Travel may be a little different this year, but it’s not always going to be that way. So this summer I kicked off a travel local blog series to highlight some of the really awesome places you can visit right here in Washington state! Because guys, we have SO many amazing places to see in our area! And I for one know that I have an even bigger appreciation for supporting everything local these days and want to continue that even after this is all over. So whether you’re adding to your future travel list, or we survived this whole thing and you’re ready to get your adventure on, buckle up because today we’re exploring Olympia, Washington!

After our trip to Austin, Texas and exploring their capitol building and all of the history, I realized I had never really spent much time in our own capital here in Washington! 🙈 So last year, we decided it was time to make a visit. Especially because it’s less than an hour away from Tacoma where we live. Here’s a look at some of the places I’d recommend you check out!

Explore the Waterfront

If you’re looking for a low-key afternoon. Head to the waterfront to enjoy the views! Olympia has a beautiful park along the East Bay right next to the Farmer’s Market which is the perfect place to relax and watch the boats (or ducks) go by!

Go to the Farmers Market

Olympia has a fantastic farmers market that has been providing local produce and supporting local artisans and businesses since 1975! The days and hours vary depending on the season but you can check their website for the latest. I’m a sucker for farmers markets in general but this one is so worth the stop! It’s quite large and there was a lot of variety in the offerings — even when we visited in the winter. So I imagine the summer is even more impressive!

Explore the Capitol Building & Grounds

Whether you’re into politics or not, it’s pretty impressive to see the capitol building up close and personal. Even if it’s just for the architecture alone! They just do not build buildings like this anymore and the scale of them is just insane. They also offer free tours of the campus (not during COVID though) where they’ll show you around and share history about the building for free. Even if guided tours aren’t really your thing though you can still wander around the building and just take it all in! We definitely ran up the stairs Rocky style too, because.. had to!

Get a Bite to Eat at McMenamins

When you’re ready for lunch or dinner, stop by McMenamins! After going to college and living in Oregon for a while, McMenamins was a staple in my life so it’s always nice to visit them in Washington too. There aren’t as many here as in Oregon, but you can always count on them for a solid meal and brew. If you aren’t familiar, they’re a family-owned company that is known for revitalizing pubs, restaurants, theatres and hotels and bring their unique flair of art and vibe that celebrates the history of the location. Some locations also have live music and events too! They also have a fun passport you can get which makes the experience even more fun too.

Explore the Murals & Colorful Walls Around Downtown

Olympia has a vibrant art community and it shows in its downtown district. The streets are painted with a variety of art that is both unique and also tells stories of its history. You know I’m a sucker for colorful fun walls too… we even have a colorful wall guide at Bold & Pop I love them so much! Be sure to check out this guide to make a plan for what you want to see!

Support the Local Shops Downtown

For being the capital of the state, the downtown definitely has more of a small town vibe. The downtown is lined with adorable shops to fit any interest — bookstores, gift stores, novelties, coffee shops, and children’s stores. So many awesome options that will certainly fill up your day!

Olympia was such a pleasant surprise and I definitely recommend adding it to your local travel list! I for one know I will be! Have other recs? Drop them in the comments below!

When you think of the Gorge in Washington, the first thing that pops into your mind is probably the concert venue. Which, hands down is the most beautiful concert venue I’ve been to. There’s more to do than just that though so I wanted to highlight a few cool things in the area. Whether you’re headed there for the weekend for a concert (post pandemic of course), camping or just driving through here are a few of my recommendations.

Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility

Every time I drive to eastern Washington I totally geek out over the windmills (turbines if we’re getting real specific). I don’t know why, but I just think they are so cool and have always been overly excited about them. Green energy is pretty awesome too! Well, get this, you can actually go to their facility and see them up close and guys they are HUGE! Like you know they’re big, but they’re even bigger in person. The facility is about a half an hour drive from the gorge and is definitely worth the trip. They have an info center that has a ton of information on turbines and then also offer daily tours. Even if you don’t check out the info center though just driving through the area is SO cool!

Frenchman Coulee

A lot of people come here to camp, rock climb or hike, but it’s also just a cool place to drive through and even stop to eat lunch. It’s right near the river and the rock formations are so cool to look at! Washington state’s change in terrain is so cool to me and this is a great place to enjoy it.

Cave B Estate Winery

If you’re staying in the area and you’re looking to do something a little classy visit Cave B Estate Winery! Central and eastern Washington are wine country and if you’re going to drink, you might as well make it local! The views from the winery are stunning too so I definitely recommend a visit!

Columbia River Scenic Overlook

If you’re headed back west, or on the way to see the turbines, I highly recommend stopping at the Columbia River Scenic Overlook. It’s right off I-90 at exit 139 and the views are spectacular. I know sometimes stopping right off the road feels so touristy… but SO worth it! If you go in the summer though I’d just recommend stay on the path and look out for snakes! It’s right in the sun and you know they like to get their sun on in the summer. My mom always told us this growing up when we’d go there, and 31 years later it’s still imprinted in my brain so I’m passing it along to you too 😂.

Wild Horse Monument

Another attraction when you’re headed toward the gorge is the Wild Horse Monument. It’s right off the highway where you can get an up close look at the horse sculptures along the hill with the beautiful backdrop of the gorge and the Columbia River.

Crescent Bar

Crescent Bar is another spot that’s become a bit of a party hub but it’s also a great place to just stop in for the day. It’s right on the water and the perfect place to go boating or enjoy the sun while you float in the water.

It’s such a beautiful area so definitely enjoy! Have other recs? Drop them in the comments below!

P.S. If you like keeping up with my PNW adventures, Evan and I started an Instagram account focused on just that! Follow along at @TheHicksintheSticks

All of this time indoors has me daydreaming about when we’ll be able to go outside again… That feels surreal even typing that but such is life right now. So as my own therapy today I decided to put together a post on all of my favorite hikes as a little excuse to daydream and go through a bunch of photos for each. Most of the trails may be closed for now, but they won’t be forever (or they better not be!) so definitely pin this post for later!

I tried including a little something for everyone with hikes of varying lengths, difficulties, and areas. Plus, I also included the stats for each according to AllTrails or WTA — both awesome resources for finding great hikes! Although I will say, sometimes I’d take the distance as more of an estimate because they vary site to site. So let’s get going on this virtual hike!

Greenwater Lakes

4.9 miles | 492 elevation gain | Easy | Northwest Forest Pass

This is a great easy trail with nice views along the way! It has a kind of sketchy (but surprisingly sturdy) bridge to cross a stream near the beginning and you end up at a gorgeous lake where a lot of people were relaxing by. This trail is the start to other longer trails (I’ll highlight one below) that is popular for backpacking so you’ll see a lot of people with overnight gear. This trail has great accessibility too because the service road it’s off of is paved all the way in (which definitely isn’t usually the case).

Echo Lake

14 miles (but I’d say closer to 15) | 2,339 ft elevation gain | Moderate | Northwest Forest Pass

We set out for the day only planning on hiking the Greenwater Lakes trail but had some steam in us and decided to get a little ambitious and hike to Echo Lake, adding an extra 10 miles to our hike. In hindsight maybe not the best planning, but we did it! It also crosses the path of remnants from a wildfire from a few summers ago so it’s a little eerie and you need to be careful in that section. All that being said, Echo Lake was so serene and really beautiful and a lot of the trail is shaded which is great for those hot summer days! There were also a decent amount of hikers on the trails but there’s plenty of space to spread out.

Naches Peak Trail at Tipsoo Lake

3.2 miles | 636 ft elevation gain | Easy | Northwest Forest Pass

If you’re looking for a nice quick hike with some amazing views of Mt. Rainier, this one is a great option. It’s located right off the highway before Chinook Pass and is an easy hike for all levels. Definitely pack the bug spray and sunscreen for this one. Even though it’s a short hike, the trail is in the open and I don’t remember any shaded spots. Even with bug spray you may get eaten alive by the mosquitos, but the views are incredible. If you want to make your hike a little longer, there’s a trail down to Dewey Lake which I definitely want to check out next time too! Another thing to note is this is definitely a late summer hiking option, it’s pretty far up so the snow doesn’t melt until later in the season.

Rattlesnake Ledge

5 miles | 1,469 ft elevation gain | Moderate | No pass needed

I’ll be honest… this hike can get a little crazy because of the people but it’s still one of my favorites because the views are GOR-GEOUS! If you can get up there on a weekday I definitelyyy recommend that because it will take you an hour longer from the highway of people hiking on the weekends. Like, I’m not going to sugarcoat it… it’s ridiculous and you get a lot of people who have no trail etiquette…. playing music, flying drones.. like I said, it’s ridiculous but if you go in knowing that or go on a weekday the views really are worth it.

Annette Lake

8.4 miles | 2,132 ft elevation gain | Moderate | Northwest Forest Pass

We actually ended up on this hike after trying to do another in the area that was too crowded — everyone and their mom wants to hike these days, me included lol. This was a really awesome trail though! You definitely get a work out in with the elevation gain but the trail is very well maintained and it had some interesting viewpoints along the way. A really great day hike!

Snow Lake

7.2 miles | 1,800 ft elevation gain | Moderate | Northwest Forest Pass

If you haven’t noticed… I’m all about trails with lakes! Haha, seriously though, the views are even better in person. This is another super popular (aka crowded) hike but again worth it. It’s tougher than Rattlesnake so you’re definitely dealing with more experienced hikers than you’ll find over there. The terrain is pretty rocky too so I’d recommend a boot with good grip. I’d also recommend an early start if you can too. Most of this trail is in the open so it can get a little toasty on those hot days plus the parking lot fills up fast.

Heather - Maple Pass

7.8 miles | 2,257 ft elevation gain | Moderate | Northwest Forest Pass

If there was a hike that had it all, THIS is the one. You may have already read my Methow Valley travel guide post where I gushed about it but I’m about to do it again because it is my absolute favorite.😍Hands down, this hike is going down as my favorite OF ALL TIME! This hike had views at pretty much every single step of the trail and truly it was just incredible. We saw views of some of the lakes, the cascades, wildflowers and even a few marmots! In the Fall they’re also known for their larches! Look them up, they look pretty cool. Since it’s a loop, there are a lot of people who recommend hiking it clockwise because they say it’s a little easier. We actually intended to do that, but it turns out we went counter-clockwise but honestly, either way, would be just fine. The way we went may have been tougher but having the views the whole way was so worth it. There’s also a decent-sized parking lot on-site and there aren’t any forest roads so it’s easy accessibility.

Mt Peak Cal Magnusson Trail

1.7 miles | 1,000 ft elevation gain | Hard | No pass needed

I grew up in Enumclaw so this one is a local go-to and one I do on the regular when I visit my mom. It’s only about 2 miles round-trip but has a 1,000 elevation gain that kicks my booty every time. It’s a really great workout hike and probably one of the only ones you can be in the woods but then hear a cow or chicken from one of the local farms every now and then. Always cracks me up. I usually just stick with the tried and true original trail, but they’ve created a few others over the years with varying lengths too.

Little Si

4.7 miles | 1,300 ft elevation gain | Moderate | Discover Pass

This is a great, pretty easy hike in the North Bend area. It has great coverage so it would be good for a hot day too. There were even people mountain climbing while I was up there which I thought was pretty cool to watch. The views up on the ridge at the top make for a great lunch spot too! The parking lot gets filled up pretty easily but you can park down the road across the bridge and walk to the trailhead if you can’t score a spot there.

Summerland Trail

12 miles | 2,950 ft elevation gain | Moderate | National Park Pass

The trailhead starts right after the ranger station for the National Park and I really loved it because it had a lot of variety! Waterfalls, streams, log bridges… it was awesome! There’s also a lookout if you make it to the top. We went on Father’s Day and ended up losing the trail after hitting some snow so we only completed about 9 miles of the hike but I’d definitely check it out again. The elevation gain is more gradual too since it’s longer so a great beginner hike. All and all, a really awesome hike and one that isn’t packedddd like a lot of the ones at Snoqualmie.

Grove of the Patriarchs Loop

1.5 miles | 50 ft elevation gain | Easy | No pass needed

This one is more of a nature walk than a hike but definitely worth a stop if you’re near Paradise! There’s no elevation change and it’s super short so definitely something for all levels too. Here, there are trees that are over 1,000 years old, which is just crazy to think about and they’re SO wide! It was really cool to see and definitely worth a stop.

Mount Ellinor

6.5 miles | 3,400 ft elevation gain | Hard | Northwest Forest Pass

This one is def on the tougher side but I love hiking up on the Olympic National Forest. We did this one right before they started removing the mountain goats in hopes of seeing them and we did! Don’t worry, they were further away than they look in the photo. Not going to lie though, this was a hard hike. At the beginning, it seems pretty doable but the last mile is STEEP! By the time we got to the top we were fogged in so we couldn’t see the crazy views but I have to say if you’re afraid of heights this one isn’t for you. I had a few moments where I was wondering how the heck we were going to get down. It’s not on the level of Storm King in term of heights but if you’re looking for a challenge, this is a great choice. Just make sure you bring trekking poles because you’re going to need them! It’s also up a long service road. Totally okay without 4-wheel drive but lots of deep potholes so you’ll want to take your time.

Hope you guys enjoyed some of these recs and if you have some other awesome ones I should check out this summer definitely let me know!

P.S. If you like keeping up with my PNW adventures, Evan and I started an Instagram account focused on just that! Follow along at @TheHicksintheSticks