Ruston Way Waterfront

This is a great place for a little stroll or to watch the world go by… or both! Really great views and there are several places to stop along the way to eat or play. The parking can be a major downside. Tons of traffic to navigate through and while there are several parking lots they fill up quickly and it can be difficult to pin down a spot.

Been here and is really nice relaxing place you enjoy the view and surroundings love this place

Great place for a walk! Parking can be a pain when busy. There is some beaches with water where people will take there dogs.

Nice views. Good area to run or walk and even bike. I like this place because it is not too congested. However, they have build some condos overlooking the water. The condos are not at full capacity and I have a feeling that when this happens the area will get more crowded. There’s a movie theater in the works soon.
Parking isn’t always great. You might have to park in the gravel/​rocky area.

I love this place. I almost forget I’m in Tacoma when I’m here. I took my dog here and walked down the path by the Puget Sound. So beautiful! It probably goes a good 5 miles so you can choose how far you want to walk. There’s a few parks in between if you want to relax on a bench and just enjoy the view of the water. You can watch the boats, the ships sailing by, or watch people parasailing and kayaking. There’s a lot of waterfront restaurants to choose from and a handful of piers right on the water. There is plenty of parking, so that wasn’t an issue for me. Also, this is not far from downtown Tacoma, which is pretty cool if you wanna just hang around down there afterwards.

People watching is at its best here. My favorite past time: finding a bench and watching everyone walk by.

Love the view and the activity. They’re working hard to continue to improve this area. Excited to play at the new playground and even more so when the construction slows down. (My kiddo find all the machinery entertaining though). All the fun and beauty of the waterfront can quickly end on those rare days when the smell is too strong.

This location is fantastic if you like to get out for a run, walk with your kids, take the dogs or just for yourself to get your mind clear. Being near big bodies of water is refreshing to the spirit. They have some piers people go for fishing, but you can get some pretty good photo ops on them as well.
It’s a flat surface to walk on without much uneven spots so unless you have two left feet, you shouldn’t have anything to trip over.
There are restaurants along the way if you get hungry like Dukes, Shenanigans and The Ram. There is a little village that has a couple of coffee shops and some other businesses you can walk past or go inside to check things out.
Occasionally you will hear the trains coming and going which the tracks run parallel to Ruston Parkway. You can’t miss them.
You can find some areas to just stop for a rest, sit on a bench and view out onto the water and see cruising boats, ships that go in and out of the Port of Tacoma, see some just anchored in the bay or ponder at the day.
You may get lucky to see some wildlife in the bay, but you will always be guaranteed to see birds and on occasion a scuba diver or two.
It’s not a place for beach activities. If you want that, you would need to drive up to West Seattle.
Love this area and the neighborhood.

We have a toddler and overweight dog (that we are trying to help her lose weight) so we can’t take too long of a walk and sometimes need to sit and take a break. This place is perfect. There’s plenty of benches and a few places for my son to run around.

This is a great relatively flat area to run, walk, bike, and SCUBA with nice views of Commencement Bay. Most of the path is well lit at night but some of the parking areas do say the close 30 minutes after sunset.

love. this. place.
although it’s a little out of my way, i truly enjoy going to the waterfront and taking walks. there are amazing views and – at least when i go – its not super crowded with walkers/​runners. i love to go during the summer just before sunset, as it is cooling down a bit and you get to watch the sunset! there are quite a few restaurants that you can try along the waterfront, as well.

Been a favorite spot of mine the last dozen years that I’ve lived in Tacoma. Most people choose to go here on sunny days during the mid afternoon, but I prefer the night. My iPod, a pair of sneakers and a sweatshirt and you’d never know that it’s 2am.
It can get kind of sketchy as you get between The Lobster Shop and Duke’s late at night, as kids like to hang out and party, but on the north side of the drive, you’ll likely be left alone– save the occasional couple walking in the park looking for ‘privacy’, or a car full of kids that want to skinny dip, but have no idea you’re standing there enjoying the peace and quiet… By the way, if I could get into a time machine and tell 15 year old me that one day I would sneak to get AWAY from skinny dipping girls, I think 15 year old me’s head would have exploded.
There’s always something down there that you weren’t expecting, from local wildlife like the occasional Blue Heron or a curious seal, to things interesting in human form. Any time of day or night is great for Ruston Way.

Run, bike, walk, skate, stroll, watch, maybe gawk? Whatever your pleasure or business, this is one place that offers up all of that =D
Lots of people traffic on the sunny days in the NW, but not so crowded like other stretches of waterfront.
Vendors selling there savory treats can also be found, although not plentiful. Of course, there are the usual suspect restaurants and bars to take that break and gaze out on the water.
Lots of free parking along the waterfront so do NOT panic!

I’d give the view 5 stars but the traffic is HORRID so I’m giving it 4. I usually run here at least once a week and if you go early in the morning, around 5am, you’ll get to see a beautiful sunrise and enjoy a less-​traffiky and gawky run or stroll.

Growing up in the heart of down town Minneapolis with the Mississippi River cutting through the heart of the city I tend to miss waterfront parks and long walks. Ruston way has many of the same elements I grew up with… Historical renovated ruins, pathways and trails, docks, and stretches of flowing water. Wild life, amazing! Bald eagles, crabs, sea otters, jelly fish, you know, sound creatures.
Ruston way also features beachy sand bars and rocky shores to explore.

If memory serves, the trail distance is 2 or 2.5 miles from one end to the other. Excellent place to jog, roller blade, or bike on a nice day.

We like to go here as a family and walk along the sidewalk or if the tide is out walk along the beach and as my kids call it, «find treasures». It is a great view of the Sound and there are some nice restuarants along Ruston Way to stop in for lunch or dinner. There is a great mixture of people walking, jogging, walking their dogs, families, people riding their bikes. There is some history points along the way, so if you are into history, there are some plaques about structures there.

One of my favorite places to jog or walk. There’s no «closing» hours so if I’m itching for a midnight stroll… or it just becomes dusk too early in Washington state… this is my place of choice.
The south side offers a Chinese Rememberance Park.
The north side offers high-​end new construction condos.
And all in-​between waterfront jogging. It’s at least a good six miles plus to complete the entire jog to make it back to your car. My friends and I usually do half for around 2 – 3 miles.:)