Travel
Coastal Idylls: Small-town Getaways
Three sweet seaside oases that let you leave your cares at the beach.
Ilwaco{ Population: 936 } When your cell-phone reception gives out and the air is sharp with a briny breeze, you’ll know you’re getting close to Ilwaco. Nestled into the southern end of the Long Beach Peninsula in southwest Washington, Ilwaco is part hard-working fishing port and part relaxed vacation destination. Harbor strollers can take in…
Visit Portland for Rothko Paintings and Good Eats
A retrospective exhibit of the abstract painter's career and two new eateries make the trek south ne
WHERE: Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon. WHY: For the Mark Rothko Retrospective (through 5/27; prices vary; 1219 SW Park Ave.; 503.226.2811; portlandartmuseum.org), which boasts 45 works by the Russian-born and Portland-raised painter, known for his rectangles of saturated color. The show spans the artist’s five-decade career, revealing his roots in figurative and surrealist work….
Reuse, Recyle, Retreat!
The many new uses for discarded cargo containers now include camping structures.
Looking out the bus window on her commute into work at King County Parks’ downtown Seattle headquarters, Sujata Goel kept noticing more and more shipping containers piling up on the outskirts of the city’s sprawling port complex. Meanwhile, news stories started surfacing about how our trade deficit with China was leading to a glut of…
Bird Lovers: Head to Sequim this Spring
The Olympic BirdFest with the Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society kicks off March 30.
WHERE: Sequim, Washington. WHY: For the Olympic BirdFest with the Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society (3/30–4/1; times and prices vary. Dungeness River Audubon Society, 2151 W Hendrickson Road; 360.681.4076; olympicbirdfest.org). The annual celebration offers beginner and advanced birders the chance to search for such fine feathered friends as the yellow-rumped warbler and the elusive marbled godwit,…
Visit Long Beach, Washington
Trek south to see the Asian New Year Celebration at the World Kite Museum.
WHERE: Long Beach, Washington. WHY: For the Asian New Year Celebration at the World Kite Museum (303 Sid Snyder Drive; 360.642.4020; kitefestival.com). This year’s event centers on the vibrant culture of Bali, with colorful handmade kites and other exhibits from the Indonesian island. BYO KITE: Walk down to the blustery beach for dramatic scenery and…
Oregon Truffle Festival
Dig up your own truffles and train your dog to help!
WHERE: Eugene, Oregon, for the seventh annual Oregon Truffle Festival WHY: The fancy fungus festivities include a truffle recipe contest, cooking classes, a grand truffle dinner and a BYOD (bring your own dog) truffle-hound training seminar (limited to 18 well-behaved dogs; if you leave your pooch at home, you can sign up to “audit”). QUICK…
Make a Holiday-Themed Trip to La Conner
Where lighted boats and prominent Northwest artists abound this holiday season.
WHERE: La Conner, Washington, for Swinomish Yacht Club’s decades-old annual Lighted Boat Parade (12/10; 6:30 p.m.; free; swinomishyachtclub.org). WHY: Stunning, hand-decorated yachts and boats illuminate the Swinomish channel for a “Christmas Island”-themed waterborne parade that travels from the La Conner Marina along the waterfront to Shelter Bay. WHILE IN TOWN: Stop in to the Museum…
RedTri: Enjoy Fall Colors in Seattle Parks
While ours is a more muted display compared to New England, there’s plenty for the whole family to see here in the Northwest, including brilliant colors not only found on deciduous trees and shrubs but also grasses, meadows, berries and even still-in-bloom dahlias. You don’t have to venture far, as our local parks have lots…
Two Reasons to Go to Puyallup
Fun ideas for taking a road trip down south.
WHERE: Western Washington Fairgrounds in Puyallup, Washington. WHY: For the 31st annual Northwest Wood Carvers Association show and sale (11/12–11/13; $7, kids younger than 12 free), where carvers display some 300 original woodcarvings, many in the Northwest Native American tradition. Visitors can take part in woodcarving demos, and, of course, in buying original works of…
Climb a Mountain Without Breaking a Sweat
Take the new gondola at Crystal Mountain Ski Resort.
Ski bunnies and snowboarders, prepare to be totally stoked: This month marks the opening of Crystal Mountain Ski Resort, where the new Mt. Rainier gondola awaits. Built at a cost of $8 million and open since January, it’s the first such high-wire act at any ski resort in Washington—and by all accounts, it provides unbelievably…
Trip Report: How Seattle Compares to NYC, Part 4
Catch Up: Read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 My last day in New York was spent at the home of one of my oldest friends, who lives with her husband and two kids in Brooklyn Heights. After four days and long nights of walking in fashionable shoes, my feet were sausage, so my friend lent me…
Trip Report: How Seattle Compares to NYC, Part 3
Catch up: Read Part 1 and Part 2 Friday is chock full of eating, and also of meeting: Anna Roth, whom I’ve had many friends in common with, who was a fellow Citysearcher back in the day, and who is the author of West Coast Road Eats. Yet it took until last week, in the Big Apple, for us…
Trip Report: How Seattle Compares to NYC, Part 2
[Read Part 1 Here] After my enjoyable but less than awesome lunch at Red Rooster, I headed back downtown to take a long afternoon walk. I needed to get a little exercise, to see my old neighborhood. I needed to walk my old favorite streets: Jane Street, Greenwich Avenue, Perry. I needed to make room, too, because…
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