On the Road...Seattle, Washington

We arrived in Seattle with enough time to have dinner and a quick presentation at our hotel before calling it a day.  Then we got to tour the city and visit the Hiram M. Chittendon Locks.  We also saw how they  adjust for a 20 foot change in water level, as is demonstrated by the sail boat utilizing the locks from the Puget Sound side to the Lake Washington side.  It had just entered the lock as shown below and the gates behind the sailboat are closing.  The lock will then fill with water and the boat will rise to be level with the tan looking thin horizontal line just about at the top of the gate. 

Once that level is achieved, the sailboat can then proceed through the other end of  the lock and on to Lake Washington.  The whole process took about 15 minutes.

What I found even more interesting is the Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder which is located just opposite the locks on the other side of the river.   This Fish Ladder was constructed on July 4, 1917 and refurbished on June 1, 1976 and is used annually by the many different types of Salmon that spawn through this section of the canal.   Below is a guide explaining how the fish ladder works, while you can see in the background a rather large Salmon using the facility.

 Here is a view of the fish ladder from the top and outside...the depth of course is as deep as the canal which in this section is at least 20 feet.  I think it is pretty amazing that the fish are able to utilize a man-made structure so they can complete their naturally driven spawning requirements.

 Then it was on the the University of Washington Conservatory.....yep, more flowers.  No roses here but lots of tropical plants, carnivorous plants and other wonders that kept me mesmerized.

 These are some of the carnivorous plants that they had on display; they were so colorful and inviting, it's no wonder the bugs don't stand a chance

 Orchids, orchids and more orchids....so much eye candy!

On the same campus as the conservatory was a museum of Asian artifacts, where I had to visit with this poor lonely camel.