Bellevue Outdoor Activities

Backed by 30 total years of experience that includes teaching kayaking and selling equipment for REI, Barbara Gronseth shares her passion for the outdoors through Issaquah Paddle Sports. Profiled in the Issaquah Press, Barbara and her team—which includes husband George—rent stand-up paddleboards, kayaks, and NuCanoe Kayaks to all ages of outdoorsmen. Since Issaquah Paddle Sports is located within Lake Sammamish State Park near Tibbetts Beach, its protected beach affords visitors a relaxed setting for launching into the lake.

Beyond supplying guests with equipment, Barbara's team also leads programs that range from guided tours to experiences designed exclusively for women and kids. Additionally, the staff arranges lessons in kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding through parent company Kayak Academy. Back at the clubhouse, attendants dispense replenishments such as Clif Bars, SmartWater, and caviar cupcakes.

Surrounded on every side by the city's urban landscape, Lake Union affords a unique vantage point from which to see the Seattle skyline. The captains of Lake Union Charters and Adventures take advantage of this view by chartering adventures aboard the Solana, a sailing sloop outfitted with a full galley, icebox, and bathroom. Sailing adventures range from sunset cruises to girls' night out sails, as well as sailing lessons that give students hands-on experience in tacking, jibing, and whittling a peg leg. For an elevated experience, the captains also sweep passengers off on dinner cruises aboard the schooner Lavengro, a historic, 63-foot wooden vessel first launched in 1926 and named after George Borrow's novel Lavengro: The Scholar, the Gypsy, the Priest.

Within Gregg Rogers' Golf Performance Centers's indoor facility, a team of PGA- and TPI-certified instructors harness technological teaching aids and golf-fitness programs to groom golf games with pro-level tools and techniques. During lessons, the passionate aces can augment their golf knowledge with swing data captured by TrackMan launch monitors or cure chronic cases of the yips with ultrasonic sensors and soothing cybernetic bedtime stories of the SAM PuttLab. Named one of America's 100 Best Clubfitters of 2011 by Golf Digest, the center helps lonely swings find their crooked-stick counterpart with a formula that takes into account a multitude of scientific parameters. Along with fostering pin-hunting skills, the center pinpoints golf-deficient muscles and develops strategies for consistent movements with Titleist Performance Institute fitness assessments.

Fremont’s colorful disposition bursts through sidewalk cracks during The Fremont Tour, which the Weekly Herald described as “one part art history, one part local lore and several more parts street theatre.” Each 80-minute stroll trails the playful banter of costumed guides, who, with names such as The Fremont Fairy Godmother and J-efe, the Turkish Rap Singer, intersect facts with bits of comedic improv and performance. Public art and architecture take center stage as groups weave along the half-mile route, and engaging audience participation keeps tour takers from challenging passing sculptures to games of hacky sack. After the tour, Fremont’s lively atmosphere continues to buzz as the neighborhood’s public squares, food joints, and open-air market encourage further exploration.

The ability to swim allowed humanity to explore the seas, discover pearls inside oysters, and evolve arms devoid of inflatable muscles. Wave Aquatics Centers’ instructors understand the importance of such a skill, aiming to impart it within children and adults alike across the community. Working as a nonprofit organization fueled by the common purpose of providing students of all ages with a slew of programs and lessons, the staffers share their wisdom in Juanita and Redmond High School pools. They train their charges in competitive swimming, maintaining three teams, including a year-round Masters-level team taught by professional coaches and reformed mermaids.

On Tashunka Farms’ nine acres, the farm border collie often greets visitors at the gate. This fuzzy welcome is par for the course at the farm and animal refuge, where two spacious arenas hold stables and horsemanship camps. Equestrian training and horse care are the facility’s bread and butter—the dedicated staff recently took in a malnourished mustang named Chance and worked to bring him back to health with food, exercise, baths, and attention. This care also extends to the motley crew of the petting zoo, whether it’s to one of the fuzzy lionhead rabbits, soft chinchillas, fire-breathing chickens, or peculiar fainting goats that stiffen and fall over when they’re alarmed or excited.