Exploring the Seattle Area

Well, I've now been in Renton for seven weeks.  I'm finally getting settled here.  I found a job just after Memorial Day at a hotel in the area, and am looking at other work opportunities that may be available to me in the near future.  As well, I've been visiting a few different places and driving around the area to figure out what to do.

One of the first places I went when I got to Seattle was the Waterfall Garden in downtown Seattle.  It's a beautiful little corner in the city where people come just to read a book or take a break off work nearby.  The Red Currant was in bloom, and I thought it was a nice scenic escape.

Waterfall Garden Park

That same day, May 1, I went to the pier and saw the ferry loading cars, and saw the Great Wheel.  That's going to have to be one of the places I go with Jean when we have a day off together this summer hopefully.

The Great Wheel and Pier 54

May 27 I went to Kerry Park in the downtown area at night so I could see the Seattle skyline.  It's not a very big park, but it has a fantastic view of Seattle.

In this photo of the Seattle skyline, you can see the Space Needle, the Pacific Science Museum, and the Great Wheel.

I decided to go for a walk in May Creek Park on June 9.  The growth is so thick there, that you wouldn't think that you're actually in the middle of a city.  Only occasionally would I see someone's home.  Later I went to a different end of May Creek Park to find a trail listed on Google, only to find that the trail didn't actually exist, and besides there was a bear down in that area anyway.  I didn't have my bear spray with me, I was by myself, and I didn't have a machete for the undergrowth, so I'll have to wait until later to that end of the park.

Honey Dew Creek in May Creek Park

This week I went to Snoqualmie Falls.  It's not a very long drive from where I live and is a great place to take a short walk.  The falls is around 270 feet tall.  In comparison to what I've seen in Yellowstone Park, the Lower Falls is 308 feet tall, and Union Falls is about 250 feet.  Snoqualmie Falls has a diversion dam above it and penstocks below the falls.  I really liked the self-interpretive trail that showed what kind of flora was around the trail.

Snoqualmie Falls and Salish Lodge and Spa

Foxglove near Snoqualmie Falls.  This plant has been known to affect the heart and to rarely cause death.

I'm looking forward to my summer adventures in the city, and I'm glad that I have a good job.