This is one of our very favorite explorations of Seattle stairs, partly because it was one of the first routes we discovered. But there's also a unique, immersive feeling as you walk along hillsides through the heart of the neighborhood, cloaked among the trees. Lake Washington is a big visual presence here too, as it is with the other Seattle stairway walks along the shoreline (check out the map on the Home page). The Lakewood-Seward Park neighborhood also has an interesting history that is closely tied to the level of the lake, which fell 9 feet in 1917. You can learn more about that in the book, which also provides directions for an optional walk through old Wetmore Slough, now high and dry and known as Genesee Park.
The "www" icon denotes additional pictorial content referenced in the book (to see it, click on the slides).
A first view of the lower Ferdinand Street stairway
A Note About Lakewood/Seward Park
Strictly speaking, this stairway walk remains entirely within the confines of the Lakewood Park neighborhood. Seward Park is just next door to the south, but the area is often referred to collectively as Lakewood-Seward Park. In 1907 the entire Rainier Valley area was annexed to Seattle, including the partially developed residential neighborhoods known as "Lakewood" and "Seward Park."
To further confuse things, in 1911 the city bought Bailey Peninsula from the Bailey family in order to create a city park called Seward Park. It's always a great place to visit, and the book has directions from this walk's starting/ending place. Seward Park has miles of walking trails around the peninsula perimeter and throughout the old-growth interior. It has a swimming beach and play areas, as well as an Audubon Center that helps visitors view and understand the local habitat and animal life.
Article originally appeared on Seattle Stairway Walks (http://www.seattlestairwaywalks.com/).
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