Volunteer Park Water Tower

Spiraling up the Volunteer Park Water Tower, a set of 106 steel stairs leads visitors to views of Puget Sound, the Olympic Peninsula, the Cascade Mountains, and downtown. Situated on the Capitol Hill neighborhood’s 422.5-foot high point, the cylindrical, brick-enveloped tower stands among an Olmsted Brothers’ landscape—charming drives, gardens, lily ponds, a wading pool, and music pavilion. At the top of the tower, the Olmsted Interpretive Exhibit explains the Olmsted legacy, the 1903 basis for the Emerald City’s system of parks and boulevards. Other attractions in the park include the Seattle Asian Art Museum, $5 suggested donation, and the 1912-built Volunteer Park Conservatory, a free greenhouse display of flowering and exotic plants—note, the tropical houses offer escape from Seattle’s dark, chilly winters.