Amanda Snyder
The Seattle Times
Featured Columnist

Amanda Snyder

is a Seattle Times staff photographer. Reach her at asnyder@seattletimes.com.

With the sun out and a break from the rain, sailboats venture out into Shilshole Bay on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. LO

Set sail while the sun shines

Shilshole Bay in Ballard is one of the city's most scenic spots. After a dark and dreary winter, the sun that appeared on Jan. 9...

University of Washington employee Nick Franko, left, boulders Husky Climbing Rock, more commonly known as Husky Rock, located at the south end of Husky Stadium on Tuesday, September 7, 2021. For Franko, Husky Rock is “the best place in town to train and climb outside, especially for free.” In 1970, climbers bouldering campus buildings had become a rising problem on the University of Washington campus, according to “Husky Rock: A Bouldering Guide to the U.W. Climbing Walls” by Scotty Hopkins and Erik Wolfe. When the situation became worse, the University didn’t focus on stopping the bouldering attempts, but according to Hopkins and Wolfe, the university instead discussed building an artificial climbing wall. After separate mountain climbing accidents tragically claimed the lives of two students and a faculty member in 1973, students urged the approval of the project so climbers could train properly and learn about safety, according to a Seattle Daily Times article. Plans for construction of the strenuous climbing rock was approved and went on to be designed and built from 1975-76 by architects Anderson and Bell. Today, Husky Climbing Rock is recognized as one of the first outdoor bouldering areas in the country, according to the authors.

Husky Rock offers an upward challenge

In 1970, climbers bouldering University of Washington buildings had become a problem on campus, according to authors Scotty Hopkins and Erik Wolfe. Today, Husky Climbing...