“A Whirlwind Weekend”
Every year in March, Pete and I and a number of our good friends from the fire department head to Seattle to compete in the Scott Firefighter Stairclimb. For those of you who have never heard of this event, let me explain.
The goal of the Stairclimb is to climb 69 flights of stairs in the Columbia Tower (the tallest building in Seattle) in full firefighter turnouts while on air. Imagine climbing in your warmest winter clothes, carrying a forty-five pound backpack, and breathing through a straw. It is definitely one of the hardest things I do all year, but also one of the most rewarding.
The Stairclimb is a fundraiser for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, one of the forerunners in blood cancer research. So far this year, the Stairclimb has raised over 2 million dollars! That money goes to fund treatment research (I know several people who have received treatments that were developed using funding from LLS) and to provide support services to patients and their families.
Sound like a worthwhile cause? We think so. And the good news is, there is still time to donate. To learn more about the Stairclimb or to donate, visit our team page. Donations for this year will be accepted through June 2019, or look us up next year. Want to participate next year? This event is open to firefighters from around the world. And if you are not a firefighter, don’t worry. There is a civilian race–The Big Climb–that takes place two weeks after the firefighter event.
Ok, now I’m done with my shameless pitch and moving on to the actual point of this post: to tell you about our adventures in Seattle!
Seattle is a really cool city, a strange mix of high powered business and an earthy outdoor experience. Since the main focus of our whirlwind trip is the Climb, we don’t get to explore as much as we would like. (We don’t even bring the dogs; check out our post next week to see how we decide whether or not to bring our furry friends along.) We only have a couple days, and we don’t want to wear ourselves out.
But we do get one day every year to poke around Seattle a little bit. In the past, we have checked out the Museum of Flight, Georgetown Brewery, Pike’s Place, and Green Lake, all of which I would recommend. This year we made a quick visit to Bainbridge Island.
Bainbridge Island
Bainbridge Island is a city on an island (same name) on the western side of Puget Sound, directly across from Seattle. It is connected to Kitsap Peninsula to the north by the Agate Pass Bridge. It can also be reached by ferry from the Colman docks, near downtown Seattle.
Our main purpose for visiting Bainbridge Island was to see a friend of mine, so we weren’t able to do a lot of touristy stuff, but it was still a lovely day. This was in large part because it was a lovely day. After weeks of endless snow and bitter cold, we were blessed with a bright sunny day and 40-50 degree weather. It was like heaven. Sunshine and friends is a great combination.
There was another reason it was a great day: we got to ride on a boat!
And not just any boat. A really big one. Now, I’m sure to the many commuters who live on Bainbridge Island and work in the Seattle, the ferry ride across Puget Sound is just another mundane, everyday experience. But to a land-locked, water loving Montana girl, it was awesome!
We boarded the ferry at Colman Dock. You can either drive on or walk on, depending on whether or not you need your car on the other side. It is cheaper to walk on (plus the return trip is free), and my friend was able to pick us up once we got to the island, so that is what we did. Even if you drive on, you can leave your car and go enjoy the 30 minute trip, which is definitely what I recommend.
There is a large two-story enclosed area with lots of seating, restrooms, and even a restaurant. Pete and I, however, chose to sit out on the deck. (Ok, it was mostly my choice; Pete dropped repeated hints about how much warmer it would be inside.) I just love to be near the water so much, even if it was pretty cold outside in the wind in the morning.
The ride is smooth and stable. I was a little worried, because I am very prone to motion sickness, and the Sound is technically ocean water. But the wave action was much more closely related to a lake than the ocean, and I was fine. (The same cannot be said, however, about my ride to downtown in the backseat of a high speed Uber. Oh man, those ups and downs and abrupt stops are killer.)
Fay Bainbridge State Park
We spent most of our time on the island at Fay Bainbridge State Park. The park isn’t very big, but there are picnic tables, fire pits, campsites, and a small play area for kids, as well as a decent sized stretch of beach to walk along. We strolled and chatted with my friend, while her sons played happily among the driftwood. For seashell hunters, the beach was full. I found a smooth piece of pretty purple shell as my keepsake for the day.
Although we were just popping by, there were also cabins to rent, which my friend had heard were fun places to stay. We quickly added it to our ever growing list of places we would like to explore in Washington.
Winslow
After our chat, our friend dropped us off at Winslow, the artsy downtown area (and the original name of the city), where we wandered around until we found a little espresso place–Cups Espresso–with sandwiches, smoothies, and coffee. Then we poked around the shopping area some more, checking out several stores, including one devoted entirely to dogs: B.I. Barkery (ok, they had some cat stuff too, but I didn’t care much about that). There is apparently a famous ice cream store that my friend recommended to us–Mora’s–but we felt like ice cream was not a great idea with the Climb the next day.
The area was in easy walking distance of the ferry, and after we checked out the shops we headed down to a little wooded park and then on to the beach. It was a very relaxed day, just what we needed to loosen ourselves up after an eight hour drive the day before.
Other Options
We had actually planned to spend a little more time exploring the island, but on the ferry ride over, Pete–our Stairclimb team captain–realized our registration packets that we had picked up earlier in the morning were incomplete, and we had to make sure we were back downtown before registration closed at four. If we had had a little more time on the island, there were a couple more places we were planning to check out.
Bloedel Reserve: This 150-acre forest garden was designed to be a Western version of a Japanese garden. It has numerous trails to wander and enjoy, and provides an opportunity to learn about local flora.
Bainbridge Island Museum of Art: a contemporary art museum in Winslow, within easy walking distance of the ferry. Entrance to the museum is free.
Bainbridge Historical Museum: this collection of artifacts and history tidbits is housed in an old schoolhouse. I love poking around places like that.
So clearly, we will have to come back and more thoroughly enjoy Bainbridge Island another time.
The Stairclimb Itself
On Sunday, we got up incredibly early to go stake out a spot for our team. The opening ceremonies, including touching stories from survivors and bagpipes and drums, kick off at 7:30. The first elite battalion (the fastest climbers from the previous year) starts at 8:00, and then we all wait our turn to climb the tower.
The climbers are organized into battalions of about 50 people. When your battalion is called, you gather in the atrium in the first floor then go up to the fourth floor to check in and line up outside (the ground floor on the north side of the building). Then every 12 seconds, a climber is sent into the fire escape, crossing a mat that registers a chip in his/her racing bib.
Halfway up (the 40th floor), climbers have the option to change air bottles (our team just changes the whole pack). It seems like it would be a nice little break, but our bottle changer is so efficient that it is always less than a minute before you are back in the stair well.
Once you reach the top, a couple of people greet you and make sure you are ok and help you get all of your gear off (everyone is always so hypoxic at this point that it can be tricky). They give you some much needed water and guide you to a place to rest and catch your breath. As soon as you are ready, you cram into the world’s smelliest freight elevator and head down.
This year I climbed in 30:31, a slow and steady pace. I’m more of an endurance person than a speed person. Pete did much better, completing his climb in 22:09, his personal best.
It may not sound like the most fun in the world, and I’ll admit, the Climb itself pretty much sucks. But not only does the cause make it worth it, but it is also just a really fun trip with a really great group of people.
We often refer to the other people on the fire department and their spouses and children as our “fire family.” For the Stairclimb, we rent a VRBO house for the whole group, cook up several excellent meals–this year we had surf and turf; we probably should have packed safety goggles for all the flying bits of cracked crab legs–and just relax. One of our friends makes a killer gin and tonic, and at least one person always brings a cribbage board.
As with all VRBOs, the houses we stay at can be a little hit or miss. This year we stayed at the House of Suffrage (decorated with campaign ads and newspaper pages covering elections), and generally we liked it, although it had a few quirks. We loved the comfy couches around a little propane fireplace, the big bedrooms, beautiful deck, and the high pressure shower heads.
The kitchen, which claimed to be fully stocked, was a little frustrating though. It certainly had a lot of stuff in it, but we are not convinced the owners are actual cooks, because we regularly came up short on things we needed. Plus the dishwasher was broken, and the microwave was in an awkward spot in the pantry. Still, they were as helpful as possible, rushing over with a new tank of propane when we told them the bbq was empty. I guess the moral of the story is: always pack what you need to cook with, cause you never know what you are going to find.
Eating Out
Jude’s Old Town: One night we went out to eat with Pete’s daughter and girlfriend at a cool little late night place with soups, sandwiches and a few specialty entrees (one of the specials was a pesto and shrimp grilled cheese), as well as a nice selection of local beers and cider. The ambiance was fun and quirky, and we thoroughly enjoyed our meals.
Sam’s Tavern: After the Stairclimb, the team went out for burgers to splurge. We found Sam’s Tavern, which had a pretty limited selection of beers, but a nice selection of burgers, including one that was half ground beef, half ground bacon and topped with avocados and more bacon. Pete is in love.
They make up for their lack of beer choices by putting shots of Jack Daniels or Baileys in their milkshakes. Unfortunately, they were out of milk when we got there. No worries though. Two of the guys walked over to a nearby coffee shop and ordered two glasses of milk. I can only imagine the looks they got, especially when one of them called out “Here kitty, kitty, kitty” on the way out.
The one downside to Sam’s Tavern was that they played loud rap music the whole time, which just isn’t my scene.
Stops Along the Way
Anyone who has ever made the long drive from Montana to Seattle along I-90 knows that it is nice to make a few stops along the way. Even I think so, and I’m generally of the belief that making stops during an already eight hour drive just turns it into a nine or ten hour drive. That being said, you do occasionally have to stop for food and bathroom breaks anyways, so you might as well make the most out of your time outside the card.
Here are our stops on this trip:
Snoqualmie Falls: This waterfall is just a little ways off of the interstate just a half hour or so east of Seattle. I’ll be honest, we mostly stopped because it was 3:00 and we weren’t sure we could get into our VRBO before 4:00 (another car full of people got there before us, and it turns out they were able to get in). But also, I love waterfalls, so it was an easy sell.
The water was already fairly impressive, and the spring run-off hasn’t even come in yet. Pete says when it does the entire channel will be filled with water. The falls are part of a small park, complete with walking paths and a viewing area. There is also a very snazzy looking lodge right next to it, with a dining room overlooking the falls, which we scoped out while we popped in to use the restroom.
Wallace Brewery: On the way back, we got hungry around Spokane, but decided to push a little further to eat at a nice restaurant–the 1313–that Pete had tried in Wallace, ID. Unfortunately, that restaurant turned out to be closed for the day, as did the next several places we tried. Apparently it was some sort of unofficial spring cleaning day in town. We ended up just grabbing diner food at the hotel, which kept us from starving, but wasn’t really exciting enough to be worth the wait.
All was not lost though. We were still able to visit the Wallace Brewery, a favorite of Pete’s, and try a flight. As per usual, we went for their darker beers (although Pete did try their IPA at lunch, which was excellent). We can thoroughly recommend their oatmeal stout and the strong ale–an English ale that was far smoother than you’d think for a strong beer. Their amber and red ale were also pleasant, but we were sadly unimpressed by their scotch ale (which is why flights are such an important part of our lives; I like most scotch ales, but I wouldn’t have wanted that one as my only drink).
The ambiance of the brewery is pleasantly simple and rustic, with old-fashioned metal handles and wood etchings on the countertop. There was a pool table in the back and a shelf full of board games, including a Jenga tower with very large blocks. While we didn’t have them with us, we learned that dogs are allowed, although children are not. You have to be at least twenty one to get in (I got carded, which is always a nice feeling).
In Conclusion
The Stairclimb weekend is always a little bit of a tease. We never really have the time or energy to explore as much as we would like. But on the other hand, if it weren’t for this weekend, we might not have gone to Bainbridge Island at all, and we wouldn’t know that we want to come back and explore it further.
So rest assured, we grabbed every travel brochure we saw at the ferry terminal, and are now busy planning our next Washington excursion.