Winter in Seattle

I am lucky enough to have a new job this year...and even more lucky to have a week of vacation already!! So, after four months of hard work, I decided I needed a break :) so I was able to head to the greater Seattle area.

On the drive up, I was treated to some beautiful Northwest winter weather – sunny and cold – the mountains were out! I had a wonderful view of Mt. Rainier for many miles up I-5, and after stopping in Lacey, WA for a quick tour of Cabellas (I LOVE THAT STORE) I was able to snap a somewhat decent shot of the mountain before getting back on the highway.

Once at my destination on Puget Sound, the sky show was too much to pass up. And I had to grab my camera. I was moments away from being able to grab a beautiful shot of the sun glinting off the Olympic Mountain Range...but the low lying clouds got to them before I could. So instead, I snapped a few of the loons on the bay, and a beautiful sunset.

I decided to make a voyage over to Seattle proper, since I haven't been there in awhile... and I was needing a dose of "big city" living to bring the size of Beaverton back to reality for me. It takes visiting the hustle-bustle of a larger city to realize that we don't have it so bad, living in the Portland, OR area. It's a wonderful place to reside!

I have had the opportunity to take Seattle's ferries many times in the last few years, and each time is fun for me. I'm sure if you did it everyday, the rides would lose the significance, but for me, since I do it so rarely, it's fun and exciting. I took the Kingston-Edmonds ferry, which takes you from the Olympic Peninsula to the "mainland" just north of Seattle. And from Edmonds, it's only a 15 minute drive into downtown. The ride was cold, but beautiful...and thankfully, very few people out on the sundeck this time of year, so I could be my tourist self in relative privacy.

If any of you know me well – and you do, you'll know that I can't go without my coffee... So first stop was a nice warm Tully's near Pike Street, up a few stairs for this view. Seattle has built in a few "scenic" stairways to move people through downtown in a trendier fashion. I appreciate the waterfalls and their want to bring the neighborhoods into a more walk-friendly area. I dig it. One of these passageways is where the Tully's lives...and you can see the waterfront, and of course Hwy 99, as this elevated portion passes through town. The steps provide a great resting spot for a tired butt, and a very scenic spot to sip your hot coffee.

I got a few miles in traipsing up and down a few of downtown Seattle's waterfront district hills. I enjoyed a conversation with a few of Seattle's finest Community Enforcement officers, who were very eager to help me find my way and were interested to know what Cabella's offers! :)

Anyway, enjoy a few shots of the piers, the Seattle skyline (from a few vantage points) and of some of the architecture that Seattle has.

I was also able to visit the newly opened Columbia Sportswear store on 3rd Street in Seattle (right across from Macy's). Which at this time of year, is beautifully decorated for Christmas! I didn't get a shot of that because I neglected to bring my tripod (DOH!) so even the night shots from the ferry out of Seattle are blurry, but if you squint, you still get the idea of how pretty the city is at night. The best view of the city is from the trailing end of a ferry as you head back across the sound.