Custom Search

A Tour of BNSF from Seattle to Everett

A self-guiding railfan tour

BNSF Swoosh Logo

Introduction

Between Seattle and Everett, Burlington Northern Santa Fe's Chicago - Seattle, and Vancouver, BC - Seattle main lines combine to send a fleet of freight and passenger trains over the rails. This tour takes you northbound from Seattle to Everett, and it traverses one of the most beautiful, scenic areas of our entire country.This is Pacific Northwest railroading at it's finest.

If you've not taken a Frograil tour before, you are strongly urged to visit the Frograil Tours home page, as it is packed with information and suggestions to help you enjoy your tour, maximize the effectiveness of your time, and keep you safe and comfy along the way. To navigate anywhere within Frograil, click on the navigation buttons at the top of each page.

Contents And Navigation

BNSF C44-9W About This Tour

BNSF C44-9W Other Tours

BNSF C44-9W Contributors

BNSF C44-9W Help

BNSF C44-9W Site Listing

BNSF C44-9W The Tour

BNSF C44-9W Supplemental And Back-Up Data

About This Tour

WHAT YOU WILL FIND HERE: From a particular starting point, each segment of this coverage will allow you to follow the instructions given, drive to a railfan site, then to the next, etc. etc. Traffic levels and patterns will be given, and the photographic/lighting considerations for each site will usually be mentioned. You'll be told about area attractions, such as tourist and historic sites, as well as hotels and restaurants which are trackside or otherwise worthy of note. In short, you'll be able to plan an entire family or railfan-only outing or even a vacation from this guide, as it is completed in the months to come.

WHAT YOU WILL NOT FIND HERE: This is a railfan guide, not a photo collection. There are already many excellent and enjoyable railroad photo sites available, and one more really wouldn't add much value to the general railfan.

Finally, no maps are included. Even if you cannot or will not purchase good deLorme or other such atlases, you can print maps from off the Net.

Other Tours

For information concerning the other Frograil tours which have been put together, go to the Tour Guide. You'll also find a recommended packing list and plenty of good advice designed to save you both time and grief.

Contributors To This Tour

Adaleta Balsalobre. In 2001, Adaleta established a series of Web pages devoted to northwestern railfanning. Her domain was northwestrailfan.com, but it disappeared some time ago. Her pages (or at least most of them) are available via the Wayback Machine archive service. Using her basic data, supplemented with excellent aerial images research along the entire tour, an updated version was possible. While Tony certainly used her original data, the 2008 Frograil Tour is quite different than the original. Please bear in mind that:

Tony has not personally visited these locations, and cannot vouch for their accuracy, and...

A lot can happen in 7+ years, and aerials are not definitive, so take precise directions and locations with a grain of salt.

Train Gif Artists. Train gifs add life and color to these pages, and take almost no time to load. Tony stuck these gifs in whenever he got the urge -- there is no rhyme or reason, he just liked them. You can see hundreds and hundreds of train gifs by going here.

Tony Hill, retired Webmaster and text provider, unless otherwise indicated. Any first person singular pronoun used in this tour refers to Tony Hill.

hubs hubs hubs slfldf ;kf; fsldfl ;ldsf

Help:

If you'd like to contribute to this, or any other tour, please contact me here, and let me know what you'd like to do. We'll work together: You supply the data/info, and I'll do the HTML stuff and upload it. You'll get a chance to review the fruits of your efforts before the general public sees the finished product, so you can let me have your corrections, additions and changes.

Supplemental And Back-Up Data.

Life Support. You're in a very much built-up area for the entire tour, although it may not seem so north of Edmonds. Life support -- food, hotels, libraries, hospitals, shopping, etc -- is never more than a few minutes away.

The Railroad -- Geology. The US Geological Survey calls the entire Puget Sound area a fjord system of flooded glacial valleys. However, the mountains, volcanoes, and other striking features indicate that before the glaciers, severe tectonic activity was taking place in the Pacific northwest. The 1986 Mt St Helens blast would seem to underscore this point, as well as point out that such activity is by no means over. Geologically, this is one of the most fascinating places in the Lower 48.

The Railroad -- Traffic. As of early December 2008, the following passenger trains stopped at the Everett Station:1 Empire Builder Amtrak in each direction; 2 Amtrak Cascades in each direction; 4 Sound Transit Sounders in each directions, for a total of 14 trains.

The majority of the freight on the line is off the Seattle - Chicago main line, both in terms of tonnage and train frequency, although the Seattle - Vancouver line is certainly active.

Street Names: Frograil convention requires that street/road names be completely spelled out, as there are many foreign visitors to our tours, and abbreviations can be confusing to them (and to some of us, too!). However, the endless prefixes and suffixes in King and Snohomish counties treatened to destroy my typing fingertips. Therefore, the following abbreviations are used throughout the tour:

W, S, N, E are basic compass directions.

Nw, Sw, etc are assigned by municipalities to separate northwest from north, southwest from south, etc.

Pl. Place, which is used to augment the more basic direction abbreviations. E.g., 87th Street Pl may be next to 87th Steet W, but not as far as 88th Street W.

TonyRailfan Maps that are available.

WEBMASTER'S NOTE: Tonydo not recommend or condone walking along the tracks, as this means trespassing and exposing yourself to danger. You will have to be creative, in some instances, to avoid trespassing while getting to the detailed locations included herein, but you will either have to be creative or not visit those sites. At no point in this tour guide, or any other tour which is part of Frograil, is it recommended that you trespass or expose yourself to danger. If you are a fool and have a leg cut off (or worse), don't come crying to me: You have been warned. Trains are big, powerful, and often surprisingly quiet. Don't end up being a statistic.

It is suggested you print this entire tour out and follow it on maps before beginning your actual tour.

.gkpekf klllklkj fldfeo ;lpooi oiouu

Seattle to Everett -- Railfan sites:
Alphabetical Sequence Sequential Order:
West to East
------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------
Edmonds -- Bracketts Landing Seattle -- W Galer Street
Edmonds -- Dayton Street Area Seattle -- W Galer Overpass
Edmonds -- Meadowdale County Park Seattle -- Alaskan Way W
Edmonds -- Meadowdale Marine Seattle -- Biking Balmer Yard
Edmonds -- Ocean Avenue Seattle -- Engine Facility
Edmonds -- Picnic Point Park Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 South
Edmonds -- Station Area Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 North
Edmonds -- Sunset Avenue N Seattle -- Nw 57th Street
Everett -- Harborview Park Seattle -- Nw 61st Street
Everett -- Howarth Park Seattle -- Golden Gardens Park
Everett -- Station Area Seattle -- Carkeek Park
Mukilteo -- Boeing Spur Crossing Shoreline -- Richmond Beach Park
Mukilteo -- Ferry Area Shoreline -- Richmond Beach
Mukilteo -- Old Beach Edmonds -- Dayton Street Area
Seattle -- Alaskan Way W Edmonds -- Station Area
Seattle -- Biking Balmer Yard Edmonds -- Bracketts Landing
Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 North Edmonds -- Sunset Avenue N
Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 South Edmonds -- Ocean Avenue
Seattle -- Carkeek Park Edmonds -- Meadowdale Marine
Seattle -- Engine Facility Edmonds -- Meadowdale County Park
Seattle -- Golden Gardens Park Edmonds -- Picnic Point Park
Seattle -- Nw 57th Street Mukilteo -- Ferry Area
Seattle -- Nw 61st Street Mukilteo -- Boeing Spur Crossing
Seattle -- W Galer Street Mukilteo -- Old Beach
Seattle -- W Galer Overpass Everett -- Harborview Park
Shoreline -- Richmond Beach Everett -- Howarth Park
Shoreline -- Richmond Beach Park Everett -- Station Area
The Tour

Seattle -- W Galer Street.From I-5's exit 166, go west on Mercer Street, a dead east - west street. When the street alignment changes abruptly to the northwest, continue on, and it will merge with Everitt Avenue W. Everitt will continue northwest, and the BNSF tracks are one block to your left. Just before swinging to the north, there is a ramp that will connect to the W Galer and Garfield Street overpasses. Do not take the turn up to the overpasses, but instead, find a place to park, and hoof it to the tracks.

The best non-private access is probably right in the vicinity of the overpass itself. Note that there are two overpasses here, with the southern one technically being W Galer Street, and the more northerly being the Garfield Street overpass. The former takes you to Alaskan Way W, and is the one I'm suggesting may offer the best non-private access.

You are at the south end of BNSF's Balmer Yard, and there are signals visible in the vicinity. Besides plenty of freight traffic, you will also see Amtrak's Empire Builder and the regional Cascades.

Seattle -- W Galer Overpass.From the track-level area under the W Galer overpass, on the north side of the overpass is a stairway/walkway leading up to the overpass. Take it up to street level. Down on shots of the south end of Balmer yard are possible to the north; however, the railroad is southeast - northwest, so shots to the south will be problematic, at best. W Galer is obviously a busy street, so stay on the north side of the overpass.

Seattle -- Alaskan Way W. To get to this location, you need to be heading north on Everitt Avenue, south of the W Galer overpass, because you need to go over that overpass to get to the west side of the tracks. The overpass ends at Alaskan Way W. This road very closely parallels the tracks on the west side. According to the aerials, finding a parking place may be a problem, but do so, and I'd suggest heading about 100 yards south of the overpass. North of the Garfield Street overpass is obviously railroad property.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Seattle -- Biking Balmer Yard.An interesting way to see much of the action along the west side of Balmer Yard is to do it by foot, along a biking trail. From Alaskan Way W, get back on the W Galer Overpass, and head back east over the tracks. It will also take you over and then down to Everitt Avenue. Turn right to head north, and the street very shortly becomes 15th Avenue W. At W Dravus Street, take a left and head west, crossing over the tracks, to 20th Avenue W, and turn left. As you go over the tracks on Dravus, look to the north to see the very large ex-Great Northern Railway's roundhouse, as well as the BNSF engine servicing facility.

Continue south on 20th Avenue W, and stay straight ahead. 20th will take you to the Balmer Yard office building, but continue straight ahead to the end of the road. At the southern end of the road is an entrance to a bike trail. Walk (or ride your bike if you have one) along the west side of the yard. There is fencing, but watching the action can be very enjoyable.

Seattle -- Engine Facility.Go back up 20th Avenue W to W Dravus Street and turn right. You'll go back over the tracks and should get back onto 15th Avenue W heading north. Take the exit for W Emerson Street, and you'll go 360º within a couple of doozey turns to a T with the Emerson overpass. Turn left to go over some tracks, and when the road reaches ground level, take your first left. This will take you into the Interbay roundhouse/engine facility area, but before trespassing, take an almost immediate left onto 16th Avenue West. You have a decent view of some of the engine facilities, but you need to be careful not to trespass.

Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 South.Go back out to West Emerson Street and take a left to go west. At 22nd Avenue West, take a right and go up to West Commodore Way, and turn left to head northwest. When you see the large bridge going up and over the inlet to the north, look for a parking lot on the right. The area under the bridge is part of the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks complex, one of Seattle's busiest tourist destinations. It's a great place to just sit and watch the boats parade thru the lock system, watch the water, and enjoy the trains over this massive bridge.

If the huge lift bridge is in the up position (as it usually is), boats can freely pass beneath it. But if it's in the down position, expect a train shortly.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Seattle -- Bridge 6.3 North.From the south end of the 6.3 lift bridge, re-trace your route back to 15th Avenue W and head north to go over the water to the Ballard area of Seattle. Once past the water, the street is renamed to 15th Avenue Nw. Take the first down ramp to Nw Ballard Way. Turn left to go under the 15th Avenue overpass, and continue west until you reach 17th Avenue Nw. Turn left and drive one block to Shilshole Avenue Nw, and then take a right.

Shilshole will end at Nw Market Street after a swing to dead north, and you should take a left onto Market to continue west. At the point where the main route seems to bend to the southwest, and Market continues straight west, follow the main traffic flow onto what is now Nw 54th Street.54th will skirt the Chittenden Locks complex, and then go under the northern end of the bridge. Probably the best place to park is in the public lot at the Locks.

Chittenden Locks were built back in the early 20th Century by the Army Corps of Engineers. They separate the salt water Puget Sound from the fresh water lakes inside Seattle, and are a very popular people-place today. There are plenty of places for a picnic, hanging out, and maneuvering around for a spot to shoot trains and the bridge. The bridge is really something, and is kept in the up position, unless there is a train approaching. If you see it going down, get ready to shoot -- a telephoto will be necessary for any close-ups, as you're 125-200 yards from the bridge (depending on where you want to shoot from). Plan to spend some time here, as it is a nice place.

Seattle -- Nw 57th Street.Get back on Nw 54th Street, and continue west. After going under the bridge, the street name changes to Seaview Avenue Nw. Between the bridge and well to the north, railfan pickings are slim, indeed, but there are a few places to see some action. Just before Seaview swings from northerly to somewhat northwesterly (and crosses a set of tracks), turn right onto 37th Avenue Nw. This latter street will head towards an underpass of the BNSF, but take a right before that onto 37th Pl Nw. This will take you south to a 90º turn whereupon the street becomes 57th Avenue Nw. Park before going over the overpass.

This is a fairly wide-looking overpass that will allow shots to both north and south. The railroad is steeply northwest - southeast, so northbounds may be tough to photograph.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Seattle -- Nw 61th Street.Go back up 37th Pl Nw, and veer right onto 38th Avenue Nw, which will almost immediately swing 90º to the east, and go under the tracks as Nw 61st Street. Before 38th makes that curve, try to park on the right, well before the underpass. From the aerials, it looks as if the overpass is relatively uncluttered.

Seattle -- Golden Gardens Park.Between 61st and this park (approximately as far north as Nw 85th Street), there is no access to the tracks. Therefore, just drive along and enjoy the scenery. When you pass a very large marina, look for a right turn onto Seaview Pl Nw, and take it. You'll go under the tracks, and should find a place to park. While some of the tracks appear to be treed in, it also looks as if there are some nice open areas. Tramp around on both sides of the tracks and see what works for you.

This park, at over 87 acres, offers superb views of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. You can ogle the chicks at the beach, stroll along the rugged beach, take a hike in the woods, and fish from a pier. It looks like a place to stop for awhile; with trains nearby, it's a definite stop.(Basic park info based on information from the http://www.Seattle.gov Web site.)

Seattle -- Carkeek Park.From the underpass at Golden Gardens Park, Seaview Pl Nw goes up to what appears to be a very large parking area, and then does a 180º curve to go south as Golden Gardens Drive Nw. This street will also wind all up and over the place, until it eventually becomes 32nd Avenue Nw. When you reach Nw 85th Street, take a left and continue east all the way to 15th Avenue Nw. Turn left and go north.15th will bend to the northeast and become Holman Road Nw. At 3rd Avenue, take a left to go north; then, at Nw 110th Street, take another left. You will now wiggle your way along the bluff, and will pass many roads, but just stay on what is the main road skirting the park area.

Turn left onto Piper Canyon Road to enter Carkeek Park. Wikipedia.com has an excellent article about the park. For railfans, it's pretty much limited to the following:Piper Canyon will end at a large parking area close to the tracks, and the beach and Puget Sound are on the other side of them. There is a tall overhead walkway that offers excellent viewing of the tracks, but it's screened, so photography can be a problem.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Shoreline -- Richmond Beach Park.There is a significant drive to the next location, as the tracks (inaccessible) hug the shoreline from Carkeek Park north all the way to beyond the Seattle city limits, and well into the Richmond Beach area of Shoreline. There are many opulent mansions between Carkeek and Richmond Beach Park, but none of them welcome railfans. So, drive back up Piper Canyon Road to leave Carkeek, and turn left at the T. Somewhere along the way, this will become Nw 116th Street. Follow this street left as it merges with 6th Avenue Nw, and then it will go around a 90º curve to become Nw 117th Street.

Take 117th east to Greenwood Avenue N; take a left, and continue to the north. At a spot just north of N 145th Street, bear to the right onto Westminster Way N. Blend into Aurora Avenue N, and continue north. Turn left onto N 185th Street, and drive west -- the street will soon become Nw Richmond Beach Road. Drive further west, and the street will magically become Nw 195th Street. At 20th Avenue Nw, take a left to head south to the entrance road to the park.

The park road will take you downhill to a large parking area; in the southwest corner of the parking lot is a walkway to the beach. Part of this walkway is a raised section over the BNSF tracks. Like Carkeek Park's footbridge, this one is also fenced in. While it may not be much for photos, it's excellent for just watching trains.

Shoreline -- Richmond Beach.Drive back up to 20th Avenue Nw, and take a left onto Nw 190th Street. This will to do a 90º to the north (right), and you should look for a very sharp turn back to the left (southwest) on Nw 190th Pl. This will shortly bend 90º to the right, become Richmond Beach Drive NW, and will take you northwest into the Richmond Beach community. After turning onto this street there will be a row of houses, the tracks, and after a short distance, another row of houses between the tracks and the beach. Just before bending to the north, the row of houses between the street you're on and the tracks will end, and you should find a place to park.

According to the aerials, you should have a fairly decent view of the tracks from the east for a distance of several football fields. Also, if you walk over the bridge (no fencing to get in your way) to 27th Avenue, there are possibilities galore. This is probably the best fanning and photo location of the tour, so far.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Edmonds -- Dayton Street Area. North of Richmond Beach is another no-man's land of wilderness running, and there is no public access to the railroad for some distance. In the village of Woodway, there is supposedly something called Point Edwards Park, but it only generates one Google hit, and the aerials show no roads leading into the area. This is a place that is obviously not real keen on seeing a bunch of railfans running around -- look at the aerials, and you'll know what that means. Therefore, the idea is to drive directly from Richmond Beach to Edmonds.

From the area of the bridge over the tracks, continue north on Richmond Beach Drive Nw. At Nw 196th Street, take a right, and at 20th Avenue Nw, take a left to head north. Once into Snohomish County, the road becomes Timber Lane. At 238th Street Sw, take a left and go west to Woodway Park Road and take a right. Continue north on this road as it navigates thru the country into Edmonds and becomes 3rd Avenue S. At Dayton Street take a left to head west towards the tracks and Puget Sound.

For the most part, there is plenty of parking in the area, but if you get there on a gorgeous summer weekend, you may have a problem. Be that as it may, there is an honest-to-God at grade, single track crossing at Dayton Street, and you can pick and choose your spots. On the west side of the tracks, to the north, you will have to shoot from the west side of Railroad Avenue.

Edmonds -- Station Area.From west of the Dayton Street crossing, go northeast via Railroad Avenue. Find a place to park in the vicinity of the Amtrak station. The building is almost impossible to photograph from the east, but from the west there is the potential for a nice afternoon shot of the mainline and station (for southbounds only), about one-half block northeast of Beach Place. Trains stopping here include the Empire Builder to and from Chicago, and the Cascades service between Vancouver, British Columbia, and Seattle.

Edmonds -- Bracketts Landing.The center of Edmonds is normally considered to be the ferry slip leading to Kingston, WA. This is a very short distance northeast of the station via Railroad Avenue, but the area is quite different. The route onto the ferry is the foot of Main Street, and this is a good place to avoid when a ferry has just landed, or will shortly start to board. The area north and south of the ferry slip is called Brackett's Landing, and it offers numerous places to watch the ferries and trains. This is a quintessential northwestern Puget Sound, ferry, and railroad location.

There is a signal here, and the railroad is still single tracked, which balloons to a double track main once again just about 200 yards north of Main Street.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Edmonds -- Sunset Avenue N.From the intersection of Main Street and Railroad Avenue, you can go for a long block on the west side of the tracks. To gain a much different perspective, however, take a right onto Main Street, cross the tracks, and then take a left onto Sunset Avenue N. This street will join the tracks after a few hundred yards, and then hug them for a few hundred more, before going 90º to the right, away from the tracks. Photos of trains all along here are morning shots.

Edmonds -- Ocean Avenue.Continue northeast on Sunset Avenue N, and it will bend to the right and become Caspers Street. This latter will take you to 9th Avenue N. Turn left and go north, staying straight on 9th as the main flow of traffic veers to the northeast at Puget Drive.9th will, in turn, also bend to the northeast and become Soundview Pl. At Water Street, take the very sharp turn back to the left, and continue down the road as it becomes Ocean Avenue.

This is relatively close to the ferry area in Edmonds, but is worlds away in ambiance. There are no tourists or crowds, and it's a nice, quiet area. Depending on your specific location, shadows may be a problem from the east. The tracks are dead northeast - southwest, so you should be able to get good photos of both north- and southbounds pretty much any time of day.

Edmonds -- Meadowdale Marine.Scoot back up to Soundview Pl and take a left. At Wharf Street take a right, which will take you to Ocean View Drive. Turn left and wind thru the countryside all the way to Talbot Road. Go left on Talbot up to 171st Street Sw, take a right, and then a left at 76th Avenue W. The name of this road will become 75th Pl W, and at 167th Street Sw, take a left to go down to 76th Pl W and park east of the tracks.

The tracks are more northerly here than at Ocean Avenue, so northbounds will be coming out of the sun for the most part. However, this is a quiet location and if you get permission from the marine establishment, shooting from the west on the pier out to the building will allow you to get well back from the tracks. There is excellent potential for very nice shots of southbounds in the early to late afternoon.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Edmonds -- Meadowdale County Park.This one is mostly for combat railfans, as it is a bit iffy, but it's quite close to Meadowdale Marine. Get back to 75th Pl W and drive to the gate into the park. Apparently, the road into the park from here north is for park personnel and handicapped people only. All other traffic into the park is to the east (see below), but you should be able to park in the vicinity of this gate and walk to the open area near the tracks. There is an underpass leading to the beach, and you may be restricted to shooting from the beach, as the east side may be treed in.

One caution: The attraction in the park is not the beach, it's the gorge leading from the upper parking area down to the area of the underpass. Several times in recent years, there have been significant washouts and landslides caused by severe rains/storms. It would be wise to make sure the park is open to the public before going to it, and if it is stormy, you probably should be somewhere else.

To take advantage of the park's trail from the east parking lot thru the gulch down to the beach, you should use these driving directions (which you'll have to do to continue the tour anyway). Drive back south on 75th Pl W to a left onto N Meadowdale Road. This street will wend and wind its way thru the Meadowdale area, past another Meadowdale park, and T at 66th Avenue W. Turn right, and then take a left at 168th Street Sw. When you get to 62nd Avenue W, take another left to head north. At 156th Street Sw, take a left, and this will lead you right into the eastern portion of Meadowdale County Park.

Between the parking lot here and the one down below, it's only 1.2 miles, but you have to do quite a bit of driving to get from one to the other. If you have the time, and especially if you have the family with you, this would be a nice walk down and back on a pretty day.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Edmonds -- Picnic Point Park.Retrace 156th Street Sw back to 62nd Avenue W, take a left and when the main road bends to the right, continue straight ahead on 62nd. Along the way, you'll pass Norma Beach Road, which used to give access to the tracks, but the area is now private and is gated. It is no longer a railfan location. At Picnic Point Road, take a left, and stay on it as it goes right. It will take you right to it's namesake park.

This is probably an excellent fan location during the week or in poor weather, but on sunny weekend days, it is probably more crowded than most fans would prefer. There is an elaborate walkway over the tracks at the park, and it is fenced, so pix from it are limited. Also, the tracks are pretty much treed in on both sides, so if you want to get pix, you'll have to tramp either north or south via the beach. However, such a walk should be well worth it, as you get away from the crowds quickly, and the views from west of the tracks are wide open.

Mukilteo -- Ferry Area.Between Picnic Point and all the way to "downtown" Mukilteo there is no public access to the tracks. Therefore, drive back the way you came via Picnic Point Road. At Maplewood Avenue, take a hard left to go north. Stay on Maplewood all the way until a slight jog to the right, and the road becomes Marine View Drive. Marine View will bend 90º to the right to head east as 116th Street Sw, and you should take a left when you get to St Andrews Drive. When you get to the major intersection with Harbor View Boulevard, take another left to head north. When you get to the T at Mukilteo Speedway, take yet another left and the Speedway will take you to the ferry slip.

Positives about this location are many: Interesting ferry traffic, beautiful beaches, restaurants and lodging in the area, Mukilteo's Light House Park -- not to mention plenty of railroad action, and lots of places to watch and photograph them. There are, however, a couple of significant negatives: In the morning and evening, the traffic at the ferry slip can be ugly, and on nice sunny, warm days, the area can be stuffed with people enjoying a beautiful, interesting place.

Incidentally, you may see references to "Mukilteo State Park", but there is no such thing. The small park is officially Mukilteo's Light House Park.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Mukilteo -- Boeing Spur Crossing.Drive northeast from the ferry area via Front Street, take a right onto Park Avenue, and then a left onto what may be signed as 1st Street. Irrespective of the name, it will parallel the tracks to the northeast for awhile, and then turn to cross the tracks and meet Mukilteo Lane. The crossing area is quite open, and you'll want to shoot from either 1st Street or Mukilteo Lane across the street from the tracks, so you have decent photo field.

Slightly southwest of the crossing, the Boeing spur peels off a side track south of the two main lines, and goes to the southeast, up a very steep incline, and into the Boeing assembly area. The main traffic consists of fuselage assemblies from other facilities.

Mukilteo -- Old Beach. From the northwest side of the crossing, continue northeast to the point where the street takes a 90º turn to the left. Park here, and walk down to the beach. There is a small beach area, and you can continue walking to the northeast and have views of the tracks.

Everett -- Harborview Park.Drive back to the crossing, go over it, and turn left onto Mukilteo Lane. When you get to Muilteo Boulevard, take a left. As you enter Everett, look for Harborview Park on the left. Turn into the park and sit on a bench and enjoy the view of the bay and the city of Everett. You will also be able to see southbounds heading towards Seattle coming at you.

Everett -- Howarth Park.Continue northeast on Mukilteo Boulevard, and then take a left onto Seahurst Avenue, and then a quick right onto Olympic Boulevard. Park in the lot on your left at the park, and walk down to the walkway over the tracks. This is another fenced walkway, but you can still get pix from the beach.

Back to the Site Listing Back to the Top

Everett -- Station Area. Beyond Howarth Park, the railroad begins to enter the industrial/port areas of Everett. There is no public access until the station area. Continue northeast on Mukilteo Boulevard, and then take a left onto Rucker Avenue. Rucker will take you into the city. At Pacific Avenue, turn left and follow it past Bond (on left) and Wall (on right), and park in the vicinity of the station.

You can see both east - west traffic (Seattle - Chicago) and north - south traffic (Seattle - Vancouver, BC) here, but you can also see the eastern track diverging to the east just north of the station, as this is the point of separation of these two main lines. There is no public access west of the tracks, and photos are somewhat difficult from the east, but it's still a pretty cool place.

This is the end of this tour. If you'd like to contribute to this, or any other tour, please contact me here, and let me know what you'd like to do. We'll work together: You supply the data/info, and I'll do the HTML stuff and upload it. You'll get a chance to review the fruits of your efforts before the general public sees the finished product, so you can let me have your corrections, additions and changes.

Note: In February 2009 Tony received a message to the effect that "station security" and Sheriff's deputies are harassing railfans, even to the extent of confiscating film/cards. Know your rights if you are going to take pictures at any train station.