-Guest post by Tami Asars
High above Issaquah, where hikers pause to watch paragliders drift into the sky, a new memorial bench is slated to be installed on December 30th along the Poo Poo Point trail in Issaquah. Created in honor of beloved Seattle radio host and long-time North Bend resident Bob Rivers, the bench celebrates a man whose voice, humor, and generosity touched thousands across the Pacific Northwest.
When Bob passed away from esophageal cancer in March 2025, the loss reverberated throughout the Snoqualmie Valley and greater Seattle community. Bob wasn’t simply a radio celebrity; he used his platform to uplift, inspire, and connect with everyone he encountered. When you spoke with Bob, he gave you his full attention. He made you feel seen. His curiosity about people, life, and adventure was boundless. He chased passions with fearless determination — afraid of flying, he earned his pilot’s license; wanting to play in a band, he learned the keyboard. That was Bob: always learning, always exploring.
I often say that Bob and Lisa didn’t collect acquaintances — they collected friends. Everyone they met, from repair technicians to salespeople, seemed to become part of their circle. Knowing Bob was a gift, and his listeners felt that too. Not many people can fill a sold out 1,000 seat tribute event, but Bob did on November 13th. His legacy is one of kindness, laughter, music, sobriety, and love.
For my family, the loss was deeply personal. Bob and his wife, Lisa, were not just our North Bend neighbors — they were dear friends. Over the years we grew close, and Bob and I bonded especially over our shared love of hiking. We traded trail stories, and he became an enthusiastic supporter of my hiking guides, even following my Appalachian Trail thru-hike on his podcast in 2022. My husband and I hiked part of the Wonderland Trail with Bob, and I can still hear him asking for tips for his PCT trek from Snoqualmie to Stevens Pass. Those joyful trail moments are part of what makes the bench on Poo Poo Point feel so fitting. Whether he was huffing up Rattlesnake Ledge or exploring trails in the Middle Fork, he found the outdoors wonderfully contagious — just as so many of us do.
The idea for a memorial bench first came up about a year before Bob’s passing, when his youngest son, comedian Andrew Rivers, floated the idea to him. Bob and Lisa both loved it, but it lingered without urgency or a clear plan. Then a series of coincidences — the kind Bob would have gotten a kick out of — nudged everything into motion. While riding my mountain bike down the Olallie Trail, I suddenly felt a cheerful nudge of intuition: “Bob wants a bench.” Surrounded by the beauty he loved so much, the thought felt unmistakable. When I got home and called Lisa, she told me Bob had indeed talked about wanting a bench, though the family hadn’t moved the idea forward yet. The sheer coincidence felt like a sign, and I offered to help bring the project to life.
We were inspired by a beautiful memorial bench created for climber Jonathan Sugarman on West Tiger #3 and set out to find the artist behind it. That search led us to Tomas Vrba. In yet another remarkable coincidence, Tomas — who immigrated from Slovakia — had learned English in part by listening to Bob’s radio show. Not only did he know Bob’s voice, he understood the full tapestry of Bob’s life — the radio career, the music, the outdoor adventures, and the hobbies he chased with wholehearted enthusiasm. Tomas worked closely with the Rivers family to design a bench that captured Bob’s spirit in every detail.
The bench is anchored on one side by a carved radio microphone, honoring Bob’s long and celebrated broadcasting career, and on the other by a maple syrup bottle — a nod to the syrup he and Lisa made together, a tradition he ensured would continue even after his passing. The backrest features a twisted musical staff representing Bob’s beloved Twisted Tunes parodies. Musicians will recognize the notes carved into the wood as those from “The Twelve Pains of Christmas,” one of his most iconic holiday spoofs. And the seat itself is a keyboard, a tribute to Bob’s years playing with Spike and the Impalers, featuring former radio co-host Spike O’Neill and Heart by Heart, which includes the original bassist and drummer of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band Heart.
Bob loved hiking and the natural world. From the forests of his New England childhood to the fern lined trails of the Pacific Northwest, he found peace and joy in the outdoors. Poo Poo Point was one of his favorite hikes — a place he cherished for its workout, its sweeping views, and the thrill of watching paragliders launch into the sky. It is, without question, the perfect home for Bob’s bench.
When people visit the bench, the Rivers family hopes they’ll pause to laugh, breathe, and savor life the way Bob did. His positivity extended far beyond the radio waves. He radiated a rare and beautiful human spirit — one that continues to inspire all who knew him. And now, on a quiet overlook above Issaquah, his spirit will keep watch over the mountains he loved, offering every passerby a place to rest, reflect, and carry a bit of Bob’s light forward.
Friends, fans, and anyone who loved Bob’s joyful energy are invited to stop by the bench on December 30th at 1 p.m. just after it’s installation or visit anytime afterward to enjoy the view and think of him with a smile.
[Tami Asars is a North Bend–based author, guidebook writer, and longtime outdoor educator whose work focuses on hiking and exploring the Pacific Northwest. A Triple Crown hiker who has completed the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Appalachian Trail, she is also the author of several Mountaineers Books titles, including Fall Color Hikes: Washington and Hiking the Wonderland Trail. A former REI employee and recipient of the company’s Anderson Award, Asars has spent decades teaching, guiding, photographing, and writing about the outdoors. She and her husband live near Rattlesnake Ridge, where she continues to hike, write, and contribute to outdoor publications and community efforts throughout the Snoqualmie Valley.]
