Waterfront fun at maritime fest

Nothing says "Seattle" like the biggest tugboat race in the world, the signature event at this Saturday's Seattle Maritime Festival.

The past, present and future of our working waterfront star in exhibits and events including a Work Boat Parade, Coast Guard sea-air rescue demonstration, fireboat display and tours of a seafood-processing vessel. Free one-hour boat tours of the working waterfront depart from Pier 66 at 11:30 a.m., 1, 2:30 and 4 p.m., with boarding half an hour before each departure. Check for tickets early, since space is limited. Odyssey, the Maritime Discovery Center, with galleries and interactive exhibits about the working waterfront, offers free admission and craft activities for kids all day Saturday. Events at Bell Street Pier outside the center include wooden-boat building activities for kids, food, festival information and an industry store.

Take a stroll down the waterfront in search of clam chowder nirvana at The Edgewater, Ivar's, The Crab Pot, Elliott's Oyster House and several other locations offering chowder tastes with a Waterfront Neighborhood Chowder Cook-Off passport available for $5 at participating restaurants or the festival information booth. Learn about the future of the waterfront with exhibits illustrating the Seattle Art Museum Sculpture Garden, renovation of Seattle Aquarium and information on changes to Colman Dock and the waterfront streetcar. Seattle Aquarium offers free admission for kids with paid adult admission Saturday.

Events run 11 a.m.-5 p.m., with Tugboat Race Championships from 12:30-3:30 p.m. from Pier 86 to Pier 66, a fireboat display at 12:30 p.m., WorkBoat Parade at 12:30 p.m. and Coast Guard air-sea rescue at 1:20 p.m., all in the vicinity of Bell Harbor Marina/Pier 66 at 2203 Alaskan Way, Seattle. For more information, call 206-728-3163 or see www.portseattle.org/news/events/maritime_2006.shtml.

— Madeline McKenzie, Seattle Times staff