberty Bell Mountain, near Washington Pass, while driving along SR 20/North Cascade Highway

Niki Stojnic

Seattle's Counterbalance? The Awe-Inspiring, Wide-Open Landscape of the Palouse

Seattle’s Counterbalance? The Awe-Inspiring, Wide-Open Landscape of the Palouse

Part of our Scenic Fall Road Trips cover story

A trip to the top of 3,612-foot Steptoe Butte yields a panorama of the Palouse

Roddy Scheer

Take in Lopez Island’s Stunning Views on Two Wheels Instead of Four

Take in Lopez Island’s Stunning Views on Two Wheels Instead of Four

Soak in the rural beauty of this small island from the seat of a bike

This article appears in print in the October 2018 issue, as part of the Scenic Fall Road Trips cover story. Click here to subscribe. On one of Lopez Island’s backroads is a green street sign with the words “Less Travelled Rd.” It succinctly sums up one of the big reasons to come to the smallest of the three most visited…

Virginia Smyth

Take a Deep Drive into Whidbey Island to Experience Great Views and Good Food

Take a Deep Drive into Whidbey Island to Experience Great Views and Good Food

Part of our Scenic Fall Road Trips cover story

The Admiralty Head Lighthouse at 100-plus-year-old Fort Casey Historical State Park, part of the vast defense to the entrance of Puget Sound

Niki Stojnic

Washington's Long Beach Peninsula Is a Trip Back in Time

Washington’s Long Beach Peninsula Is a Trip Back in Time

Give reality the slip on a charming, delicious and weird weekend adventure

Stay at one of Sou’wester Historic Lodge and Vintage Travel Trailer Resort’s trailers, such as this refurbished 1952 vintage Westcraft

Jenny Cunningham

Washington's State Capital Is the Perfect Jumping-Off Point For a Day Spent Exploring

Washington’s State Capital Is the Perfect Jumping-Off Point For a Day Spent Exploring

Just an hour’s drive south of Seattle, head to Olympia and check out the scenic Thurston Bountiful Byway

This article appears in print in the October 2018 issue, as part of the Scenic Fall Road Trips cover story. Click here to subscribe. The Interstate 5 corridor between Seattle and Olympia can be a disheartening slog through traffic and a visual assault of strip malls and billboards. But not too long after you pass Tacoma, the landscape changes. This…

Chelsea Lin

Traveling the Willamette Valley's Back Roads in Northwest Oregon

Traveling the Willamette Valley’s Back Roads in Northwest Oregon

Making the trip, one milkshake at a time

Stop at Smith Berry Barn for the signature Marionberry Lavender milkshake and fresh marionberries, an Oregon staple.

Danielle Centoni

Road Trip: There's More To Enjoy Than Wine and Vineyards in Prosser

Road Trip: There’s More To Enjoy Than Wine and Vineyards in Prosser

This small town is a wine mecca, but it offers more for the visitor than tasting rooms

Prosser is 190 miles southeast of Seattle, about a three-hour drive

Sarah Edwards

Day Trip: Everett's Jetty Island Is a Low-Key Piece of Paradise

Day Trip: Everett’s Jetty Island Is a Low-Key Piece of Paradise

The simple pleasures of sand and water attract day-trippers to Jetty Island near Everett

This article is part of the cover story for the August 2018 issue. Find more from the story here. Click here to subscribe. It’s just 2 miles long and a quick three-minute foot-ferry ride from the mainland, but Jetty Island, formed over the past century out of accumulated sediment from the dredging of the Snohomish River, packs a full…

Gwendolyn Elliott

A Trip to the Gulf Islands, the San Juans' Canadian Cousins

A Trip to the Gulf Islands, the San Juans’ Canadian Cousins

A Gulf Islands trip delivers a calming adventure with thrills of a different kind

Kayakers paddle in the calm waters along the shores of Canada’s Gulf Islands, cousins to the San Juan Islands

Hilary Meyerson

Best Places to Stargaze in Washington Parks

Best Places to Stargaze in Washington Parks

In the great outdoors, the real show begins after the day is done

This article appears in print in the June 2018 issue, as part of the “85 Best Outdoor Adventures” cover story. Click here to subscribe. If you aren’t mesmerized by the view of the heavens above from Artist Point, perched at 5,000 feet elevation in an otherworldly alpine saddle between two of the Cascades’ most iconic peaks (Mount Shuksan…

Roddy Scheer and Megan Toal

10 Out-Of-The-Ordinary Hotels, Lodges and Resorts to Stay Around Seattle

10 Out-Of-The-Ordinary Hotels, Lodges and Resorts to Stay Around Seattle

When bedtime comes after a long day outside, try one of these stays

BEDTIME: Rest your head in this converted school bus at Someday Farm, or fall asleep to the sound of waves at one of two lighthouse keepers’ quarters on Vashon Island

Chelsea Lin

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