Chittenden Locks, Seattle

The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks located in Ballard provide a link for boats between the saltwater of the Puget Sound and the fresh water of the Ship Canal connecting to Lake Union and Lake Washington.



The Locks are made up of 2 navigational locks, a dam and spillway, a fish ladder, a botanical garden, and a regional visitor center.

The locks serve three purposes:

- To maintain the water level of Lake Washington and Lake Union at 20.6 feet above Puget Sound's mean low tide.

- To prevent the mixing of sea water from Puget Sound with the fresh water of the lakes known as saltwater intrusion

- To move boats from the water level of the lakes to the water level of Puget Sound, and vice versa





The fish ladder was built to allow salmon passing between fresh and salt water.

Glass panels make it possible to view the fish as they navigate their way through the ladder, adjusting to different levels of salt each step of the way.