Pacific Coast: The Wild North

Seattle stretches between the waters of Puget Sound and the shores of Lake Washington, framed by the snow-capped summit of Mount Rainier and the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges. The heart of the Pacific Northwest and home to an unmistakable urban culture, it is a city that weaves together untamed nature, technological innovation and a creative soul built on music, coffee and markets. A visit often begins at the famous Pike Place Market, one of the oldest public markets in the United States, where fishmongers toss salmon across the stalls and where, in a discreet corner, the very first Starbucks coffeehouse was born. From here the eye travels to the Elliott Bay waterfront, alive with ferries, seafood restaurants and the great Seattle Great Wheel. Nearby rises the Space Needle, the futuristic tower built for the 1962 World's Fair, whose observation deck embraces the entire city; at its feet lies the Seattle Center, with the colourful Museum of Pop Culture designed by Frank Gehry and the Chihuly Garden and Glass, devoted to blown-glass sculptures. The neighbourhoods reveal different faces: Pioneer Square, with its red-brick Victorian buildings and art galleries; lively Capitol Hill, realm of nightlife and the independent scene; and the Chinatown-International District, home to the city's Asian communities. Culture lovers should not miss the Seattle Art Museum, while those seeking views can climb to Kerry Park, a prime spot to photograph the skyline with Rainier in the background. All around, nature is never far away: ferry trips to the Sound's islands, hikes in Olympic National Park and Mount Rainier National Park, and tastings in the wineries of Woodinville Wine Country. A city of gentle rain and ever-changing skies, Seattle reveals itself on foot, coffee in hand, surprising visitors with its balance between metropolis and wilderness.

From Seattle you board a ferry, the Edmond's Ferry, cross Puget Sound and reach the peninsula of Olympic National Park. Olympic National Park encompasses three extraordinary ecosystems in Washington State, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Snow-capped peaks and glaciers of Mount Olympus, the lush temperate rainforests of Hoh with their emerald mosses, and a wild coast strewn with sea stacks coexist in a single park. Hot springs and alpine lakes complete the diversity. Olympic National Park is the ideal destination for those seeking rainforests, mountains and primordial coasts of the Pacific Northwest.

Portland rises at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in Oregon, the capital of the Pacific Northwest's indie and green culture. Nicknamed the "City of Roses" for its splendid gardens, it keeps a bohemian charm built on artisan coffee, microbreweries and markets. The legendary Powell's City of Books is the world's largest independent bookshop, while the Portland Japanese Garden and the International Rose Test Garden offer moments of pure calm. The city is surrounded by prodigious nature: snow-capped Mount Hood to the east, the spectacular Columbia River Gorge with its waterfalls to the west, and nearby the famed Willamette Valley of Pinot Noir wines. Between creative food trucks and a nonconformist spirit, Portland is a city to be savoured slowly.

Newport is a lively seaside town on the central Oregon coast, where the Pacific Ocean meets rugged cliffs and windswept beaches. Its picturesque bayfront, alive with fishing boats, sea lions and seafood restaurants, is its beating heart. The town is home to the Oregon Coast Aquarium, among the most renowned in the country, and the Yaquina Head Lighthouse, set within a natural reserve rich in seabirds and tide pools. Between seafood tastings, walks on the sand and gray-whale sightings offshore, Newport offers the genuine, wild atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest coast.

Eureka overlooks Humboldt Bay, along California's northern coast, set amid a landscape of sea fog and redwood forests. Its Victorian old town is one of the best preserved in the state, with the iconic Carson Mansion attesting to the wealth of the timber era. The harbour and waterfront recall its maritime past, while all around stretch the redwood parks, including nearby Humboldt Redwoods State Park. Eureka is an ideal base for exploring the ancient forests and the wild Pacific coast.

Napa Valley is the most famous wine region in the United States, spread across northern California among gentle hills cloaked in vineyards. Its prestigious wineries, Michelin-starred restaurants and idyllic landscapes make it a cult destination for lovers of wine and fine dining. Among tastings, balloon flights and elegant villages, every day is an invitation to pleasure. A corner of Californian dolce vita where wine is art.

Wrapped in the fog that drifts in from the bay and draped over steep hills facing the Pacific, San Francisco is one of America's most beloved cities, refined, rebellious and deeply cosmopolitan. Its symbol is the Golden Gate Bridge, the unmistakable red span reaching out towards the ocean, revealed and hidden by the morning mists. To walk the city is to be surprised by its rolling streets, still climbed today by the famous cable cars that scale the heights of Nob Hill and Russian Hill, offering sudden glimpses of the water. Along the Fisherman's Wharf waterfront the sea lions of Pier 39 bark and the air smells of sourdough bread and fresh crab, while offshore stands the island of Alcatraz, with its historic penitentiary reachable by boat. The charm of San Francisco lives in its neighbourhoods: the Victorian Painted Ladies around Alamo Square, the Chinese energy of Chinatown, the oldest and liveliest in America, the rainbow, activist streets of the Castro, and the bohemian ferment of Haight-Ashbury, cradle of hippie culture. At the city's core, Union Square buzzes with shopping and theatres, while the Civic Center and museums such as SFMOMA and the de Young reveal its cultured soul. Green spaces abound: the vast Golden Gate Park holds Japanese gardens, conservatories and trails down to the ocean. The dining scene is among the most innovative in the country, from fusion cuisine to the wines of the nearby Napa and Sonoma Valley and organic markets. From San Francisco it is easy to set out for California's national parks, the redwoods of Muir Woods and the Big Sur coast. Free, creative and swept by the ocean wind, San Francisco wins over anyone willing to be led by its hills and its suspended light.