Location: West Seattle
Address: 4503 Beach Drive S.W.
Acreage: 20.2
For as much as I adore Emma Schmitz Memorial Outlook, I’m embarrassed to admit I had hardly even noticed its sister park just across the street. I think I am always too captivated by the views to look on the non-water side of the road.
But, Mee Kwa Mooks is an interesting little park with some cool local history. The name, which means “shaped like a bear’s head,” comes from the Nisqually dialect of the Duwamish tribe. The park was originally the homestead of Ferdinand and Emma Schmitz, who were early residents of West Seattle. In fact, Ferdinand Schmitz was once Seattle’s Parks Commissioner.
A few picnic tables and a large, slightly sloped grassy area make a nice spot for picnics or a game of Frisbee. It’s easy to miss the trailhead at the back of the park that winds up through an undeveloped section to meet with the Mee Kwa Mooks Natural Area.
At 20 acres, this is actually a pretty large park that’s worth crossing the road to explore.
#14 (Visited 8/15/09)