The leaves are finally starting to fall and there is no better place to admire King County’s incredible scenery than from a historic Metro bus. The annual Metro Employees Historic Vehicle Association (MEHVA) Fall Foliage Tour is back this year on October 25. Ride on one of the historic buses in MEHVA’s fleet through the Cascade foothills. Buses depart from 6th Ave S & S Royal Brougham Way (one block from Stadium station) at 11am and will return around 3pm. Tickets cost $10 and the group will stop for lunch along the way.
If you prefer to stay in Seattle, the Washington Park Arboretum is incredible this time of year. The arboretum is located just west of Madison Park, near stops for routes 8, 11, 43, 48, and the G Line. UW station is the closest Link station, about a 20 minute walk from the park.
This is an open thread.
Arboretum access:
Route 11 at Lake Washington Blvd, the southern entrance. This gets you into the park immediately, but it’s a ten minute walk to the wooded trails you came for. The G stops one stop short of this at Madison & 27th.
Routes 48 and 43 at McGraw Street, the western entrance. The park entrance is on Lynn Street a block south. It goes over a footbridge over Lake Washington Blvd, and the first section is the Pinetum, with native trees. Exotic trees and flowers are beyond that.
In the past I’ve gone down the stairway on the south side of the Montlake Bridge, and followed the path around to the Foster Island trail and the Arboretum, but that last few times I’ve tried it from the park, the trail had a washed-out gap and was closed.
There’s also access from Lake Washingon Blvd at Montlake Blvd, and maybe from the 520 lid, but I haven’t been that way since it was rebuilt, and my memory is a long walk next to the freeway.