As I enter my first airport store, I warily wonder what I will find. Worthwhile merchandise or a bunch of tourist schlock?
By Lei Ann Shiramizu | June 23, 2005
The outing: A first-timer's visit to downtown Tacoma can be like an innocent's first bite of a habañero: Prepare to have your eyes opened — at the ornate architecture of historical buildings, at abundant public art, at noteworthy museums and soothing urban landscapes.
And yes, your eyes might water a bit, too, from the occasional whiff of a pulp mill, though Tacoma's fabled aroma has been mostly cleaned up in recent years.
By Brian J. Cantwell | June 23, 2005
The outing: If 702 acres of in-city wilderness doesn't excite your Northwest genes, nothing will. If you've never visited Tacoma's Point Defiance Park, home to these 702 acres, then it's time to excite your genes.
By Terry Tazioli | June 23, 2005
Location: Newcastle/Bellevue.
Length: Almost two miles round trip with connections to additional trails.
Level of difficulty: Level-to-moderately-steep dirt/gravel trail (can be mucky in spots after rains).
By Cathy McDonald | June 23, 2005
Hike of the Week
Cold, wet weather is no laughing matter, but such gloomy days are ideal for a long, meditative hike along Laughingwater Creek in Mount Rainier National Park. Even on a clear day there are no views of Mount Rainier, so you aren't missing out by hiking this forested trail. After all, this hike is all about trees, big trees.
By Karen Sykes | June 23, 2005
The budget outing: Tucked between Museum Row and Point Defiance Park is the Tacoma that could have been.
Old Town, a historical section of the Commencement Bay waterfront and a four-block stretch of North 30th Street south of Ruston Way, once was destined to be a city. Today it's a quiet business district, divided by the railroad tracks that have played a role in its history since the 1800s.
By Carol Pucci | June 23, 2005
Sweat is trickling down your brow now, your thighs and calves are warm and working as they're intended, your mind wandering with your eye; a green and white ferry leaves Coleman Dock, a red and white Coast Guard cutter steams into Elliott Bay, seagulls squawk. A friendly female jogger smiles as she passes coming the other way, you wipe your forehead with your wrist and begin to round Duwamish Head, breathing rhythmically, feeling the sun's glow, smelling salt air. Into full view strides the Olympics, the twin peaks of The Brothers most prominent, their shoulders cloaked in fading snow.
By Greg Johnston | June 23, 2005
Short Trips
To stay at the Bull Hill Guest Ranch, perched on an isolated hilltop in Washington's Okanogan highlands, isn't exactly like re-living the Old West -- but it's pretty darn close.
Bull Hill has a 102 year legacy as a working cattle ranch, complete with a 20-acre private lake on 50,000 acres of prime grazing land, plus 1,000 head of cattle, a 2,400-foot private airstrip, and 55 horses. It's 15 to 20 miles from the Canadian border and a six- to seven-hour drive from Seattle, two hours from Spokane.
By Jeff Larsen | June 23, 2005
