Top Six Ways To Have Fun in Washington This Fall

Oct 13

Don your sweaters and scarves, my little Washingtonians! It’s time to have some snuggly autumn fun.

Plan a day trip

To The Farm at Swan’s Trail to pick your very own bushel full of crisp, crunchy apples. Located in Snohomish, this five acre farm lets families pick apples for $3/lb. There is a corn maze, a sunflower garden, wagon rides, a petting farm, and kids will be excited to watch apples pressed in their historic World War II cider mill to make fresh apple cider. The pumpkin patch opens up on September 26th. And the donuts must be mentioned -- the golden, spiced apple cake donuts are amazing. Enjoy them with a mug of hot apple cider, and make some memories.

Hike or bike the beautiful trails

Sweaty summer exercise is out, comfy autumn activities are in! Is there anything as beautiful as Washington in the Fall? Enjoy the cooler weather and the colorful leaves as you explore, like the golden larches of Blue Lake, or the waterfalls and mushrooms of the Mount Baker Area of the North Cascades. Maybe you’ll spot an elk amongst the drooping moss and evergreens of the Hoh Rainforest Trail. If you’d like your furry friend to join you, you can’t go wrong with Dog Mountain Trail #147, where pups are welcome so long as they are on a leash.

Interested in history?

Head over to Fort Ebey State Park. During World War II it was a coastal defense fort, and the battery still stands (don’t forget a flashlight!). Or check out the oldest lighthouse on the West coast that’s still functioning at Cape Disappointment, located on a river bar known as the “graveyard of the Pacific” for the ships it claimed. Or of course you can visit the Washington State Historic Museum, where there are historic bicycles from the 18th century on display, or the new exhibition in remembrance of the mass incarceration of Japanese American citizens during World War II.

Leaf Peeping

Of course, you don’t have to break a sweat to enjoy nature in the Fall. Our favorite ways to enjoy the foliage include driving along Stevens Pass Greenway, where leaves range from plum purple to golden yellow, followed by a visit to the nearby Bavarian-themed Washington State Autumn Leaf Festival in Leavenworth, WA [Note: the 2020 Autumn Leaf Festival is sadly canceled]. We also recommend the Whidbey Scenic Isle Way, where after a view of maples splattered all the colors of Fall, you can stop for a bit of shopping. For a longer route, why not take a weekend trip to the Chinook Scenic Byway, for a full scenery experience. From Mt. Rainer in the distance, to the White River, the breathtaking views are not to be missed in Fall.

Go clamming

Enjoy a cool day at the beach, and have a hot bowl of clam chowder for your dinner. Unfortunately many beaches are closed due to COVID19, but here are a few beaches open for clam, muscle, and oysters: English Boom Park, Snatelum Point, Winas-Maylor, Further North Camano Head, E East Point, Double Bluff SP and Possession Point SP, Dash Point State Park, Tolmie SP, Ballow, W Oro Bay. To check if a beach you have in mind is open for shellfishing, you can check with the Washington State Department of Health.

Haunted Cemetery Tour

Spooky season calls for ghosties and ghouls, and you don’t have to go far from Seattle to find some creeptastic cemeteries. Black Diamond Cemetery on Cemetery Hill Road goes back to 1884. The old wooden signs mark the graves of more than 1,200 skeletons, including children who died of smallpox and the spanish flu. Allegedly a white horse can be seen, as well as a line of coal miners whistling along with their lanterns. If you want a large cemetery to roam, the Bayview Cemetery is 234 acres. Also founded in the 17th century, local legend has it that if you lie on a certain marker called the Death Bed, your own death will be hastened. An angel statue weeps blood, or perhaps her eyes glow? Details differ, but everyone agrees that there is something hair-raising about her eyes.