Washington State has so much to offer it’s residents and visitors and I had some fun sharing my home state with my niece and her husband over the last few days. I’m linking up to Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olsen’s Share Your Cup Thursday#107

Today I’m sharing our visit to the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks and the Charles S. English, Jr. botanical gardens known locally as the Ballard Locks.

We visited on Flag Day and it was nice to see the U.S. flag flying everywhere we went including on top to the Space Needle.

Construction of the Lake Washington Ship Canal and Hiram M. Chittenden Locks was completed in 1917 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Connecting the waters of Lake Washington, Lake Union, and Salmon Bay to the tidal waters of Puget Sound, the canal and locks allow recreational and commercial vessels to travel to the docks and warehouses of Seattle’s busy fresh water harbor.

I caught some photos in amidst the Salmon Waves art display just outside the Fish Ladder at the Locks. We were able to see a lot of salmon using the ladder on this day.

The complex of locks sit in the middle of Salmon Bay and are part of Seattle’s Lake Washington Ship Canal. They are known locally as the Ballard Locks after the neighborhood to their north. (Magnolia lies to the south.)

The locks and associated facilities serve three purposes:

• To maintain the water level of the fresh water Lake Washington and Lake Union at 20 to 22 feet above sea level.
• To prevent the mixing of sea water from Puget Sound with the fresh water of the lakes (saltwater intrusion).
• To move boats from the water level of the lakes to the water level of Puget Sound, and vice versa.

The complex includes two locks, a small (30 x 150 ft, 8.5 x 45.7 meter) and a large (80 x 825, 24.4 x 251.5 meter). The complex also includes a (235-foot, 71.6 meter) spillway with six (32 x 12-foot (3.7 m), 9.8 x 3.7 meter) gates to assist in water-level control. A fish ladder is integrated into the locks for migration of anadromous fish, notably salmon.

Operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the locks were formally opened on July 4, 1917, although the first ship passed on August 3, 1916. They were named after U.S. Army Major Hiram Martin Chittenden, the Seattle District Engineer for the Corps of Engineers from April 1906 to September 1908. They were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

It’s Thursday already and June is more than half over. We have a do nothing outside the home weekend except going to church and the Home Depot planned. Dear was waiting for a good dry day to pick up drywall from the big box store. I’ll be feeding my worker over the weekend while he chips away at his portion of responsibilities for the new bathroom. Yikes I might have to help hold up some drywall for the ceiling. I might need longer arms. What is going on in your corner of the world?