{"id":13357,"date":"2025-10-03T12:37:32","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T18:37:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adjustedreality.com\/blog\/?p=13357"},"modified":"2025-10-03T12:38:22","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T18:38:22","slug":"seattle-solo-adventures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/adjustedreality.com\/blog\/2025\/10\/03\/seattle-solo-adventures\/","title":{"rendered":"Seattle Solo Adventures"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I figured I\u2019d share some of the details about my Seattle solo adventures, the before, during and after, about how I went from kind of intimidated to prepared to take on a solo adventure (even though this was a solo-lite journey because I was only solo during the day).\u00a0 I know for some people going it alone for 4 days of sightseeing is no big deal but it\u2019s not something I\u2019ve done before and while I really enjoy doing this with my adventure buddy, it was nice to have a good experience by myself as well in case the opportunity presents itself again.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Planning:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t just set out on foot in one direction and start walking. \u00a0I did a LOT of research to feel comfortable knowing where I was going.\u00a0 When I was planning for our really quick trip to London in 2023, I noticed that \u201c3 days in x city\u201d was a big thing for travel bloggers, so now I search that for anywhere I\u2019m going.\u00a0 Obviously, I had more than 3 days, but it\u2019s a great way to find the highlights.\u00a0 Now, everyone else\u2019s highlights aren\u2019t always my own, so I read a bunch of these blogs, jotted down the things that sounded interesting, and then made a prioritized list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, with my goal to use no private transportation (rental car, uber, etc), I spent quite a bit of time acquainting myself with the map of Seattle neighborhoods, public transportation options, and just generally \u201cis this area safe\u201d (which the answer was generally yes, thankfully).\u00a0 Knowing my endurance limits, I actually put together a google doc with walking\/bus maps of my planned travels each day.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t follow them exactly, but it was a huge help to know where I was going, what order I was hitting each location, and how I was getting there.\u00a0 Google has great multi-step direction functionality, here\u2019s an example below of part of the trip I didn\u2019t use (reason being Volunteer Park was closed on Labor Day, I discovered Washington Arboretum was the same place we went last year so I skipped it and just saved the Columbia center for next time).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If this sounds like a lot of planning, I am VERY sure you can get by with much less, but as I am a consummate planner this was fun for me and really helped my confidence. If you like to just wander, great, but if that makes you nervous, I highly suggest selecting your sightseeing and mapping it out ahead of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Safety:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did a lot of internet research and like I said, got the vibe that most of the city was pretty safe in the areas I was traveling, especially since I was only roaming around during daylight hours.\u00a0 I also made sure that I was barely actually traveling alone.\u00a0 I had a shared doc with all my maps, and I went over my general plans for the day the night before.\u00a0 I also put one of our moto tags in my pack so Joel could see where I was all day.\u00a0 We were also texting back and forth every few hours at least and I was sharing stories on Facebook (friends only, and my friends are people I know, not random internet strangers) and not Instagram (where random internet strangers can see it) until I was done for the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While we had a\u2026 interesting encounter on the train from the airport (nothing horrible, just someone sitting near us that was very loud and yelly and political), that was it.  I took the bus four times and the ferry twice and had zero uncomfortable issues with the process.  I made a rule whilst walking that if I saw couples or women walking by themselves, I was going in an ok direction.  Literally ONE time I started feeling a little questionable, and I turned down one block, went to the next, and it was fine.  I felt just as comfortable as I do (and maybe even more) walking around my own neighborhoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of keeping myself healthy and happy while walking a LOT, I built a lot of knowledge along the way. I am glad that I had the idea in the planning phases to bring my camelback.\u00a0 If I was just sightseeing in the city I might have talked myself out of using this as space was precious in my carryon, but I figured it would be useful at least for the 2 light trails I was hiking and I am so glad I did it.\u00a0 No matter where I was, having readily available hydration was wonderful and saved me from buying drinks.\u00a0 The weather was absolutely gorgeous (60s and 70s), but I still came home sweaty and crusty every day, so having 1.5 liters of water or electrolyte drink on my back was awesome.\u00a0 Having extra storage was clutch as well. I started only with hydration and my mototag and some cash stowed in there but accumulated more things I wanted with me per day over the four days.\u00a0 It was also nice for the random fun things I picked up along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, in terms of knowing my own limits \u2013 I am very comfortable walking 10 miles.\u00a0 I am ok walking 15.\u00a0 If I had to, 20 isn\u2019t outside of the realm of reason, but I probably would have opted for a bus before that if possible.\u00a0 I\u2019m able to do this stuff because I have a lot of time on feet experience (many 6\u20138-hour walks and that big 13 hour one earlier this year), so adjust your expectations accordingly, this is a marathon, not a sprint (you don’t want to be so tired after one day you just bail).\u00a0 I think one of my subconscious fears going into this was feeling trapped somewhere, and reminding myself that I am able to walk long distances was a confidence booster.<\/p>\n\n\n

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I\u2019m really good at sharing the awesome on socials, let me share a few of the low points too here after the fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social Media Post Friday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Impossible to pick just 5 photos from Day 2 when I had so many adventures!!!
-Bagel and coffee and walked @jetsers to the convention
-Walked to the ferry to Bainbridge Island!
-Bus to Blodel Preserve
-Except not exactly, got dropped off on the side of a highway and 1 mile walk there on (gorgeous) neighborhood roads
-A few hours meandering at Blodel. 12\/10, do recommend
-Hiked the mile back to the bus stop.
-Was at the wrong stop, walked to the right one
-Waited more for the bus. Regretted my life choices as I had no snacks and my camelback was dry.
-Bus finally came, when they dropped me off at the terminal, I grabbed the nearest bag of chips I could on the way to find lunch.
-Proper Fish indeed. That was obscenely big and I ate every bite.
-Walked around some more and bought @jetsers some chocolates
-Returned to the ferry finding I had 30 mins to kill, so I walked around the waterfront park a bit
-Ferry back to Seattle!
-Walked the waterfront there. Bought a new hat. Got souvenirs for the neighbors
-Cotton Candy ice cream from the same place I had it in 2012!
-Hmart stop for snacks. I will not hike snackless again!
-Hand pulled noodles from Biang Biang
-Now\u2026 after 32.5k steps\u2026. ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other Things Friday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • Holy crap, the ferry back and forth was COLD!  I mean, 60s and windy on the ocean shouldn\u2019t have been a surprise, but when I pared down my carry on, one of the things I ditched was more pants\/long sleeve shirts.  I was in a very thin (and my only) long sleeve shirt and shorts and I was shivering by the end of it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • My timing was great that day \u2013 my walk down to the harbor got me to the ferry right on time and my walk off the ferry got me on a bus right away to the preserve, which meant I skipped getting the snacks I had planned on the way.  And the preserve had no snacks, nor was there anything within miles that did.  I was waiting for the bus at around 130pm out of water, no snacks, and was fading and feeling very despondent.   I had a decent breakfast (bagel with bacon and cream cheese and coffee), but that was 5+ hours previous and I was about 8 miles into the day. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The bus was late, which didn\u2019t help.\u00a0 By the time I got dropped off back at the terminal, I bought the first thing I could find (a bag of chips) and ate them on the walk to lunch.\u00a0 I also ate a bigger lunch than expected (a giant plate of fish and chips, and the whole darn thing, plus a beer).\u00a0 Felt better after that but see the note above on feeling trapped \u2013 while I could have feasibly walked the 6 miles back to the ferry if I had snacks, I didn\u2019t want to do two more hours of walking on nothing in my stomach.\u00a0 I thought about it with a clear head and found a gas station 1.6 miles away, a winery with a food menu 2.3 miles away, and I had the number of a service that would come pick you up and take you back to the ferry but figured that would take longer than the bus. \u00a0And it arrived, just 30 mins late.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • I stopped at HMart on the way back and grabbed some chips and candy so I wouldn’t get stuck again. And some Powerade. Because my dumb self was out of water at 130pm and never filled up my camelback again.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • ~12 miles total.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t feel like I couldn\u2019t have gone further, but it took a lot of calories to get me out of the hole I put myself in earlier in the day and I was happy to be done.\u00a0 So, Friday, we learned that Seattle requires slightly warmer clothing than one would expect in summer, and to always pack snacks.\u00a0 And bring extra electrolytes.\u00a0 Beer suffices but other stuff is better.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Social Media Post Saturday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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    If I thought it was difficult to just pick a few pics yesterday\u2026 oof. What a great day!!! So much of this is just in stories but\u2026
    -Being my best basic b$%#@ enjoying a pumpkin spice latte
    -Lifted chest and shoulders. 3x week, no excuses!
    -Chicago dog for\u2026 brunch? Whatever. It was amazing.
    -Walked through Pike Place jealous of the gorgeous flowers
    -Olympic Sculpture Park. Challenging to find how to get to there but figured it out.
    -Pier 70 on request from the neighbor. Was underwhelming.
    -Chihuly Glass and Gardens. OMG. They should have sent a poet. I enjoyed this thoroughly.
    -Hiked up up up up up to Kerry Park for more city views. This was awesome but didn’t even make the cut for pics.
    -D\u00f6ner Kebap for lunch!
    -A lady had all the discarded flowers from the Pike Place shop. I got a gorgeous sunflower bouquet for 1$
    -Apertifs
    -The Cheese Room for dinner. It was\u2026 amazing. Definitely a date night recommend.
    Only 27k steps today ? but I have another epic adventure planned tomorrow. Goodnight! ??<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Other Stuff Saturday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    • I don\u2019t have a lot of negatives from the day; it was an easier one for sure with many points where I could bail and all city adventures vs being anywhere remote.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • I had a giant Chicago dog for breakfast at 10am, so I don\u2019t think I even dug into my snacks that day even though I ate lunch at almost 3pm.  But they were nice to have.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • I wore the same long sleeve shirt since it was the only one I had.  It was a little stinky.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • I got kinda grumpy at the directions to the Olympic Sculpture park, and had to backtrack a bit and go up a very steep hill to find the entrance, but I also found a cool waterfront trail so it all worked out.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • There was this big festival that was blocking like a mile of street near the Chihuly Glass and Gardens in the direction I wanted to go, and I had to backtrack a few times to figure out how to find a street.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Kerry Park was a little underwhelming for the elevation I climbed to get there, if I didn\u2019t like doing challenging things for the sake of doing them.  I\u2019d probably skip doing this again unless I was bringing along someone Type B like myself (Joel) and maybe trying to do it closer to sunset to see if the view was worth it then.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • ~9.5 miles total tracked, but I didn\u2019t track the wandering in the gardens so maybe closer to 10+?  Felt great and could have done more no problem.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Social Media Post Sunday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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      Too much coffee at a breakfast meeting is the only thing that got me through today. I am absolutely dead tonight but had a fun day! Hike pics only. ?
      -Breakfast at Ruth’s Chris
      -Bus from Downtown to Magnolia\/Discovery Park
      -Hike hike hike! The loop was 2.8 miles, but the hike down to South Beach was longer (and very much down-er
      -Did not expect to actually end up on a beach, was very pretty. Then up up up up.
      -Regretted my life choices the night before dealing with a headache and heartburn the whole time. My kingdom for a Tums the whole hike.
      -Got turned around and hiked back out the way I came in.?
      -Across the locks and through a park with gorgeous flowers and a band playing
      -Club sandwich and a salad at Lockspot Cafe
      -Tums!!! Hooray!
      -Feeling better and meandered around the Ballard neighborhood
      -Apple cider donut ice cream at Salt and Straw
      -Walked around little bit towards the hotel but realized it was over 4 miles away so I caught a bus back
      -Took a bath and a nap trying to rally
      -Did not do so, and just ordered pizza and salad to go
      Sleeping early tonight. 28k steps. One more day of adventure tomorrow!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Other Stuff Sunday:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n