The Issaquah Train Depot
"Before the arrival of the train, 'Squak Valley' (now Issaquah) was a remote frontier, sparsely populated and difficult to access. Transporting coal, timber, and agricultural products to Seattle markets was both challenging and costly.
Recognizing the economic potential of rural King County, Seattleites Thomas Burke and Daniel Gilman formed the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railroad in 1885. By 1888, the SLS&E line linked Seattle to Woodinville, Redmond, and south to Squak Valley. In June 1889, the tracks reached Snoqualmie Falls, and by the year's end, North Bend and Salal Prairie. That same year, Issaquah's Train Depot was built, marking the start of the town's first economic and cultural boom.
The railroad provided passenger and freight services, connecting the community to broader opportunities. However, by 1922, automobiles had become the preferred mode of travel, and passenger services were discontinued. Freight services to the Depot ended in 1958, though the rail line continued serving the Darigold plant on Front Street until 1996. With that, the era of railroads that powered Issaquah's early growth came to a close.
This multicache is part of the larger IssaQuest Sustainability GeoTour and will take players to the Blue Door, the Salmon Hatchery, and the Issaquah Depot Museum.
The starting coordinates lead players to 'The Blue Door', an art installation just outside of Issaquah City Hall. Sasquatch is all about making new friends and is keen to visit our sister city, Chefchaouen, located in northwest Morocco. Like Issaquah, Chefchaouen has a strong commitment to sustainability and the two cities are working on a climate resilience project together.
We are lucky to have the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery, our second site of the multicache, located right in downtown Issaquah. Salmon are a keystone species, as they help us understand the health of our ecosystem. The salmon that return to our hatchery travel through Issaquah Creek, Lake Sammamish, Sammamish River, Lake Washington, the Ballard Locks and only then do they start their journey out to Puget Sound! Learn more at issaquahfish.org!
Sasquatch has lived in Issaquah for many centuries and loves revisiting history. The Issaquah Depot Museum was built in 1889 to transport people to the City of Seattle. The railway was also used to carry coal and logs. As of 2023, Washington gets only 4% of its power from coal. The City of Issaquah is working towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 95% by 2050. We are doing this by investing in renewable energy, such as solar, compared to fossil fuels.
TO CLAIM THIS MULTICACHE, first visit the posted coordinate waypoint. You will arrive at the Salmon Hatchery.
- For Waypoint #1, answer this question and find value F (DOUBLE DIGIT) to fill in the final coordinates: How many salmon species are pictured on the white WA Department of Fish & Wildlife's signage? (HINT: upper left paragraph starts with "Dept of Fish and Wildlife hatcheries currently raise...")
- For Waypoint #2, answer this question and find value B to fill in the final coordinates: On the Blue signage titled, "Chefchaouen, Morocco/Our Sister City", how many words make up the description's second sentence? (HINT: starts with "The gift's"...)
FINAL COORDINATES WITH MISSING VALUES: N 47 31.855 W 122 2.FB
FINALLY, visit the final coordinates and find the small container at the Issaquah Depot Museum.