The Beauties of the State of Washington Part 12

[Ill.u.s.tration: SMITH BUILDING, SEATTLE, TALLEST IN THE WORLD OUTSIDE NEW YORK.]

Within the city one should visit:

Lake Was.h.i.+ngton Ca.n.a.l Locks, Fort Lawton, West Point Lighthouse, Loyal Height.

University of Was.h.i.+ngton and A.-Y.-P. E. grounds, overlooking Lake Was.h.i.+ngton.

Lookout Tower at Volunteer Park.

Lookout on forty-two story Smith Building.

West Seattle and Alki Point--waterfront camping sites inside city limits.

Its many beautiful parks and matchless boulevard system.

Outside trips should include:

Mount Rainier, via Tacoma, 2, 3 or 4 days--auto or train.

Sol Duc, the "Karlsbad of America," and Lake Crescent, via Port Angeles, 2 days--steamer and auto.

Snoqualmie Falls (268 feet), 1 day by Snoqualmie Pa.s.s Road.

Cedar Falls, Lake and River, 1 day. Mount Si, near North Bend.

Lake Keechelus, in the Cascade Mountains, 1 day.

Hood Ca.n.a.l, 1 day; San Juan Islands, 3 days. See pages 29 and 33.

Whidbey Island--Coupeville, Oak Harbor and Still Park, 1 or 2 days.

Country Club, Richmond Beach and Edmonds--paved road.

Bremerton, to see largest dry dock in the United States, half day. Several good auto trips may be taken from here.

White River Valley, to the south, pa.s.sing Kent and Auburn. A paved road extends all the way to Tacoma and beyond.

Vashon Island, a large agricultural island and resort region between Seattle and Tacoma.

Mt. Baker, via Bellingham, 3 days. Stop at Everett on way.

Index, Gold Bar and Sultan for beautiful mountain scenery, fis.h.i.+ng and hunting; 1 or 2 days.

Tacoma, Olympia, Shelton and Lake Cushman in the Olympics.

[Ill.u.s.tration: MT. BAKER PARK BOULEVARD AND LAKE WAs.h.i.+NGTON

INTERLAKEN BOULEVARD

TOTEM POLE IN PIONEER SQUARE

VOLUNTEER PARK PORTION OF THE FORMAL GARDENS

HERE AND THERE ALONG SEATTLE'S BOULEVARDS.]

Renton, a busy city just to the south of Lake Was.h.i.+ngton; go by the Duwamish river route and return by Rainier Valley.

Black Diamond and New Castle coal mines.

See description of other Puget Sound cities, all reached quickly.

=PUYALLUP:= A famous berry center in the rich Puyallup Valley. Over a quarter million dollars worth of berries are s.h.i.+pped annually. All Western Was.h.i.+ngton railroads serve it, while electric interurbans and auto cars over the Pacific Highway provide several trips per hour to Tacoma. The Western Was.h.i.+ngton Experiment Station is here and the Western Was.h.i.+ngton Fair is held yearly. It is the transfer point for Orting, the site of the State Soldiers' Home, and Fairfax, northern entrance to Mt. Rainier National Park. For trips, see "Tacoma."

[Ill.u.s.tration: TACOMA'S STADIUM. DURING ROOSEVELT'S VISIT. SEATS 38,000.]

=TACOMA:= Population 105,000. Third city in size and importance in the state. Picturesquely located on Commencement Bay, one of the great harbors of Puget Sound. The Olympics complete the view toward the west while the Cascades on the east are overshadowed by Mt. Rainier (or Mt.

Tacoma), which seems to rise from within city limits. A complete system of parks, play grounds and boulevards add to the natural beauty. The residence portion of the city overlooks an extensive manufacturing section which claims the largest meat packing establishment in the west, the largest grain warehouse in the world, and the largest smelter west of b.u.t.te City, with one of the tallest cement smokestacks in the world.

Tacoma is also the largest flour milling center west of Minneapolis and the fifth city in exports and imports on the coast. Miles of unsurpa.s.sed highway lead south through a vast natural park consisting of broad prairies dotted with lakes and covered with groves of oak trees; or southeast into the famous Puyallup Valley fruit and berry district. Its improved parks comprise 1,120 acres, 640 of which const.i.tute Point Defiance park at northern extremity of peninsula, and 30 acres, Wright Park in center of city, having 3,000 trees and shrubs in 350 different varieties.

Other remarkable features are a natural amphitheater or stadium, seating 38,000 people; the highest lift bridge in the world and the only one on a grade; the Northern Pacific shops and a Union pa.s.senger depot, model of its kind; and a speedway of 2 1/10 miles where the motor races of the northwest are run. A rose carnival is held annually.

Suggested trips outside of city:

Mt. Rainier-Tacoma in Rainier National Park--see page 49.

Puyallup and Sumner to see large berry and dairy farms.

American Lake, camping headquarters for the National Guard.

Lake Spanaway, Lake Steilacoom and Country Club, summer resorts on southern outskirts of city. Some of the best natural roads in the world.

Olympia, Grays Harbor, Shelton, Hood Ca.n.a.l, Lake Cushman and the Olympic Mountains--excellent roads.

Electron, Le Grande and Dieringer--immense water power plants.

Eatonville, Ohop Lake, Little Marshall Falls, Wild Cat Falls.

Kapowsin Lake, Twin Lake Farm--dozens of lakes in vicinity.

Parkland, Fawcett Lake, Melville Springs, Clover Creek.

Vashon Island Points; Bay Island points on Fox, McNeils, Anderson and other islands.