 View of Seattle from Ursula Judkins Viewpoint, Magnolia (north of Seattle). About a mile south of Seattle on I-5 is an exceptional view of the city as you come north, but I couldn't take photos during drive time, of course. Those who have more time to explore could find other photogenic views, no doubt!
Seattle Aquarium A great place to go, and on their site they give parking info: park at PIKE PLACE MARKET PARKING GARAGE at 1531 Western Ave, Seattle, WA 98101 and get 3 hours free with a voucher from Seattle Aquarium (such a wonderful benefit!). It's not that easy to recognize the parking address, nor the name of it. The sign says in unobtrusive lettering "Public Market Center Parking". The signed price is not that expensive, considering the usual price of parking in downtown Seattle. Any extra time spent can be paid by credit card upon leaving. The entrance is next to a sign "Elevator to Waterfront", and south of the overhead pedestrian bridge across Western Ave. Elevators go up to Pike Place Market, and down to Alaskan Way where the Aquarium is. Alaskan Way/the Waterfront A favorite Seattle activity is to walk/bike/roll the paved path along the waterfront as far as you can toward Pier 91, where the cruise ships dock. (via Washington Waterfront Trail & Elliott Bay Trail—it’s about 4 mi from Seattle Aquarium to Elliott Bay Marina see https://www.traillink.com/trail/elliott-bay-trail-(terminal-91-bike-path)/ ). Don’t forget to figure time and energy required to return. If it’s a nice day, there are marvelous views of the Olympic Mountains on the peninsula across Puget Sound. Pier 62 Park near Seattle Aquarium is a deck/plaza on the waterfront with views & bistro tablesMyrtle Edwards Park, part of the paved waterfront trails, whose south end is not far from Pacific Science Ctr Olympic Sculpture Park, about a mile north of Seattle Art Museum, with which it is affiliated. It's free, and has buildings and parking garage. The Broad St side is a steep hill. Pacific Science Ctr is not far by car, just up the hill from Olympic Sculpture Park. It was mostly closed, but its website has virtual programs
Pike Place Market I was so grateful for the "Public Market Center Parking" garage on Western Ave, which afforded me affordable parking, with a voucher ticket, and though it can be confusing trying to navigate the various levels and elevators when bound to a wheelchair, it was a lot easier than without such helps. Several restaurants appealed to the palate, lots of fresh fish & seafood, as well as a variety of other options. Because it was still Chinese New Year, I wanted to eat Chinese at least once. But the restaurant I saw was down a steep incline, and it was not easy to find my way to the elevators to the lower level and back again. I had to ask for directions a lot, and not everyone knew the answers. Some notable places I found downtown Pioneer Square Park--100 Yesler Way (1st Ave & Yesler) . . . more of a triangle than a square Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is actually a museum building; free--319 2nd Ave S. (2nd & Jackson) Occidental Square is beautiful except for resident tenters--117 S Washington St. (between Main & Washington)
I stayed at Courtyard by Marriott--612 2nd Ave--at the corner of 2nd & Cherry (Cherry is a steep uphill, and both 2nd & Cherry are one-way). Just south of Cherry on 2nd is the loading/valet parking zone in what might appear to be a lane of traffic. There's a two-way bike lane on the curb side. Because my van ramp would put me in traffic, the valets and hotel security officer kept a watch so that I wouldn't get run over exiting or entering my accessible van. Valet parking was $45/night, but parking yourself was $35. Because I felt insecure about finding and being able to manage wheeling the streets, I gritted my teeth and was glad enough for the valets, who were very helpful. Woodland Park Zoo Beside the Zoo, Woodland Park has various other sports & recreational opportunities. See links below. I was happy to find that the zoo is mostly flat, though I was glad enough to have a motor, and there are some places where a person in a wheelchair needs that extra power. Figure at least a half day to enjoy this great place.
While on the north end, some other interesting places to go are
Chinatown Part of my plan was to check out Seattle's Chinatown during the 2-weeks Chinese New Year. But I used up my wheelchair battery at the zoo and hadn't learned how to recharge it from my van yet, so I was disappointed not to be able to get out in Chinatown. That might have been providential, because being unfamiliar with the geography, I could cover more ground and waste less time & energy by exploring by car for my first time. Chinatown/International District--Gate is at 5th Ave & King St (King St is interrupted by Union Station et al) Hing Hay Park—423 Maynard Ave S (King St between 6th Ave & Maynard) Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience—719 S King St https://www.wingluke.org/ Kobe Terrace Park & Danny Woo Community Garden—650 S Main St (between Main & Washington) Donnie Chin International Children’s Park—700 S Lane St: picnic and unique playground--I didn't get to see. Yesler Terrace Park—917 Yesler Way, and S Washington St off Yesler, east of I-5 I happened onto this interesting park as I was wandering about by car. From the website: it offers views of the mountains and the bay; picnic, playground, spray park, plaza, basketball, soccer. Found this interesting site while looking up links for parks Museum of Flight, Boeing Field "The Museum of Flight is the largest independent, non-profit air and space museum in the world!" Obviously I had a hard time narrowing down from the over 200 photos I took. SeaMar Museum of Chicano/Latino Culture Wish List for the future:
Frye Art Museum https://www.fryemuseum.org/ Argosy Cruises https://www.argosycruises.com/ WA state ferry to Bainbridge or another island https://wsdot.wa.gov/travel/washington-state-ferries Victoria or San Juan Clipper https://www.clippervacations.com/ U of Washington, Burke Museum of Natural History https://www.burkemuseum.org/ Washington Park Arboretum https://botanicgardens.uw.edu/washington-park-arboretum/ Seattle Japanese Garden (temp closed) https://www.seattlejapanesegarden.org/ Interlaken Park https://www.seattle.gov/parks/find/parks/interlaken-park Seattle Asian Art Museum https://www.seattleartmuseum.org/visit/asian-art-museum MOHAI Museum of History and Industry https://mohai.org/ The Center for Wooden Boats (southern tip of Lake Union) https://www.cwb.org/ Discovery Park & West Point Lighthouse
Alki Point Lighthouse https://lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=112 Hamilton Viewpoint Park https://www.seattle.gov/parks/find/parks/hamilton-viewpoint-park Lincoln Park https://www.seattle.gov/parks/find/parks/lincoln-park Essential Seattle Museums Children’s Film Festival . . . at home or in person
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Wheelchair WomanI've been in a wheelchair for 30+ years. It poses some challenges for traveling. Maybe others can benefit from my experiences. Archives
June 2025
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