The Washington Fall Bucket List
Twenty five things to do in Washington between the first cold morning and the last dry weekend. Ten for the clear days, eight for when it rains, and seven for while the harvest is still on.
It is a free printable checklist. Print it, stick it on the fridge, and work through it at whatever pace the weather allows. No particular order. Just pick one that sounds good and go.
What is on the list
Three sections, twenty five boxes, each with a hint on how to do it well and a note on when it is actually possible. Half of these have a window of about two weeks.
- Get Outside. Ten for the clear days. Drive a larch route while they are gold. Watch salmon climb a fish ladder. Ride a ferry with no plan for the other side. See the first snow on a volcano.
- Get Inside. Eight for rain, smoke and short days. Two hours in a coffee shop you have never been to. A small town museum run by volunteers. Somewhere hot to soak while the air is cold.
- Eat Your Way Through It. Seven while the harvest is on. Stand in a winery during crush and smell it. Drink cider pressed the same week. Eat Dungeness crab in the month it is best.
The last page tells you when fall actually starts here, which is not the date on the calendar, and why that matters to the timing of everything above.
Who puts this together
Explore Washington State has covered the Evergreen State for 15 years through long form articles, a weekly newsletter, a podcast with 340 episodes, and one of the most complete state parks directories in the country. The writers are Washington locals: park rangers, chefs, farmers, and everyday residents who write about places they actually know. Over 50,000 readers a month use it to plan their weekends.
When the checklist arrives you also join the Thursday morning letter: three places worth knowing about that week, a Washington trivia question that is harder than it looks, and a podcast episode for the drive. Two minutes to read, a weekend to use. Over 6,200 Washington explorers already get it.
- About the Author
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Explore Washington State has been covering the real Washington for more than a decade. State parks, small towns, back roads, rest stops, and the people who make this place worth exploring. What started as a hyperlocal project covering individual communities grew into a full media project with more than 340 podcast episodes, a weekly newsletter with over 6,200 subscribers, and coverage of all 146 Washington State Parks. The content here comes from people who have actually been to these places: locals, regulars, and lifelong Washington residents who care more about getting it right than getting clicks.