The Park Less Traveled: 7 Seattle Parks to Discover
Written by Elise Gruber
Filed under: Outings and activities Family fun Ages 3-5
7. Herring's House Park, Duwamish Industrial Area (Southwest Seattle)
To really go off the beaten track, try Herring's House Park. Located off West Marginal Way S.W. next to the Duwamish River in a heavy industrial setting, this park is a stopping place for bikers going along the Duwamish Trail from West Seattle to Georgetown. To get to the main part of the park, head south/right from the parking lot, bear right at the gray storage shed, and enter a large meadow.
The coolest thing about this park is the Native American-style salmon story told in a series of plaques along the trail that skirts the river. My 4-year-old daughter and her friend enjoyed having the adults read the story out loud. There are picnic tables as well as interesting geological and historical markers about the area in the meadow.
Challenges: The big one is that the kids absolutely can’t go in the water, which is still quite polluted. And it’s easy to miss while driving along West Marginal Way. Still, it’s cool to see the city making pocket parks in strange places and taking the time to provide the history of these areas. And if the kids love seeing huge container ships floating by, this is the place to go.
Logistics: Here are directions and more information.
Photo credit: Benjamin Lukoff, flickr
Elise Gruber is a former software project manager and SAHM who loves exploring and writing about the wonderful parks in the Puget Sound area.