Congratulations on your visit, or your move, to Seattle! Whether you are new to the city or are intimately familiar with it, many adventures await. With that in mind, here are 10 must-do activities.

1. Hit the Coffee Shops and Microbreweries
Coffee joints are everywhere in Seattle, and so are microbreweries. Each one has a special ambiance and unique flavors that are fun to sample as you hop around town. Lisa Grimm, at "Seriously Eats"  wrote a brief history of Seattle Microbreweries here.

3. Check Out the Neighborhoods
If you've already done number four, try again. Odds are good that there are even more neighborhoods to check out (West Seattle, anyone?). Seattle is your new home; what better way to get to know the city than to cover every neighborhood, whether you are renting or have bought? Plus, entrepreneurs and savvy real estate investors can keep an eye out for promising properties.

4. Look into Real Estate Investing
Speaking of real estate, Seattle has one of the hottest and most expensive housing markets in the country. If you buy a fixer-upper, you could rent it out for a nice profit. Get in touch with a property management company to better understand your options.

If you're visiting, owning rental property is a great way to make future trips tax deductible.

​7. Discover Ways to Get Around the Traffic
With some planning, there are great alternatives to sitting in city traffic. Biking is big in Seattle, and it offers a new adventure every day. There is also public transportation with light rail bus services. Traveling during off-peak times is another good option if you can swing it.

8. Go to the Tourist Spots
Ironically, many people who live in a city never do touristy things and visitors often miss all but the most obvious. Get to know the city through the public transportation system... it's a great, stress free, way to see the sights. Go to spots such as Pike Place Market and the Elliott Bay Waterfront, 

​9. Find the Farmer's Markets
Practically every Seattle neighborhood has at least one farmer's market, and you can often shop all year round. Check out the Magnolia Farmers Market and others, support local agriculture, enjoy music and people watch.

Patrick Rogers
​...is the Principal Property Manager for Asurent Property Management in Eugene Oregon and his company can be found here: PropertyManagementEugeneOregon.com

Probably the most unique spot in the Valley is Bannerman’s Island. I have to drive over Storm King Mountain everyday to get to work in West Point. It is a very scenic drive along the Hudson and, for years, I have seen Bannerman’s Island along that drive and always wanted to get out there and explore. There are myriad stories of people trying to get out there by canoe, or row boat, and getting in trouble, even losing their life, doing it. So that was not an option.
    
Then I heard about the Constellation Project. You can find out more about this and the history of the island by visiting HERE.

Melissa McGill is an artist. She had the idea to install long poles of various lengths around the “castle” with lights on the top of each pole. Each night as the sun goes down and the stars come out, Bannerman’s Island has its own “constellation” right over the island. 

They have set up a boat tour to take you out to the island, let you walk around the island, and then you get back on the boat at dusk, and, when the time is right, the sun is down, and the sky darkens, the lights begin to twinkle over the Castle. Visit Melissa’s web site for more info on how you can book a spot on her tour (and for a nice panoramic aerial video of the island).

For now, this is about my experience taking the tour. It's really quite easy. You get on the boat in Beacon NY; a very picturesque location across the river from Newburgh NY. You get there, find plenty of parking, and wait for the skipper and crew to show up. It is usually a full boat.

Once the boat is loaded, you head down the river, still with enough daylight to enjoy the sights on, and along, the river. As you get closer, you begin to see Bannerman’s Island.

When you get close enough you see the enormity of the structure. Such a shame most of it has collapsed over the years from not enough being done to preserve it. Not too long ago, though, a group set up to save the structure has installed bracing on the building to save what is left of it

​What I didn’t know before hand was that when you get off the boat, you have a series of steps to climb to get up to various strategic viewing locations for the island. When you get to the top of the steps the tour begins. This Architectural detail welcomes you to the property.

​As you walk along the pathway thru the woods you see the building from different angles, all special. This one is my favorite. It shows the Castle, its supports, some foliage in the foreground and a little bit of the river behind it.

As you continue to make your way to the high point on the island, you pass some gardens that were planted years ago and are still maintained by the group preserving the island.

When you get to the top there is a building built by the original owner, used to house the folks...

... by Joe Mack
Keep checking back to this site (or sign up for the NEWSLETTER reminders) because, in the coming weeks, I will be writing about other beautiful areas here in the Hudson Valley.