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This is one of a series of pages guiding you around  Seattle's viewpoints.

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Seattle Viewpoints
Charles A. Richey Sr.

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Location
6300 block of Beach Drive SW, between 63rd and 64th Avenues, on the waterfront of West Seattle.

See also this map showing Charles Richey Viewpoint in relation to other West Seattle viewpoints.

Admission
Free.

Getting there by car

Click icon to map your route into downtown with MapBlast!

Getting there by bus
From downtown, via bus number 37 (Alki Admiral District).
Board the southbound bus at the corner of 2nd Avenue and Pike Street.
(Enjoy the view from West Seattle Bridge as you cross it on the bus.  Unfortunately no pedestrian traffic is allowed on the bridge.)
Alight from the bus at the corner of Beach Drive SW and 63rd Ave SW.
It is about a 30-minute ride this way.
(Note: Bus number 37 unfortunately has a confusing and irregular timetable.  If you do not intend to alight in West Seattle, bus number 37 makes a terrific drive taking in the views of West Seattle.  If you do alight in West Seattle, it is probably best to plan your return trip via bus number 56.)
You will see the viewpoint with its "can't-miss" views of Puget Sound on Beach Drive.

From downtown, via bus number 56 (Alki Beach).
Board the southbound bus at the corner of 1st Avenue and Pike Street.
(Enjoy the view from West Seattle Bridge as you cross it on the bus.  Unfortunately no pedestrian traffic is allowed on the bridge.)
Alight from the bus at the corner of 63rd Avenue SW and Alki Avenue.  It is about a 20- to 30-minute ride each way, depending on whether you catch an express bus.
Walk south to the end of 63rd Avenue where it joins Beach Drive, and you will see the viewpoint ahead.  Or, for a more scenic walk, follow Alki Avenue westwards, past housing and around the point where it becomes Beach Drive SW.  Continue southwest along Beach Drive until you reach the viewpoint which adjoins the beach.  A 10- to 15-minute walk. 

Notes and tips
Charles Richey Viewpoint is part of a chain of public access spaces that skirt the West Seattle Peninsular along the water's edge.  You might also like to visit the West Seattle Lighthouse, and Alki Beach Park to the northeast.  Or, by continuing to walk southwest on Beach Drive for about ten-minutes, you will come to Weather Watch Park.  A further ?- minute walk will bring you to Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook.

Well kept benches, plantings, and grassy areas make this a pleasant spot to take in the views.  Naval and commercial boat traffic is often seen plying the waters, including huge freighters bypassing Seattle for Tacoma's large port at Commencement Bay.

Low tides bring out the beach combers to the pebbly beach, and reveal a bronze-cast Andromeda reclining on the beachfront.  The southwestern end of the viewpoint is comprised of Constellation Park & Marine Reserve, with its artwork and interpretive "Intertidal Wall".  The 13 constellations visible in the western sky are depicted in the "Avenue of Stars," which runs the length of the park.

This side of West Seattle peninsula is exposed to the westerly winds, so you will probably appreciate long sleeves, even in summer.  For refreshments you will need to return to the Alki Beach side of the peninsula.

The Views 
Charles Richey Viewpoint looks southwest across Puget Sound, taking in Bainbridge Island, Blake Island, Vashon Island, the Kitsap Peninsula, and the Olympic Mountains.  On a clear day you can see Mount Rainier rising over the hill to the southwest.

The following photos were taken around midday on a partly cloudy day in early May.  Click on photo for full-size image.

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by Emmett Watson, Robert W. Cameron (Photographer)
May 1994, Hardcover, 160 pages, (non-fiction). A collection of historical and original aerial photos of the area with captions that tell you what you are seeing from these unusual angles.
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