I’ve been slowly accruing a list of abandoned places in Washington for years. After all, Washington is an old state filled with history, small towns, and abandoned buildings fit for urban exploring. That said, just because a place is abandoned doesn’t necessarily mean it’s worth driving to, or that it’s safe to explore.
In order to guarantee that you’ll get sufficiently spooked when you visit, I came up with a roundup of the best abandoned places in Washington state. Whether you’re into abandoned forts, haunted hotels, or ghost towns, get ready for some thrills at these places!
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14 Abandoned Places in Washington
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Northern State Recreation Area
website | Sedro-Woolley, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~1 hr 45 min | best for: abandoned asylum
The Northern State Rec Area was featured in Atlas Obscura and remains one of the best-known abandoned places in Washington state. Opened in the early 1900s as one of the state’s largest hospital for the mentally ill, it’s also one of my favorite abandoned spots to explore.
The hospital was forced to close its doors in the 1970s following a shift in public perception. Nowadays most of the property is a public park with walking trails to the graffiti-covered and dilapidated cannery and farm structures once used to feed the asylum patients. There’s also an old cemetery with over 1,500 people buried there.
Access notes: Avoid accessing the off-limits parts of the property. This includes the portion of office buildings still in use today and crumbling builds closed off because they’re not safe to explore.
Port Townsend
website | Port Townsend, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~2 hrs | best for: haunted hotels & abandoned forts
Port Townsend is one of my favorite small towns in Washington state because there are a ton of things to do. One of my favorite activities is to visit the abandoned military batteries, Fort Worden and Fort Flagler.
Both of these forts are part of the “Triangle of Fire”, built in the late 1800s to defend the Admiralty Inlet, an opening that would let ships pass deeper into the mainland. Both Fort Worden and Fort Flagler are now state parks popular for camping, walking, and beaching. But the batteries are the biggest draw, as they’re no longer in use and offer a lot of dark and eerie passageways to explore.
In addition to forts, Port Townsend is known for being haunted. While you’re in the area, check out the supposedly-haunted Manresa Castle or The Palace Hotel. You can also take a walking ghost tour with the city’s historical society.
Fort Casey on Whidbey Island
website | Whidbey Island, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~1 hr 30 min | best for: abandoned military fort
One of my favorite things to do on Whidbey Island is exploring Fort Casey. This is another old military base from the 1900s that was part of the “Triangle of Fire” but now acts as a state park. It includes two stories of tunnels and history to explore, including the photogenic cannon overlooking the water. If you visit on a foggy day, it’ll be positively ghostly.
Aside from the arms battery, Fort Casey Historical State Park also has miles of walking trails and coastline fit for exploring with a weekend away.
Monte Cristo ghost town
website | Galena, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~4 hrs 30 min | best for: ghost town
One of my favorite things to do in Washington state is explore lesser-known ghost towns, and Monte Cristo is one of the most famous. It’s an old mining town that boomed in the 1890s along the eastern edge of today’s Snohomish County. Homesteaders filled the valley until the early 1900s before mining calculations caused the production to stall.
Today, it’s a ghost town. Most of the remaining relics were removed in 2016, but there are remaining buildings and property worth exploring. It requires an ~8 mile hike to access it, so you also have an excuse to explore nature.
Want to discover more ghost towns? Check out Claquato, Govan, Bodie, and Liberty next!
Old Olympia Brewery
website | Olympia, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~1 hr | best for: abandoned brewery turned park
One of my favorite things to do in Olympia is explore Brewery Falls at Tumwater Park, mostly because you can get glimpses of the old Olympia Brewery. Oly beer as we know it was discontinued when the brand was acquired by Pabst Brewing Company in 1999. They left behind the massive brewery still visible today.
You can’t access the brewery, but you can see it from I-5 or take a tour of the nearby Schmidt House, which belonged to the brewery’s founder. You can also get close to the brewery by visiting Brewery Park for an easy hike along Tumwater Falls.
Devil’s Tower
website | Concrete, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~2 hrs | best for: haunted ruins
With a town name like Concrete, it’s not surprising there are some haunted spots. Considered the “gateway to the North Cascades,” this small town is known for having Washington’s first Portland cement plant in the early 1900s.
There’s no cement being made here today, though remnants of the town’s history are still visible and have been dubbed Devil’s Tower. It’s a popular area for ghost hunters, but it’s technically closed to the public. Keep your distance for safety reasons.
Afterglow Vista
website | Friday Harbor, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~3 hrs 20 min | best for: historic burial site
Afterglow Vista, AKA the McMillin Memorial Mausoleum, is the final resting place of the Tacoma and Roche Harbor Lime Company founder and family. During his time as founder, the company became the largest producer of lime on the west coast and was a key player in economic development of San Juan Island.
The burial site requires a short ~1 mile hike past another modest cemetery (where the workers are buried). To get here, take a left at Roche Harbor Road toward the sculpture park until you find the clearly-marked sign. It would make the perfect Halloween hike, especially on a foggy evening.
Radar Dome
website | Colville, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~5 hrs 50 min | best for: abandoned radar base
It’s not every day you get to explore a former radar base, let alone one that was part of the Air Defense Command’s Cold War radar program. The radar station was a ground-controlled intercept system to warn aircrafts of unidentified intruders.
While long abandoned (it was phased out of use in the 1960s), the site is now a popular recreation area with a “creepy” reputation. While not widely documented, there are reports and rumors of paranormal activity. At the very least, it’s an unusual abandoned place that’s a bit more intriguing than the more-common military forts in Washington.
St. Ignatius Hospital
website | Colfax, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~4 hrs 15 min | best for: abandoned hospital
Saint Ignatius Hospital was built by Mother Joseph Pariseau in 1893 and served as the county’s hospital until it was decommissioned in the 1960s. It’s been unused since 2003, as evident by the dilapidated walls, crumbling floors, and broken windows.
The hospital is closed to the public due to unsafe conditions, but they’re considering redeveloping the building. You can still see its eerie facade from outside and imagine what it was like in its heyday.
Battery 247 at Cape Disappointment
website | Ilwaco, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~3 hrs 20 min | best for: abandoned military bunker
Battery 247 is located in the ever-popular Cape Disappointment State Park at the southern tip of the Washington coast. It stands as a silent reminder of the military endeavors of the past. Built in the 1940s as part of Fort Canby’s harbor defense program, it was used during WWII to safeguard the mouth of the Columbia River.
Today, visitors can traverse the forgotten corridors. As you reach the battery, you’ll be rewarded with a panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean juxtaposed with hardened cement and spooky corridors.
Sats0p Nuclear Power Plant
Elma, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~1 hr 40 min | best for: abandoned nuclear plant
One of the coolest abandoned places in Washington is the abandoned nuclear plant near Aberdeen on the Olympic Peninsula. It is the home to the Washington Public Power Supply System’s unfinished nuclear power plant units 3 and 5. Nowadays it was turned into a business park. While the inside of the plan is closed to the public, you can still gawk outside at the looming nuclear towers. Don’t worry, it’s completely safe because the power plant never actually held nuclear energy before it was abandoned.
Iron Goat Trail to abandoned tunnels
website | Skykomish, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~1 hr 30 min | best for: abandoned railroad tunnels
This 6-mile hike provides a mostly gentle walk along the old Great Northern Railroad built over the Cascades in 1893. There are a few steeper grades at the start and end of the hike, but it’s worth traversing in order to explore the trails’ abandoned tunnels that were once considered the best-engineered transcontinental railroad of its time.
Tubal Cain Mine Trail to plane wreck
website | Sequim, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~3 hrs | best for: abandoned mine and plane crash
This popular trail is one of the best hikes in Olympic National Park. At around the 3-mile mark you’ll run into a mine shaft visible to the left of the trail. If you take the connecting Tull Canyon Trail, it’ll bring you to an old 1952 B-17 plane crash site. The trail is steeper, but it’s worth it for a somber look at a historic aircraft. This hiker has a great recap of what you can expect on the hike.
Want to explore more abandoned mines? There are plenty, but many are difficult to get to and require advanced mountaineering skills. If you’re down for an adventure and plan to tread safely, check out Montana Mine near Winthrop or the Kromona, Copper Belle, and Kittanning mines in Snohomish County.
Goodnoe Schoolhouse
Goldendale, WA (get directions) | distance from Seattle: ~4 hrs | best for: abandoned schoolhouse
One of the most eerie spots to explore on any Columbia River Gorge itinerary is the eerie Goodnoe Schoolhouse. It sits abandoned on the side of the road, a stark reminder of the once-thriving Goodnoe Hill pioneer community from the 1860s. You can get a sense of what the schoolhouse looks like now via this TikTok tour. Make sure to head up the street to the old barn for another photo opportunity.
Are you allowed to explore abandoned places in Washington?
For the most part, yes! The spots on this list are visible to the public. However, some parts may be closed and only offer glimpses from a distance. Respect any signage or closed-off areas.
When checking out other abandoned places in WA, it’s super important to verify that they are open to the public. In addition, be respectful. Some spots that accept visitors may be located on private property. Vigilance is especially important if you go inside, as the buildings are often one step away from sudden injury.
Other spooky places in WA
Want to get even more thrills? There are a lot of places around Washington that aren’t abandoned, but are still known for ghost sighting. If that’s up your alley, check out these spots!
- Hotel de Haro – One of many haunted hotels on San Juan Island
- Mason Building – One of many haunted spots in Bellingham
- Black Diamond Cemetery – An active cemetery known for ghost sightings
- Tokeland Hotel – One of Washington’s oldest hotels said to have ghosts
- Campbell House – Historic home in Spokane that’s said to have a dark past
- Kell’s Irish Pub – Said to be one of the most haunted bars in Seattle
- The Pine Box – Seattle bar owned by a mortuary and funeral home
- Merchants Cafe & Saloon – Pioneer Square bar with reported ghost sightings
- Georgetown Morgue – A haunted house that used to be an actual morgue
- Hotel Sorrento – Ghosts have been said to roam the property
- The College Inn & Pub – Iconic UW bar famous for Howard the sailor
- University Heights Center – Historic building said to be haunted by a boy
- Oxford Saloon – Snohomish bar said to have ghosts from a dark past
- Minniehaha Park – Spokane park said to experience ghostly laughter
- Clay City – Private property that’s said to be cursed (can only get to gate)
Ghost tours
If you want a guided tour of haunted areas around Seattle, here are some ghost tours to consider:
- Sinister Sins, Scandals, and Shadows Ghost Tour
- Haunted Boos & Booze Walking Tour
- Beneath the Streets Underground Tour
More to explore around Washington
After you explore all the best abandoned places in Washington and spooky spots, check out my other guides.
