October 2025 Strolling the Shilshole Docks

October 2025 Strolling the Shilshole Docks 

Shilshole Bay Marina is a 1400-slip^[1] saltwater marina in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, operated by the Port of Seattle. The marina is protected by a 4,000-foot (1,200 m) breakwater,^[1] features a roughly 1-mile (1.6 km) public promenade with view of the Olympic Mountains, and includes Leif Erikson Plaza, site of a 16-foot (4.9 m)^[2] statue of the Viking Leif Erikson. 

Seattle has a long storied maritime history as Seattle has been a departure point for all points North and West via Puget Sound otherwise known as the Salish Sea. Shilshole marina has added to that history since 1958. Whatever happened in the Pacific Northwest most likely started in Seattle. Walking the docks at Shilshole, I can verify that almost every conceivable pleasure boat ever built is represented among these docks. Many pick my curiosity.

This is "Dulcinea" a Hirondelle MK III is a fictional character who is unseen in Miguel de Cervantes's novel Don Quixote. Don Quixote believes he must have a lady, under his personal view that chivalry requires it.^{[1]: 117 [2]} As he does not have one, he invents her, making her the very model of female perfection see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hirondelle_(catamaran)

I talked to the owner and he said an instructor at Windworks sailing club owned it and sold it to a guy who had it trucked to San Diego. A year later he called the guy up and bought it from him and he trucked it back to Seattle. He called it the Volkswagen Westfalia of sailboats. If I wanted a small catamaran, this would be it!

This is a new Seward 26rk which just recently arrived on N dock. Before we bought our cruising boat Wand'rin Star I considered spending some time trailer sailing. The great thing about owning a trailerable sailboat is having the opportunity to sail in many different bodies of water without taking long ocean voyages. If I was a trailer sailor, this would be high on the list for sure. see: https://goodoldboat.com/seaward-26rk-boat-review-2/#:~:text=With%20a%20retractable%20rudder%20and%20lifting%20keel%2C%20the,these%20boats%20are%20much%20loved%20by%20their%20owners.

I love cutter rigged boats, we chartered a cutter rig years ago in the San Juans and having a third sail certainly adds to the spice. This vessel is surely on its second or third owner by now and makes a great Salish sea boat!

Several Tall ships in the Sound, The Adventuress is based at Shilshole
See: https://www.soundexp.org/

Classic motor vessels abound at Shilshole

Next Stop Hawaii

Dragonfly 28 Performance if you want to get there fast in a sailboat
I like how the amas fold in so close to the mail hull, easily fits in a monohull slip!
See: https://dragonfly.dk/boats/dragonfly-28/

Nothing wrong with a Motor Sailor in the PNW

There a a few boats around the marina that have seen better days and dingys!

A Cutter Ketch gives a wide variety of sail plans,

There are so many wooden vessels still in the PNW there is a huge annual celebration for these boats each year in Port Townsend.

And if you want to motor all the way to Hawaii then this
 56' Kadey Krogen will do!

We saw several of these Florida Bay Coastal's  in Florida when we were cruising the Florida Keys. I have to wonder how comfortable these are in the Salish Sea, completely different environment from Florida!

                                                                                  

Here's a different angle of the Florida Bay, You can see how top heavy this vessel is, NOT comfortable in a heavy seaway! 

Here is a Columbia 34' Mark II, I first saw one of these when we first started sailing at Canyon Lake.

Of Course Shilshole has no less than three Yacht Brokerages on the premises. This is a brand new Hanse 460 Listed at $888,000.

Going North to Alaska, This aluminum Hull will help with the small ice.

                                                                                 

This fishing boat carries a ocean sized dingy, they lower the small boat to assist in spreading out the huge nets the boat is sitting on top of.  This boat is moored at the South end of 
Shilshole where the Native American tribes own two long docks with their fishing commercial/vessels

                                                                                

                                                                              

Another but smaller Tall Ship

                                                                                      

Wolfpack rarely gets to see her owners, I think we have seen them twice in the last several years, she is not the only neglected vessel around here. Last time we were in Seattle I saw the owners jump aboard, go down below and 10 minutes latter they were gone again.

                   

This is "Duwamish" the Duwamish is a local native American
 Tribe. It used to look like Wolfpack but the owner paid Old Joe
(who's a live aboard on our dock who said he needed some vice money) to clean it up, took him about three days.                 The boat is an Aquarius 23

                  The owner finally comes buy to enjoy a few precious moments on his vessel. 

There are many seemingly neglected vessels throughout the marina. They seem to have the same story of aging sailors who just can't part with the vessel they have loved for so many years. The Moorage fees here at Shilshole are not for the faint of heart.  It points to a way of life that they want to take 
with them into their next life! Easy to understand why a Vikings funeral was to lay them aboard their vessel, set it on fire and let it drift into the sea.

We drove Big D to his soccer match just East of Redmond in the Cascade foothills.

The log cabin above the field had me wonder about life in the foothills, living in a log cabin, so many years ago.

 

We met our Seattle Family for a dinner at Ray's Boat House, There is a huge Wharf adjacent, Great place for a shadow.

A calm October night on the docks.

Now this Face book post is a perfect example of Live Aboard Life at Shilshole where there are 300 live aboard's!

We drove Big D to his riding lesson at Cougar Mountain Stables and got a tour of the collection of farm animals, These pigmy goats just wat to have fun. 

A close friend of Eeyore!

Sheep Dip

A Mini cow!

Llama Yama!

Stunning views from Magnolia Bluff

I use the Marine Traffic App to identify ships, this one has an unusual profile. It is a Cement carrier.

A walk along Magnolia Bluff

Wooly Bear Caterpillar, folklore holds that the relative amounts of brown and black hair on a larva indicate the severity of the coming winter. It is believed that if a Pyrrharctia isabella's brown band is wide, winter weather will be mild, and if the brown band is narrow, the winter will be severe

an Early October picture , trees starting to look like fall. 

A trip to Gold Creek Equestrian Center