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A Parent’s (Pocket) Guide to Seattle
How about something different, cheaper, and probably much better fodder for fond memories? I don’t mean to run down Seattle’s venerable family attractions. We’re big fans of the Children’s Museum, for instance, but we live here and can choose a Tuesday morning in February and pretty much have the place to ourselves. Ditto for the monorail. And like everyone else who lives here, we save our Space Needle visits (and the $11 elevator ride) for out-of-town guests. Of course, after we’ve taken them where they want to go, we then take them someplace like... Properly called Fremont, the self-proclaimed "center of the universe" is in fact the center of all that is wacky, wild, and oddball about Seattle. This is where a walk around the neighborhood will reveal a secondhand shop under the shadow of a giant silver rocket ship; a Cold War-era statue of Vladimir Lenin; a troll hiding under a bridge eating Volkswagens; a neon Rapunzel locked in a tower; a bus stop populated by cast-aluminum commuters with an ever-changing wardrobe; topiary dinosaurs; and an endless parade of hippies, techies, and yuppies. Nestled on the shores of the Lake Washington Ship Canal north of downtown (which many "Fremonsters" consider to be little more than a suburb), you will find dozens of funky, kitschy shops, antique and "vintage" stores, and some good restaurants. It’s a place to park the car and explore. If the kids will only let you stray from the usual itinerary for one off-the-beaten-path destination, make it what locals refer to as the "Ballard Locks." This project of the Army Corps of Engineers is a combination of features: two navigational locks, a dam and spillway, a fish ladder, a botanical garden, and a regional visitor center and bookstore. You will want to linger in the beautiful English-style garden, but the kids will drag you to the dam, locks, and fish ladder. The gates of the dam release or store water required to maintain the lake at about 20-22 feet above sea level. The elevation is necessary for the floating bridges, mooring facilities, and vessel clearance under bridges. The locks act as a kind of marine elevator for boats passing between the lower salt water of Salmon Bay and the higher fresh water of Lake Union. It’s a fun process to watch as the gates (complete with flashing lights and warning bells) open to allow boats of all sizes into the chamber. When the gates close, observers can venture out atop them to witness the filling or draining of the chamber. When the dam and locks were built in 1916, they blocked all the salmon runs of the Cedar River watershed, thereby requiring the construction of a fish ladder. You can watch the salmon from the outside or, better, from the indoor public viewing gallery, where you are only inches away from migrating fish. July through September is the best time for viewing, but there can be fish on the ladder year-round. Featuring about 75 vintage (and some replica) wooden sailing and rowing vessels in its collection, which floats in its own cozy harbor, the Center for Wooden Boats was founded in the interest of keeping alive the heritage of wooden boats (as opposed to those modern fiberglass models). You will also often find new vessels in the process of being built and older ones being restored to their former glory. During a recent visit, for example, a three-masted, late-1800s logging vessel was awaiting some tender loving care. The coolest part is that you can actually rent many of these boats to sail out onto Lake Union, where you can take in one of the very best Seattle skyline views. Located in the relatively new Bell Street Pier convention center, Odyssey: The Maritime Discovery Center is one of the best "undiscovered" attractions in all of Seattle. Here is a completely interactive experience that will entertain your children while they learn about the Puget Sound, its environment, and the local marine economy. Kids will love the kayak journey, which allows visitors to sit in a full-sized kayak and paddle through a virtual Skagit or Elliott Bay. Or how about the challenging Port of Seattle crane exhibit, which lets you load or unload a virtual container vessel? Smaller fry get a kick out of the marine playscape, where they can wear lifejackets, operate a fish conveyer, skipper a skiff, or plot a course. Both the best and worst thing about Odyssey is that people still haven’t discovered it. We’ve often been the only ones there, which means no waiting for the more popular attractions, but has also left us feeling a little lonesome. If you’re not put off by "alternative" lifestyles, there is nothing more entertaining than simply taking a walk on Broadway on a sunny afternoon. Your child will love the swirl of creative "costumes," bizarre hairstyles, and makeup on steroids. When my daughter, Josephine, asks me why people are dressed this way, I tell her, "Because they want you to look at them," which I think is mostly true. On a nice day, you’ll enjoy street performers playing jazz, traditional Irish, or funky folk music. Between East Republican and Howell Streets, you will find the bronze footprints of artist Jack Mackie’s "Dancer’s Series." I’ve never met a child who didn’t want to stop on the sidewalk and try to perform these ballroom dances. There is a Lakeshore Promenade within Sand Point Magnuson Park that stretches almost one mile from Promontory Point to the south to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) access gate to the north. On this route, you will find the Magnuson Boat Launch, several picnic areas, The Fin Art Project (public art sculpture composed of former submarine fins), and Kite Hill. This area is adjacent to the NOAA art walk, home of the locally beloved "A Sound Garden" by Doug Hollis (which can still be enjoyed from a distance), but as of this writing, access to this federal property is restricted to those there on official business. I don’t like to aimlessly shop, and particularly not with Josephine, but I’ll go to Archie McPhee any day of the week, alone or with daughter in tow. You’ll know you’re here by the giant frilled lizard head above the door and human-hand chairs on the sidewalk. It’s the dime store of your youth times ten, and they still have dozens of items that cost a dime (or even a nickel) and hundreds of things under $1. Need size 74 underpants or a green beehive wig? This is the place. Backward clock? Giant feet? Rabbi punching puppets? Portable urinal? Novelties, candies, charms, and an odd assortment of medical supplies fill the shelves of this mecca of kitsch, nostalgia, and fun. On dull, rainy days, I give Josephine a dollar and we idle away an hour (or more) trying to spend it here. Not only does she have fun choosing her "loot," but we also gain experience in money management. It would be a rare family that had the energy to get through this list in a week, let alone a weekend, but it can be done, and better yet, without breaking the bank. If a family of four did everything recommended in this article, including renting a sailboat, paying admission to the Odyssey Museum, and giving each of the kids $1 to spend at Archie McPhee, your grand total would come to $34.50. That’s only $2.50 more than it would cost the same family to ride the elevator to the top of the Space Needle. Heck, you could even afford lunch. Tom Hobson is the author of A Parent’s Guide to Seattle, a book featuring some 250 more things to see and do in the Emerald City. The book is available in bookstores, Costco or online at Amazon.com. |
Sure, Seattle has
a monorail, a children’s museum, and the Space Needle. They’re
all great things to do with the kids, but you’ve done them
before, and frankly, the thought of the crowds and expense are
starting to suck the fun right out of your family trip into the
city — and you’re not even there yet.