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9 Supercool Tree Houses, Forts and Lookouts Around Seattle to Explore With Kids

Unleash your kids’ imaginations exploring a fort, climbing a tower or touring a tree house

Published on: May 25, 2023

9 Supercool Tree Houses, Forts and Lookouts Around Seattle to Explore With Kids

A girl plays with the wood pile at Magnuson Park Children’s Garden in Seattle, among magical forts, treehouses and other spots for kids
Photo:
Magnuson Park Children’s Garden log pile

8. Magnuson Children’s Garden

Next time you visit enormous Magnuson Park in Northwest Seattle, perhaps for soccer practice or a romp on the beloved Junior League Playground, save a little time to explore the Magnuson Children’s Garden, a hidden gem just across the street and to the north of the playground.

An unexpected delight at the garden is the log pile. This pile of decomposing wood is a favorite feature among kids. This 75-square-foot area contains splinter-free wood that kids can pull apart to see decomposition and its accompanying living creatures, or use to build small piles, forts and other constructions.

Tips: Dress to get dirty, and some children might want gloves if they are first-time users or squeamish about touching rotting wood. Parents and their kids should know it’s fine to pick up roly-polys, potato bugs, worms and millipedes but avoid picking up spiders and centipedes.

Info: The log pile is accessible during the hours that Magnuson Park is open; it’s not off-limits during Children’s Garden programs, but plan a visit in the afternoon during spring and summers to experience the full range of use. 

Don’t miss: The Children’s Garden offers other highlights for kids in its small but very well-designed space. Take a roll down the "Rolling Hill," walk the spiral path to a lookout, the highest point in the garden, and look for the Grey Whale Garden with its tail (which can be climbed!) and tall grass spout. There is also a scavenger hunt that kids can go on, beginning at the Children’s Garden shed.

Next stop: Hobbit abodes

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