A Short drive from … SEATTLE - Brief Article

Travel America, Jan, 2001 by Christina Victor

Seen the city? Then head on out for the following attractions (shown with approximate mile distances from city center)

Seattle, surrounded by mountains and water, is one of America's loveliest cities. Visit Pike Place Market for fresh fish and local colon Seattle Center and its signature Space Needle are a civic and cultural hub. The Lake Washington Ship Canal and Hiram M. Chittenden Locks has a visitor center explaining the locks as well as "salmon ladders" that let fish swim upstream to their spawning grounds. Other sites not to be missed are the Museum of Flight, Pioneer Square Historic Market, and Seattle Art Museum.

15 A short boat ride from Seattle, Blake Island State Park features Tillicum Village, a Native American longhouse with displays of Northwest Coast American Indian art and artifacts, interpretive programs, and traditional baked salmon dinners. Washington State Ferries (worth the trip in themselves) will take you to Bainbridge Island and Bremerton, home to a U.S. naval base, Bremerton Naval Museum, and USS Turner Joy Naval Memorial Museum Ship. East of Seattle (across Lake Washington), Bellevue offers shopping at the enormous Bellevue Mall, one of the world's largest collections of dolls at Rosalie Whyel Museum of Doll Art, and Bellevue Art Museum. Woodinville, north of Seattle, has three excellent wineries (Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Winery, and Silver Lake Sparkling Cellars) and Red Hook Brewery, one of the Pacific Northwest's premier breweries.

35 In Tacoma, Point Defiance Park features an excellent zoo and aquarium, Japanese garden, logging museum, steam-powered railroad, and Never Never Land (a wooded area with life-size scenes from children's stories). Also visit Washington State History Museum, Tacoma Art Museum, and Children's Museum of Tacoma. Cross the Narrows Bridge to visit scenic Gig Harbor. Vashon Island is a quiet retreat with attractions like the roasting plant for Seattle's Best Coffee (call ahead for tours). On the mainland, Snoqualmie has a spectacular waterfall, and Puyallup offers the Ezra Meeker Mansion and VanLierop Bulb Farms.

60 Olympia, Washington's state capital, lies at the south end of Puget Sound. The beautiful Capitol Campus encompasses many state buildings as well as an arboretum, sunken rose garden, and war memorials. The State Capital Museum, a few blocks away, is housed in a 32-room California mission-style mansion built in 1920. Eatonville is home to Northwest Trek, a wildlife park with a tram ride featuring moose, elk, bison, and other animals native to the Northwest. North of Seattle, the area around La Conner and Mount Vernon blooms with colorful flower bulb farms.

Contact: Travel Development Division, Washington Department of Commerce and Economic Development, General Administration Building, Olympia, WA 98504, (800) 890-5493, www.tourism. wash.gov; and Seattle-King County Convention and Visitors Bureau, 520 Pike St., Seattle, WA 98101, (206) 461-5840, www.seeseattle.org.