|| Seattle expeditions, Frame 1- 25

1. Seattle International Airport (12/17/2022)

• Designated Uber, Lyft rideshares are on the 3rd floor, crossing the flyover bridge after the luggage claim area.  Taxis are on the same floor, in linear waiting lines for the order of taking guests.  The rideshare cars in waiting have their own "installs" that are numbered

2. South Lake Union Park (12/18/2022)

• Walk the Westlake Rd to the south end of the lake.  Parking is all paid up to $30 for a day.  Queen Anne area is all mid-rise apartment complexes, again tight parking and paid parking
• Cross the bridge for additional commercial and office buildings in the Residence Inn hotel direction
• Walk back on Mercer then Republican back to Kiara, in total 8000 steps, cold and windy
• SLU boat park has both wood boats and the modern yachts, with a view of the space needle

3. 12/24/2022 Renton south Direction (12/24/2022)

• Walmart 743 Rainier Ave, Renton - Large supercenter; affordable and organized
• 99 Ranch 18230 E Valley, Renton - Small parking lot inside the Great Wall building, noodle house, bubble tea etc
• Griffis Lake Washington, 1205 North 10th Place, Renton, WA, 98057 (Dwellworks)
• Metropolitan Collection Apartment, 339 Burnette Ave South, Renton

4. Seattle Downtown direction (1/1/2023, 1/21/2023)

• Homestyle Dim Sum (730AM open); Ton Kiang Barbecue (930AM) and possibly closed on Sunday; these two places have the best dim sum and Cantonese barbecue meat
• (1/1/2023) Parked at Lam's seafood grocery (opposite the shop), free but small. Also in a very potentially unstable area on the other side of King street; walked 10min to the Homestyle Dim Sum
• (1/21/2023) Parked at Uwajimaya 600 5th Ave, $15 for two hours, validate with $20 purchase
• Doppler Garage to go to Amazon headquarter 2000-2098 6th Ave, very close to home, free after 4pm and on weekend
• Pike place, 10min from Doppler Garage
• REI flagship store

5. Greenlake, Northgate, Edmond, Lynwood North West direction (12/26/2022)

• Asian Family Mart at 13200 Aurora Ave - yes saw that, green label, large parking lot
• Kuzma’s fish market 21104 70th Street (get a poke, Lynnwood)
• Huong Binh Vietamese restaurant, 1207 Jackson (affordable)
• University Village
• No apartment recommendation
• Ono authentic Hawaiian poke (Edmond)
• Backcountry store at University Village
• In the busy and narrow 25th street area
• Backcountry, Sephora, Apple, Lululemon, J crew, Northface, QFC (quality food store)
• Parking decks are free

6. Kirkland Downtown (12/25/2022, 7/3/2023)

• Kirkland Library Parking - Peter Kirk Municipal Parking Garage located under the Kirkland Library. Entrances off Kirkland Avenue and Third Street
• Upper ground for right library parking
• General parking in the underground
• Small bay area with rest room, otherwise occupied by estates and boat docks

7. Lake Sammamish State Park (4/22/2023, Earth Day)

• There are several large parking lots, unpaved, grounds are rough.  There is a small lakefront area and long stretches of paved walking lanes.  Overall nothing special

8. Montlake Cut and the Windermere Cup Rowling Season Kickoff (5/6/2023)

• Park at Ding Tai Fung at 9AM; the site says no event parking; walk 30min on the stadium side to the Montlake Cut; can then walk in either direction into Washington Lake; or the other side of the river bank in the neighborhood area
• Rowing season has 2 hours starting from 10:15AM then could be running for about two hours; narrow river lanes, 4 teams at a time
• The finish line has the UW music band performances, marked by the yellow mark

9. Tacoma Chambers Bay and Dune Peninsula (4/15/2023)

• Several parking places, 2 on the top of hills, and 1 at the ground; big ramps on both ends of the loop; 11000 steps and stretching on the physique Chambers Creek Park Chambers Creek Regional Park, 6320 Grandview Dr W, University Place, WA 98467
• Nice area with a lot of lunch benches; take-out eating places; a Japanese garden pagoda and zoo etc.  Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, 5361 Yacht Club Rd, Tacoma, WA 98407
• Not found - Soundview and Grandview Trail loop Cushman Trail - Soundview Drive Trailhead, Cushman Trail, Gig Harbor, WA 98335; and importantly paid $4.50 toll fee to go through the 16-East bridge
• HongKong supermarket is essentially a Vietnamese store; it has $12 per pound for intestines, which is tolerable; but will not go again

10. Beacon Hill, Columbia City, Lucky Seafood (5/5/2023)

• Get off the 90W/E at Exit 3 Rainier Ave
• Along the road has several agricultural food stand until it arrives at the intersection of the Beacon street, narrow and inconvenient parking in the middle section; parking marks as for two hours
• Two Asian market - Seattle City Market and Fou Lee Market (Philipino) with hot food stands
• Lucky Seafood has its own parking space, wet surface, cash only
• Dim Sum House can order the usual cantonese cafe food; drive a bit more and there's a BBQ place that may have even cheaper prices

9. Kobe Terrace (1/21/2023)

• Walked 10min after parking the car at Umajiyama; ran into a gangster party with exotic cars, busting engines, and Avant grade-human looks
• Had to walk up a certain international garden but honestly, it has been harboring the homeless for some time, not safe to park (there are steep parking places), and probably not safe to walk
• Close to the Japanese town, theatre, a few restaurants, hotels
• The Kobe statue was a small sculpture of a traditional watching station, typically seeing it on a lake of something

10. Washington Park Arboretum (2/12/2023, 4/9/2023)

• https://botanicgardens.uw.edu/washington-park-arboretum/visit/getting-here/
• There are three parking lots (parking lot 19 on the west side, near the Japanese garden at the south end, near the visitor center at the north end); park at 830am, and there are plenty of spots
• Parked at lot 19, then go counter clock to the Japanese garden (closed on the winter season until March 1), get past the visitor center, walk into the wilderness and the 520 bridge construction site, all the way to the north end of the Foster trail and Foster end point.  After that, go west into the water-trail with all steel bridge steps.  There are multiple lookout places with the Montlake Cut bridge on the background.
• Coming out, there is an exit going to walk on the bridge 520, do not go; instead, walk around the neighborhood, cross the 520 bridge roads and walk into the residential area back to the UW garden
• In total 12000 steps and 2.5 hours on a loop back to exit 19
• The garden is very original, very few staged out exhibitions, lots of bench places and bird watching people
• 4/9/2023, parked at lot 19, then walked all the way to the stone cottage, then turn into north to the end, walked the Azalea Way back, beautiful camellia, magnolia, and azalea trees blossoming.

11. Bainbridge Island (1/14/2023)

• Walked 35min from Kiara to Pier 52 Washington State Ferry; check weekend schedules, $10 pedestrian for a round trip; very big three-deck ship; 35min ride; weekend schedules are about hourly
• Better to bring the car to the island
• Come out of the ferry and turn left into the transfer center, BI Ride, call the reservation number, 8min wait in the morning around 9:40AM
• Ride to the Bloedel Reserve at the north end of the island, it's a 15min drive, bike/walking not possible
• 2 hour walk on the ground inside the Bloedel, with no drink, no eating, very expensive gift shop
• The house and the Japanese garden are simple, tranquil, and easy and reflecting the nature and the stillness of the water
• It's very cool, another 5 degrees colder
• On the way back, walked into the Museum of Art, then town and country for a quick lunch

12. University of Washington at the Montlake Cut and Suzallo and Allen library (2/11/2023, 3/25/2023 for Cherry Blossom)

• Drive 15min to Ding Tai Fung at the University village; parking lot was 50% empty at 830am
• Walk towards the south, cross these street and turn into the trail after the UW Bus parking lot
• Turn up and walk the stairs into the main campus and head towards the library, there should be cherry trees in the red square
• Montlake Cut is completely on the outskirts of UW, after the UW medical center.  It is mossy looking old stone-steel pulled bridge that connects the two islands together.  There are stairs walking down from the bridge to close to the waterfront
• 15min to the Asian Farmers Market
• 3/25/2023 - The library remains closed on Saturdays; we ran into the cherry blossom marathon and it was a good event.  The cherry trees are only half blooming but there were many people at 9am already.  The U District farmers market is open between 45th and 54th the University way, very nice international selection of gourmet eats but all are very expensive.  There are many Chinese small eating places along the street but it also has a variety of people around

13. Skagit Valley and Rooza Garade for tulip festival (Apr 29, 2023)

• Seafood (didn't go) - Kiket Island is on the way to Anacortes (as is Black Rock Seafood). Don’t miss the Anacortes Farmers Market for a hubbub of local goods and a taste of the Valley’s biodiversity. Next, you can wander like a grizzly over to SeaBear for smoked salmon samples.; 11am - 6pm, 74 miles
• Skagit’s Own Fish Market (didn't go)
• If you visit in October or November, you can join Skagit Fisheries at Oyster Creek to view spawning chum salmon
• Snow Goose Produce, a popular Skagit Valley farmstand
• https://www.visitskagitvalley.com/skagit-food-trail/
• https://www.visitskagitvalley.com/skagit-valley-tulip-festival/
• One hour 30min on 405 and 5; note that close to 226, there is a left turn that leaves many cars in the shoulder lane waiting to go down the highway
• Buy ticket online $15/person; lots of early birds, parking was orderly and friendly
• Country stores are all very expensive, kettle corns $15 large, and hot dog $10, fudge $10 for a small cup
• Back to the town, there should be a farmers market, but may be opening from May only

14. Port of Edmonds (2/18/2023, 10/28/2023)

• Between Shoreline and Lynnwood, several parking lots, a small harbor, and waterfront eating places; can also street park
• Washington Ferry station in line 
• Another 15min to drive to Hmart at Lynnwood
• 10/28/2023 - Parked at Dayton road (one off of Main, not many pedestrians) right after the Mosaic hair salon; then walked back to Main and to the beach; beautiful port, lots of waterfront walkways all the way to the dog park; 10,000 steps round trip; get passed the famous Market lobster roll place.

15. Little Saigon (2/4/2023) and the Saigon Deli

• King and Jackson, but only turn on Jackson, then make the left turn into a very small parking lot, roughly 10 cars
• Cash only, good sandwich, small selection of deserts, coffee, and pre-packaged food
• Close to Chinatown but looks more decent patrons in the store overall
• There are no Cha Ga, only sandwich

16. Meydenbauer Bay Park (3/25/2026, 10/15/2023) 

• Set direction to Bellevue downtown park, turn close to Main Street and the 100th Street for the downtown park parking, but don't park
• Go deeper into the little isle off of the 100th Street, all the way to the end to find dedicated parking; or, park just on that little isle; or, turn left into the park, there are street parking but on steep lanes just above the park
• Beautiful park to see sunsetting and soaking up the sunlight on the benches with calm waters, docking and houses along the hills around the Washington lake
• 10/15/2023
• Park at Bellevue Square parking lot just across the mid-point of the downtown park
• Walk towards Macys then into the Istanbul eating place into the Mall
• Madewell, Aritzia, Northface, Nike, Canada goose

17. Evergreen Park and Ride 520 Bridge (5/7/2023)

• 20 Parking spots on Saturday 9AM, walk directly into the 520 bridge, 5 stopping points, 8500 steps
• 1.5 miles along the bike trail to Medina City Hall and park, and there are additional reservation places that may be interesting
• At the stop 1 point, can see the Alaska Airline stadium, and the Montlake Cut
• No shade, all very sunny, so could be really hot

18. Snoqualmie Falls (4/30/3023)

• 30min drive from Bellevue; set direction to Salish Lodge.  The free parking lot is on the opposite side of the street, at 830AM there is plenty of parking.  The upper rim viewpoints are just within a 5min walk
• Take the 0.5-mile trail to the lower viewpoint with the hydropower plant locations.  Impressive fall views from upper and lower.  Steep up and down the trail, in total 7000 steps.
• Drive to the old town and railroad museum and there are coffee and brew bars, a quiet park

19. Golden Garden Park (2/4/2023)

• The west of the Seattle town, on 80th Street and 24th Ave turn, and can drive all the way down to the beach, large lots for leisure parking and for the yacht club docks (large dock)
• Small playground places, lots of benches to sit on and rest with, 4000 steps in half an hour
• On the way back, drive back to Ballad shipyard and marine factory settings, then onto the road that comes south back down on SLU then get back to Westlake

20. Ballard Lock (2/4/2023, 9/17/2023)

• Drive 20min from SLU, mark Ballard Lock for google directions, park after the Emersen etc, free street parking and free parking on one side of the park
• Fish ladder, small garden, harbor, towing ship, pinch point, an hour's walk in a harbor operational field.  There's paid parking on the other side of the park
• Industrial-looking, but upscale residential community
• 9/17/2023 - Salmon returns to the Ballard Fish Ladder (from early Sep); through the park, turn right into street, passing portage bay, nordic museum ($20 entrance fee) into the Sunday farmers market, round trip 7000 steps

21. St Edward State Park Grotto (4/2//2023 Earth Day)

• 25min in the north of 405, state park, turn right into the lodge driveway to park
• The lodge is a hotel with a big hall restaurant.  The park has lots of trails, but the most visited is the grotto, seminary, and then the trail to the beach which is rated moderate.  There is just one trail to the beach, walk-in total has 8000 steps, walk on the small lane driveway, and a trekking pole is not needed.
• On the way back, noticed 97th Street.  That's the Juanita Bay Park, decent parking slots, and beach views.  This is north of Kirkland Moss Bay.

22. Bridle Trail State Park (3/19/2023)

• https://www.parks.wa.gov/481/Bridle-Trails
• Need a discovery pass on the state park parking lot ($10 per visit, $30 annual pass)Try the lot of 3 street parking in between the 128th and 130th AVE and 60th ST, to be able to get inside
• There are three trails, the "claws", the "leaves" and another one.  The "claws" is 3.7 miles long and 10000 steps for less than 2 hours, all flat ground, forest, biodiversity, and foresty

23. Green Lake Park (2/5.2023)

• 10min drive from SLU.  There are three sizable parking lots, free parking.  One in the west (where I parked, 30 spots, use Green Lake Parking Lot for direction), one in the south direction (close to the zoo, it's a larger lot), one in the northeast main entrance point (there is small coffee shop and the floating equipment shop)
• In total about 2 miles, 6000 steps in one hour on paved paths, passing theatre, stadium, and fishing piers.  Lots of street parking possibilities

24. Gas Work Park (1/22/2023)

• A short drive from SLU but over an hour's walk from SLU; large parking lot, free for 4 hours
• Small lot with old Gas factory pipes standing along the lakeshore; should be a good view in a sunny day on the downtown skylines towards SLU direction
• Small space about 30min stay; views also include space needle, two long bridges

25. Richmond Salty Beach Park (2/18/2023)

• The location is Shoreline to the west, a quiet neighborhood
• There are several layers of parking decks, but a short walk to the small beach, almost a dog park with leashing and unleashing timelines
• There are divers and volunteers cleaning up the debris