Pictures From A Seattle Scoot

Swifty folds into a compact package, great for bus travel.

Yesterday was a fine day for roaming around Seattle on my SwiftyONE. Swifty and I rode the bus from Issaquah to downtown Seattle. I had lunch plans to meet up with my friend Dave in Ballard but I had plenty of time to poke around along the way.

This is art.

The southern most edge of Lake Union.

Still a bit foggy this morning.

If you like getting up close to funky old watercraft, Seattle is your kind of city.

There are so many great vessels at the Center for Wooden Boats.

This dinosaurs are right next to the Burke-Gilman Trail in Fremont.

I love big, funky murals.

I can't fit this one into a single picture.

This is on the side of a tavern in Ballard.

The Man loves putting up signs at the Ballard Locks.

This sign is 15 feet away from the last sign.

Illiterate geese are notorious scofflaws.

You're still in Seattle but the Feds have jurisdiction here.

At least they thank you for not messing with the Man.

The no biking rule makes total sense. The walkways are narrow and often crowded and slippery.

Now that the fog has burned off, Seattle is really shining.

Swifty in the foreground, an idling coal train in the background.

Working my way back toward Elliott Bay.

My dad back in Minnesota (where it's currently about 70 degrees colder than it is here) is amazed that I can cope with the depressing weather in Seattle.

Actually, these blue skies are not the norm for January.

But when you do get a great day, it's best to take advantage of it.

Chief Seattle in the foreground with the monorail track soaring above him.

Seattle recently reworked Bell to be more pedestrian, bike and scooter friendly.

I don't think these were designed as scooter racks, but they work fine for that purpose.

Over the years I've become convinced that the best way to know a city is to explore it under your own power. Walking, running, cycling or scootering all reveal the things that are too easily passed by if a motor is urging you forward. With muscle power, as Hemingway noted "you learn the contours of a country best." Places reveal themselves in time and travelling at a human pace is a way of using that time to discover the humanity we've built into our communities.