Mike Greenstein Writing & Editing

Published in Washington State Visitors' Guide 2003.

The Wonders of Washington

The Evergreen State has many attractions, but perhaps its greatest is diversity. Starting at its eastern border, a traveler could drive across the state in one long summer day, passing wide desert vistas, fertile fields of fruit and flowers, powerful rivers, dense rainforest, three majestic mountain ranges, five volcanoes, hundreds of lakes, an inland sea, the rugged Pacific coastline and the most cosmopolitan city in the Northwest, reaching the westernmost point of the continental United States in time for sunset. And that's just one day.

Most visitors find the longer they stay, the more there is to see. Washington's attractions are found around every bend in the road and every ripple on the water, as accessible as they are dramatic. Virtually all are within easy driving distance of the transportation hubs of Seattle-Tacoma and Spokane.

Some are works of nature. Mount Rainier National Park has its famed 14,410-foot volcano and extensive glaciers, while Olympic National Park includes a jagged mountain range, 50 unbroken miles of wild coast and thick-as-jungle rain forest. North Cascades National Park features unblemished alpine wilderness, and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument honors both the 1980 eruption and the land's rebirth ever since. In Eastern Washington, the "butte-eful" vistas of the Columbia River Basin and the Palouse leave indelible pictures that define the West.

Other wonders, however, are made by man: Victorian-era Port Townsend, Seattle's Space Needle and Experience Music Project, Tacoma's Museum of Glass, Olympia's State Capitol dome, Whidbey Island's Deception Pass Bridge, the mammoth Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia or the Boeing Assembly Plant in Everett, the world's largest building. They illustrate how the architects of each generation continue to leave their diverse imprints on Washington's landscape.

The Great Outdoors
Many of Washington's attractions are linked to water. In Puget Sound, Washington's inland sea, the severe rising and falling tides create vast inter-tidal wetlands that constitute one of the most productive biological life zones on earth. The Sound's convoluted coast shelters a treasure trove of hidden coves, beaches and bays that are the delight of sea kayakers and other boaters, divers, anglers, shell fishers, picnickers and campers. Scores of state and county parks and beaches provide all sorts of recreational opportunities as well as spectacular island and mountain views. More great views come from the decks of the world-renowned Washington State Ferries, the largest marine highway system in the U.S.

Along Washington's Pacific coast, visitors will find craggy cliffs, unique sea stacks and miles of uninterrupted shoreline near family-oriented resort towns such as Long Beach and Ocean Shores. Deep-sea fishing, beachcombing, dune walking, storm watching and kite flying are among the many diversions available.

Travelers don't need to bring a boat of their own to relax in one of the hundreds of lakes and rivers located in every part of state, either. Stay in a nearby resort, cabin, yurt or campground and rent one right at the dock. The Alpine Lakes Wilderness, an hour east of Seattle, protects more than 500 lakes with wonderful high-country trout fishing. Lake Chelan, three hours drive from Seattle, is a freshwater fjord, barely a mile wide but 55 miles long. In the northeastern corner of the state, within a couple of hours drive of Spokane, hundreds of lakes dot the landscape, many with fishing resorts that take a step back in time. And the north-flowing Pend Oreille River is one of the most picturesque in the western Rockies.

Washington's rivers originally provided transportation for early explorers, including the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery, which came west along the Snake and Columbia rivers to the Pacific in 1805. Today, those rivers can be experienced firsthand in jet boats, river rafts and sternwheelers. The Columbia River Gorge, designated a National Scenic Area on both the Washington and Oregon sides, is also a natural wind tunnel that creates some of the world's best windsurfing. Floating and white-water rafting are popular on the Snake, Wenatchee, Yakima, Skagit, Klickitat and Elwha rivers, as is jet boating on the Columbia and through Hells Canyon on the Snake.

Access to wildlife is also easy--if you know where and when to look. Whale-watching cruises, by either motorboat or kayak, depart from Bellingham and many other ports around Puget Sound, with the most frequent orca sightings from May through August. Cruisers may also see harbor seals, bald eagles, porpoises, herons and hawks. To see Gray whales, try Westport in Grays Harbor and Ilwaco at the mouth of the Columbia River in March. Bald eagles are the wildlife stars along the Skagit River, the Columbia River north of the apple capital of Wenatchee and on the Olympic Peninsula's north coast in December and January. Othello, in the south central part of the state, celebrates an annual Crane Festival to honor the sandhill crane and other migrating birds that fill the skies of the Columbia Basin wildlife refuges each spring and fall.

Winter recreation used to be Washington's best-kept secret, but in recent years skiers have woken up to the abundance of first-class downhill and cross-country skiing within easy range of Seattle and the state's other urban areas. Sleigh rides, snowboarding, snowmobiling and dog sledding are equally handy to four-season resort towns such as frontier-era Winthrop and Bavarian-style Leavenworth.

Gateways to the West
Washington's urban landscape is as diversified as the state's wilderness. Waves of migration brought people from all directions, and its cities and even many of its small towns display a wide range of cultural heritage. Whether it's the Viking Festival in Scandinavian Poulsbo, the Dutch influence in Lynden, the Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon, a Native American powwow in Roosevelt or Wapato, frontier recreations at Fort Vancouver, antique furniture in Snohomish or the many Asian nationalities represented in Seattle's International District, Washington is proud to show off its roots.

Its cities sparkle. Seattle, America's gateway to the Pacific Rim, is known for its trend-setting styles in music and fashion and trend-setting industries such as coffee, aviation and computer software. The famous Pike Place Market, innovative Northwest cuisine and performing arts thrive here, as do fascinating museums honoring art, music, history and science. With Mariners baseball at Safeco Field, NFL football at Seahawks Stadium and SuperSonics and Storm basketball at KeyArena, Seattle is major league in every season. Thirty miles south, Tacoma has also become a regional cultural center, with a revitalized downtown and waterfront, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts and the brand-new Museum of Glass and Tacoma Art Museum. In eastern Washington, Spokane is known as the capital of the Inland Northwest for its central location, historic architecture, downtown Riverfront Park, many arts offerings, spectacular gardens and superb golf courses. Other communities all around the state also offer stellar attractions, distinctive atmosphere, family festivals, world-class dining and great shopping--from large regional malls to small boutiques and galleries featuring handmade Northwest originals.

And just outside of Washington's metro areas lie rich, fertile farmlands. The state is among the nation's major producers of lentils, wheat, potatoes, apples, pears and flower bulbs, and travelers can usually find fresh seafood and homegrown fruits and vegetables year round. Flower enthusiasts will love its many botanical gardens and colorful waves of spring-flowering bulbs, while people who cherish fine food and wines and zesty microbrews will appreciate the area around Yakima, Walla Walla and the Tri-Cities (Kennewick, Pasco and Richland), where abundant sunshine and near-perfect temperatures create peak conditions for producing an array of grapes and hops.

The Evergreen State also provides visitors with diversity in accommodations: modern campgrounds and RV parks; one-of-a-kind, rustic resorts; cozy bed and breakfasts; restored historic inns; contemporary five-star and boutique hotels; and motels for every price range. Whatever the choice, the hospitality is genuine, and the wonders of Washington start just outside the door.

	Mike Greenstein Writing & Editing

Home Biography Services Clients Portfolio Testimonials Resume Mike’s Blog Diary of a Wiener Dog Contact		Published in Washington State Visitors' Guide 2003. The Wonders of Washington The Evergreen State has many attractions, but perhaps its greatest is diversity. Starting at its eastern border, a traveler could drive across the state in one long summer day, passing wide desert vistas, fertile fields of fruit and flowers, powerful rivers, dense rainforest, three majestic mountain ranges, five volcanoes, hundreds of lakes, an inland sea, the rugged Pacific coastline and the most cosmopolitan city in the Northwest, reaching the westernmost point of the continental United States in time for sunset. And that's just one day. Most visitors find the longer they stay, the more there is to see. Washington's attractions are found around every bend in the road and every ripple on the water, as accessible as they are dramatic. Virtually all are within easy driving distance of the transportation hubs of Seattle-Tacoma and Spokane. Some are works of nature. Mount Rainier National Park has its famed 14,410-foot volcano and extensive glaciers, while Olympic National Park includes a jagged mountain range, 50 unbroken miles of wild coast and thick-as-jungle rain forest. North Cascades National Park features unblemished alpine wilderness, and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument honors both the 1980 eruption and the land's rebirth ever since. In Eastern Washington, the "butte-eful" vistas of the Columbia River Basin and the Palouse leave indelible pictures that define the West. Other wonders, however, are made by man: Victorian-era Port Townsend, Seattle's Space Needle and Experience Music Project, Tacoma's Museum of Glass, Olympia's State Capitol dome, Whidbey Island's Deception Pass Bridge, the mammoth Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia or the Boeing Assembly Plant in Everett, the world's largest building. They illustrate how the architects of each generation continue to leave their diverse imprints on Washington's landscape. The Great Outdoors Many of Washington's attractions are linked to water. In Puget Sound, Washington's inland sea, the severe rising and falling tides create vast inter-tidal wetlands that constitute one of the most productive biological life zones on earth. The Sound's convoluted coast shelters a treasure trove of hidden coves, beaches and bays that are the delight of sea kayakers and other boaters, divers, anglers, shell fishers, picnickers and campers. Scores of state and county parks and beaches provide all sorts of recreational opportunities as well as spectacular island and mountain views. More great views come from the decks of the world-renowned Washington State Ferries, the largest marine highway system in the U.S. Along Washington's Pacific coast, visitors will find craggy cliffs, unique sea stacks and miles of uninterrupted shoreline near family-oriented resort towns such as Long Beach and Ocean Shores. Deep-sea fishing, beachcombing, dune walking, storm watching and kite flying are among the many diversions available. Travelers don't need to bring a boat of their own to relax in one of the hundreds of lakes and rivers located in every part of state, either. Stay in a nearby resort, cabin, yurt or campground and rent one right at the dock. The Alpine Lakes Wilderness, an hour east of Seattle, protects more than 500 lakes with wonderful high-country trout fishing. Lake Chelan, three hours drive from Seattle, is a freshwater fjord, barely a mile wide but 55 miles long. In the northeastern corner of the state, within a couple of hours drive of Spokane, hundreds of lakes dot the landscape, many with fishing resorts that take a step back in time. And the north-flowing Pend Oreille River is one of the most picturesque in the western Rockies. Washington's rivers originally provided transportation for early explorers, including the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery, which came west along the Snake and Columbia rivers to the Pacific in 1805. Today, those rivers can be experienced firsthand in jet boats, river rafts and sternwheelers. The Columbia River Gorge, designated a National Scenic Area on both the Washington and Oregon sides, is also a natural wind tunnel that creates some of the world's best windsurfing. Floating and white-water rafting are popular on the Snake, Wenatchee, Yakima, Skagit, Klickitat and Elwha rivers, as is jet boating on the Columbia and through Hells Canyon on the Snake. Access to wildlife is also easy--if you know where and when to look. Whale-watching cruises, by either motorboat or kayak, depart from Bellingham and many other ports around Puget Sound, with the most frequent orca sightings from May through August. Cruisers may also see harbor seals, bald eagles, porpoises, herons and hawks. To see Gray whales, try Westport in Grays Harbor and Ilwaco at the mouth of the Columbia River in March. Bald eagles are the wildlife stars along the Skagit River, the Columbia River north of the apple capital of Wenatchee and on the Olympic Peninsula's north coast in December and January. Othello, in the south central part of the state, celebrates an annual Crane Festival to honor the sandhill crane and other migrating birds that fill the skies of the Columbia Basin wildlife refuges each spring and fall. Winter recreation used to be Washington's best-kept secret, but in recent years skiers have woken up to the abundance of first-class downhill and cross-country skiing within easy range of Seattle and the state's other urban areas. Sleigh rides, snowboarding, snowmobiling and dog sledding are equally handy to four-season resort towns such as frontier-era Winthrop and Bavarian-style Leavenworth. Gateways to the West Washington's urban landscape is as diversified as the state's wilderness. Waves of migration brought people from all directions, and its cities and even many of its small towns display a wide range of cultural heritage. Whether it's the Viking Festival in Scandinavian Poulsbo, the Dutch influence in Lynden, the Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon, a Native American powwow in Roosevelt or Wapato, frontier recreations at Fort Vancouver, antique furniture in Snohomish or the many Asian nationalities represented in Seattle's International District, Washington is proud to show off its roots. Its cities sparkle. Seattle, America's gateway to the Pacific Rim, is known for its trend-setting styles in music and fashion and trend-setting industries such as coffee, aviation and computer software. The famous Pike Place Market, innovative Northwest cuisine and performing arts thrive here, as do fascinating museums honoring art, music, history and science. With Mariners baseball at Safeco Field, NFL football at Seahawks Stadium and SuperSonics and Storm basketball at KeyArena, Seattle is major league in every season. Thirty miles south, Tacoma has also become a regional cultural center, with a revitalized downtown and waterfront, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts and the brand-new Museum of Glass and Tacoma Art Museum. In eastern Washington, Spokane is known as the capital of the Inland Northwest for its central location, historic architecture, downtown Riverfront Park, many arts offerings, spectacular gardens and superb golf courses. Other communities all around the state also offer stellar attractions, distinctive atmosphere, family festivals, world-class dining and great shopping--from large regional malls to small boutiques and galleries featuring handmade Northwest originals. And just outside of Washington's metro areas lie rich, fertile farmlands. The state is among the nation's major producers of lentils, wheat, potatoes, apples, pears and flower bulbs, and travelers can usually find fresh seafood and homegrown fruits and vegetables year round. Flower enthusiasts will love its many botanical gardens and colorful waves of spring-flowering bulbs, while people who cherish fine food and wines and zesty microbrews will appreciate the area around Yakima, Walla Walla and the Tri-Cities (Kennewick, Pasco and Richland), where abundant sunshine and near-perfect temperatures create peak conditions for producing an array of grapes and hops. The Evergreen State also provides visitors with diversity in accommodations: modern campgrounds and RV parks; one-of-a-kind, rustic resorts; cozy bed and breakfasts; restored historic inns; contemporary five-star and boutique hotels; and motels for every price range. Whatever the choice, the hospitality is genuine, and the wonders of Washington start just outside the door.
Copyright © 2011 Mike Greenstein All rights reserved.