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Leads to wildflower-filled meadows, and trails starting at 5,400-ft (1,646-m) to moraines and majestic views of the Nisqually Glacier.

Smog from automobile traffic now obscures the mountain more and more.

This store helped define Seattle as an outdoor recreation mecca.

The scant remains of the temperate rainforest old growth trees give a clue of what Seattle must have resembled before European settlement. Schmitz is essentially a deep, wide, heavily wooded ravine surrounded by residential streets, but street noises disappear among the magnificent trees and native plantlife.

For an adventurous sport opt for scuba diving in Puget Sound to discover undersea creatures such as wolf eels, octopus, sea stars, and urchins with amazing ranges of size and color. Divers embark solo or as part of chartered excursions to take advantage of the coastline that’s never victim to heavy damage or dangerous currents from Pacific Ocean storms.

Discover one of the largest Chinese gardens outside of China at the South Seattle Community College campus. Built by artisans from Seattle’s sister city, Chongqing, the garden spans two separate cultures. Using horticulture, rocks, and water, the Sichuan-style garden integrates China’s history, art and architecture, philosophy, and literature into a wondrous microcosm of the universe.

Seattleites wait anxiously for the first large snowfall that carpets ski runs in the Cascades. Crystal Mountain, Alpental, Snoqualmie Pass, and Stevens Pass attract faithful downhill and crosscountry skiers, and boarders who have honed their skills on the area’s famously challenging snow conditions.

Experts agree that it’s a question of when, and not if, Mount Rainier’s active volcano will blow again.

A new trend in wintertime sports is snowshoeing, an ancient method of walking on or through the white stuff. The National Park Service and local outfitters offer a series of guided walks. Beginners should start with an experienced professional guide to lead the outing.