4-10-20
Good
Friday is a holiday in my
business. I almost always spend it doing a hike while most everyone
else is at work. Getting to the mountains is out of the question during
the coronavirus so I planned another city hike. Gwen was free and we
planned a social distancing hike. Mostly it was one person on the
sidewalk and the other in the street. It worked pretty well. From
Gwen's place on the north end of Queen Anne Hill we headed downhill
then over to 1st Ave West. The hill is pretty steep then the grade
lessens near the top. Lots of quirky things along the way. I especially
liked the flamingos. Some packed close together with a Spring Break
2020 Alki Beach sign. Others had face masks. Gwen got into a
conversation with a couple gardening in their front yard. Social
distancing but folks were still social from a distance.
My trip the previous weekend was mostly on the east side of the hill. This time we were on the west side. Different views and sites. At the south end of the hill we started heading down. Steep roads and a stairway took us down to Roy Street. We headed a few bocks west and then had a steep limb back up the hill. Steps at the top brought us up to Highland Drive and Kerry Park. I was there just six days earlier. Before that it was a decade or more back to my previous visit. The sky was blue but haze made the view less than perfect. Still, a good look at downtown Seattle. We went east to the next street and went down again. This was Gwen's idea to get in more elevation gain. The climb or descent is not long but it is steep.
At the bottom we headed east beyond Queen Anne Avenue to 1st North and went uphill again. Next we headed east. We started going north to the east of my route last week. Lots of blooming cherry trees and plenty of flowering gardens. If you are stuck in the city this is a good time for all the spring flowers. Heading down Nob Hill Avenue we came to a most interesting house just south of Crockett St. The Coleman House is one of a kind. It has a turret with Latin written on it. The yard is immaculate with many things tucked in if you look closely. Definitely a highlight of the trip.
W e had most of the elevation gain out of the way. Heading north again we took a short detour on Lynn St. over to the viewpoint. This time we could see Glacier Peak. It was not visible the week before. We saw only one person at the viewpoint. Now we headed back north. We came to the crazy seven way intersection just south of the Aurora Bridge. Now came the steepest part of the trip. 4th Ave North is crazy steep with a 25 percent grade. At the bottom we were right off Nickerson and chose to climb a steep stairway to get onto a quieter street. We worked our way back to 3rd Ave West near where we started. Instead of going a couple blocks uphill we went downhill to get in a little more elevation gain. We chose to walk through Seattle Pacific University. I had not done that in oh, say, about 35 years.
We wound our way back to 3rd Ave West and to the end of our big loop trip. The final numbers were about 7 miles with 1200' of elevation gain. I am really missing mountain trails but for now I am enjoying these in city hikes.
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Trips - 2020
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My trip the previous weekend was mostly on the east side of the hill. This time we were on the west side. Different views and sites. At the south end of the hill we started heading down. Steep roads and a stairway took us down to Roy Street. We headed a few bocks west and then had a steep limb back up the hill. Steps at the top brought us up to Highland Drive and Kerry Park. I was there just six days earlier. Before that it was a decade or more back to my previous visit. The sky was blue but haze made the view less than perfect. Still, a good look at downtown Seattle. We went east to the next street and went down again. This was Gwen's idea to get in more elevation gain. The climb or descent is not long but it is steep.
At the bottom we headed east beyond Queen Anne Avenue to 1st North and went uphill again. Next we headed east. We started going north to the east of my route last week. Lots of blooming cherry trees and plenty of flowering gardens. If you are stuck in the city this is a good time for all the spring flowers. Heading down Nob Hill Avenue we came to a most interesting house just south of Crockett St. The Coleman House is one of a kind. It has a turret with Latin written on it. The yard is immaculate with many things tucked in if you look closely. Definitely a highlight of the trip.
W e had most of the elevation gain out of the way. Heading north again we took a short detour on Lynn St. over to the viewpoint. This time we could see Glacier Peak. It was not visible the week before. We saw only one person at the viewpoint. Now we headed back north. We came to the crazy seven way intersection just south of the Aurora Bridge. Now came the steepest part of the trip. 4th Ave North is crazy steep with a 25 percent grade. At the bottom we were right off Nickerson and chose to climb a steep stairway to get onto a quieter street. We worked our way back to 3rd Ave West near where we started. Instead of going a couple blocks uphill we went downhill to get in a little more elevation gain. We chose to walk through Seattle Pacific University. I had not done that in oh, say, about 35 years.
We wound our way back to 3rd Ave West and to the end of our big loop trip. The final numbers were about 7 miles with 1200' of elevation gain. I am really missing mountain trails but for now I am enjoying these in city hikes.
 Huge Tree |
 Let The Colors Begin |
 First Flowering Cherry |
 Face Masks On Flamingos |
 Spring Break Flamingos |
 Eucalyptus |
 Sun On Cherry Tree |
 It's A Bird! |
 Queen Anne |
 Fancy Fence |
 More Blossoms |
 Steep Descent |
 Seattle From Kerry Park |
 Usual Kerry Park View |
 Clematis |
 Bear In The Window |
 Hey, Another Cherry! |
 Lots Of Cherry Trees |
 Just A House Turret |
 The Coleman House |
 A Tiger |
 Glacier Peak |
 Gas Works Park |
 More Flowers |
 Rhododendron In Bloom |
 Colorful Yard |
 Trillium In Bloom! |
 Steepest Hill |
 Glass Fixture |
 SPU Tulips |
Trips - 2020
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