Author: lkwesterlind@yahoo.com

Miner’s Corner County Park

Location: Bothell/Snohomish County Address: 22903 45th Ave. S.E., Bothell Acreage: 13 If you live on the Eastside (especially around the King-Snohomish border) and you have young kids Miner’s Corner is the place for you. This awesome, stroller- and wheelchair-friendly park was designed to maximize play and also keep a feeling of nature–tough to do with… Continue reading Miner’s Corner County Park

Broadway Hill Park

Location: Capitol Hill/Central Seattle Address: 500 Federal Ave. E. Acreage: 0.27 Opened in June 2016, this neighborhood park close to bustling Broadway street is a great use of public space. The corner lot is fabulously accessible with a paved path reachable from both streets that makes it easy for wheelchairs and strollers to use all… Continue reading Broadway Hill Park

East Bay Public Plaza

Location: Olympia/South Sound Address: 325 Marine Drive, Olympia Acreage: 1.6 Outside Olympia’s outstanding children’s museum sits an amazing use of public space and the best water feature for kids I’ve ever come across. Not a spray park, not a fountain and not a wading pool… so what is it? An artificial (but so realistic) wading… Continue reading East Bay Public Plaza

East Lake Sammamish Trail

Location: Issaquah/Sammamish/Redmond Address: Lake Sammamish State Park to Marymoor State Park Length: 11 miles Follow an old railroad route along the eastern shore of Lake Sammamish for a pleasant–and blissfully flat–bike ride on the Eastside. Recent improvements have resulted in new paved sections making this popular route better than ever for bikers and runners. An… Continue reading East Lake Sammamish Trail

Torguson Park

Location: North Bend/Eastside Address: 750 East North Bend Way, North Bend Acreage: 17.3 A dramatic 31-foot climbing tower is the featured attraction at Torguson Park, although the view of Mount Si in the background is pretty stunning in itself. This park, which sits close to a cute downtown, is sports central for North Bend. You’ll… Continue reading Torguson Park

Big Rock Park

Location: Sammamish/Eastside Address: 21805 S.E. 8th Ct., Sammamish Acreage: 15.9 I love it when a park slowly reveals its secrets, encouraging you to explore. At first glimpse from the small parking area Big Rock Park, in a sort-of rural neighborhood on the Sammamish Plateau, looks a little underwhelming. You first spot a zipline at the… Continue reading Big Rock Park

Fisher Creek Park

Location: Snoqualmie Address: 7805 Fisher Ave. S.E., Snoqualmie Acreage: 24.27 Don’t doubt that this kid-focused park is worth the drive from anywhere in Seattle or the Eastside. My five playground testers today spent nearly three hours here, and I could barely drag them away despite exhaustion. Fisher Creek Park, inside the Snoqualmie Ridge community, is… Continue reading Fisher Creek Park