Ballard Locks

After visiting the fish ladder and the Salmon Wave sculpture it's time to walk up to the water and enjoy the view of the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (locally known as the Ballard Locks). This waterway system is where the salt water from Puget Sound meets up with the freshwater of the Ship Canal. Since the ship canal is higher than Puget Sound a series of locks was put in place to get through.

If you've ever been to a set of locks before, this one is much the same. The ship enters into the lock and waits for the water to rise before being let out on the other side. One of the big differences here though is in the water type and the need for a safe passage for fish. The salmon can't safely travel through the lock system and the mortality rate was getting too high so the fish ladder was added to skirt around the locks.