Salmon Slide - Carkeek Park Playground

Ask any Seattle parent about the Salmon Slide and you'll get immediate recognition. The giant salmon-shaped slide at Carkeek Park Playground is one of those Seattle icons that children seek out by name — not just 'the playground at Carkeek' but specifically 'the salmon slide.'

The sculpture-playground hybrid is exactly what it sounds like: a large salmon sculpture that kids climb on and slide down. It's distinctive enough that kids who don't care about regular playground slides will make a beeline for it. My kids' friends who'd never been to Carkeek had already heard about the salmon slide from classmates and asked to go specifically.

The playground extends beyond the salmon — there's standard equipment for broader play — but the salmon is the draw. The park itself adds layers to the outing. Carkeek Park sits on a Puget Sound bluff in the Crown Hill/Broadview area of northwest Seattle, with a beach accessible by an underpass tunnel beneath the railroad tracks.

The underpass is quick and safe (and kids find it exciting), and the beach on the other side offers Puget Sound views, rock skipping, and low-tide exploration.

In November, Carkeek hosts a salmon run event in Piper's Creek — actual coho salmon migrating through the park's creek system. It's a surreal Seattle experience: salmon swimming through an urban park with apartment buildings visible in the distance. The Seattle Parks department sometimes runs viewing events around this time.

Practical notes: free parking in the Carkeek Park lot. Restrooms on-site. No food concessions — bring a picnic.