Mercer Island, WA Outdoor Activities

During Seattle Trivia Crawls, participants 21 and older make their way through a Seattle neighborhood as they prove their existing know-how in bouts of bar trivia. At three local bars along the way, the group splits up into teams of three, each sharing food, drinks, and minds to compete in rounds of general-knowledge questions that range from "Yesterday's News" to a Jeopardy!-style contest. The evening culminates in the crowning of pub-crawl trivia champion, who receives prizes to take home to the locker in which they get stuffed every night.

Seattle Scenic Flights' skilled pilots offer you a chance to see the city in a brand-new way: from the clouds. On flights ranging in duration from 30 minutes to 60 minutes, you'll get a bird's-eye view of landmarks such as Lake Washington, Safeco Field, Qwest Field, and Fisherman's Terminal. Enjoy aerial freedom like a sparrow on parole as you soar above the Space Needle, downtown Bellevue, and the University of Washington.

Seattle Scenic Flights can also set up aspiring pilots on an introductory flight lesson to the San Juan Islands. You and a friend will commandeer a Cessna Skyhawk with an FAA Certified Flight Instructor for a flight to the islands, where you'll then deplane for two hours to shop for souvenirs, savor the local fare, or snap pictures before heading back toward the mainland. Your flight counts 100% towards the FAA requirements for pilot training and will be documented in an official pilot logbook.

Master storyteller Anthony McDonald has a gift for the supernatural that he has honed since his childhood in New Orleans, one of the most haunted cities in the United States. He led fearless guests on his first ghost tour through the French Quarter in 1984, and today he points out specters along the streets and alleyways of Pioneer Square. During the 72-minute tours, McDonald recounts historical yarns about the twilight-shrouded town and shares local lore including the legend of the singing rain and its long-standing rivalry with Gene Kelly.

Though some ghost tours regale customers with tales of vampires and witches who haunt the local area, or at least visit while their coffins are being fumigated, the guides of Spooked in Seattle Ghost Tours prefer to stick to stories of ghosts they've personally investigated. Ghost hunters —including well-known paranormal investigator Ross, who has appeared on various TV shows to discuss ghost hunting—have examined each story and location through paranormal investigations. The ghost hunters take customers on walking tours through city streets and the darkened corridors of Seattle's oldest buildings, or invite them to have a drink at a few of the city's creepy watering holes.

Charles Mickelson knows Seattle so well, he can unearth trolls hiding under its bridges—specifically, the Fremont Troll, an 18-foot-high stone troll statue nestled beneath the Fremont Bridge. This is just one of the landmarks that Charles’s company, Seattle Qwik Tour, showcases on its signature 90-minute mini-coach tours. Their tour routes also pass the Space Needle, the Central District, and Viretta Park, one of Kurt Cobain’s old haunts. As the group rolls through the city, passengers learn statistics and historical tidbits from their guides while snapping photos of the scenery during periodic stops.

At Wrench Bicycle Workshop, mechanical experts Buck and Greg help maintain patrons' eco-friendly commuting machines with a comprehensive list of bicycle services. The specialists call upon nearly 30 years of combined experience as they adjust brakes, true wheels, and clean drivetrain systems. The duo services, rebuilds, and repairs all types of cycles. They also host a loaner program, which equips riders with Scott Sub 30 bikes while their personal steeds are resting up and conspiring against neighborhood birds with Ben, the shop’s welcoming dog.