Alki Beach
Alki Point is traditionally credited as the point where the Denny Party founded Seattle prior to moving across Elliott Bay to what is now Downtown. A similar landing at Alki has been reenacted annually since 1950 as part of the colorful, week-long Seafair celebration of Seattle's marine and boating interests. Seafair coincides with the much older Hi-Yu festivities in West Seattle now called the Junction Street Festival.
Picture a perfect summer day, and chances are your thoughts will take you to Alki Beach Park, a long beach strip that runs from Alki Point to Duwamish Head on Elliott Bay. It's a great spot for a 2.5 mile walk any time of year, and in the summer draws joggers, rollerbladers, volleyball players, beachcombers, sunbathers, bicyclists and strollers out to enjoy the sun.
The widened path accommodates a lot of folks, and there's plenty of parking along Alki Ave. SW. There are picnic tables, a bathhouse housing an art studio, and a restroom at the south (Alki Point) end of the beach, and there you'll find the monument to the arrival of the first white settlers on November 13, 1851.
The water temperature ranges from 46 to 56 degrees Fahrenheit.
The north end of the beach is protected by a bulkhead, and flanked by cottages. The whole beach offers spectacular views of Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountains, and the flotilla of ferries, sailboats, steamships and other craft that ply Puget Sound waters.
At a small seawalled square that used to be the site of Luna Park, an amusement park, be sure to stop and see the old 2.5-ton anchor dredged up by the Nor'West Divers Club and secured at the site. For More info on Alki Beach click here(Alki Beach)
  
Photo by Laurel Mercury
The heart of West Seattle is the intersection of California Avenue S.W. and S.W. Alaska Street, called "The Junction" or "Alaska Junction," the center of a lively business district. West Seattle also has two other major intersections of note: the Admiral Junction in the northern part of the peninsula where California Avenue S.W. and S.W. Admiral Way meet, and the Morgan Street Junction at the southern end where Fauntleroy Way S.W., S.W. Morgan Street, and California Avenue S.W. intersect. The Westwood Village shopping center, between S.W. Trenton and S.W. Barton Streets in the south end of the district, has undergone several makeovers and now provides a mall-like shopping experience, including a box store and a large bookstore from a national chain.
Numerous sites exist with historical information on West Seattle, which is Seattle's oldest neighborhood, and birthplace of Seattle proper. Besides Seattle's main Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI), the Southwest Seattle Historical Society has its own Log House Museum at Alki Point. The website WestSeattle.com also has a weekly historical column penned by long time West Seattle resident, Warren Lawless. At 90 years old, his insight into West Seattle's past is priceless. Among West Seattle's most famous residents are Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder actress Dyan Cannon, and, formerly, Frances Farmer. Vedder uses the pseudonym Wes C. Addle on some of his work. Transportation
There is a Washington State Ferries dock in the Fauntleroy neighborhood, with service to Vashon Island and to Southworth on the Kitsap Peninsula. A passenger-only ferry also runs between Duwamish Head and downtown Seattle in the summer.
News Sources
The community is served by the West Seattle Blog news website. Alternatively, there is West Seattle Herald newspaper which publishes weekly.
Education
West Seattle is home to South Seattle Community College, West Seattle High School, Chief Sealth High School, Seattle Lutheran High School, Gatewood Elementary School, Madison Middle School, Denny Middle School, Roxhill Elementary School, Alki Elementary School, Lafayette Elementary School, Highland Park Elementary School, Sanislo Elementary School, Pathfinder Elementary School, Holy Family School Seattle, Holy Rosary West Seattle, Schmitz Park Elementary School, and Our Lady of Guadalupe.
West Seattle High School, in the Admiral District
Neighborhoods
There are many neighborhoods within West Seattle.
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