4 Best Sights in Ballard, Seattle

There's no doubt—there's something intriguing and eerie about seeing two bodies of water, right next to each, at different levels. The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (also known as "Ballard Locks") are an important passage in the 8-mile Lake Washington Ship Canal that connects Puget Sound to freshwater Lake Washington and Lake Union. In addition to boat traffic, the Locks see an estimated half-million salmon and trout make the journey from saltwater to fresh each summer, with the help of a fish ladder.

Families picnic beneath oak trees in the adjacent 7-acre Carl S. English Botanical Gardens; various musical performances (from jazz bands to chamber music) serenade visitors on summer weekends; and steel-tinted salmon awe spectators as they climb a 21-step fish ladder en route to their freshwater spawning grounds—a heroic journey from the Pacific to the base of the Cascade Mountains.

In the 1850s, when Seattle was founded, Lake Washington and Lake Union were inaccessible from the tantalizingly close Puget Sound. The city's founding fathers—most notably, Thomas Mercer in 1854—began dreaming of a canal that would connect the freshwater lakes and the Sound. The lure of freshwater moorage and easier transport of timber and coal proved powerful, but it wasn't until 1917 that General Hiram M. Chittenden and the Army Corps of Engineers completed the Lake Washington Ship Canal and the locks that officially bear his name. More than 90 years later, the Locks are still going strong. Tens of thousands of boaters pass through the Locks each year, carrying more than a million tons of commercial products—including seafood, fuel, and building materials.

Guided tours of the Locks are available departing from the visitor center; however, plaques by the locks will give you plenty of information if you don't have time for a tour.

There's something intriguing and eerie about seeing two bodies of water, right next to each other, at different levels. The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (also known as "Ballard Locks") are an important passage in the eight-mile Lake Washington Ship Canal that connects Puget Sound to freshwater Lake Washington and Lake Union.

Families picnic beneath oak trees in the adjacent 7-acre Carl S. English Botanical Gardens; various musical performances (from jazz bands to chamber music) serenade visitors on summer weekends; and steel-tinted salmon awe spectators as they climb a 21-step fish ladder en route to their freshwater spawning grounds—a heroic journey from the Pacific to the base of the Cascade Mountains.

In the 1850s, when Seattle was founded, Lake Washington and Lake Union were inaccessible from the tantalizingly close Puget Sound. The city's founding fathers—most notably, Thomas Mercer in 1854—dreamt of a canal that would connect the freshwater lakes and the sound. The lure of freshwater moorage and easier transport of timber and coal proved powerful, but it wasn't until 1917 that General Hiram M. Chittenden and the Army Corps of Engineers completed the Lake Washington Ship Canal and the Locks that officially bear his name. More than 100 years later, the locks are still going strong. Tens of thousands of boaters pass through the locks each year, carrying more than a million tons of commercial products—including seafood, fuel, and building materials.

Free guided tours of the locks depart from the visitor center and give you far more information than the plaques by the locks.

The waters of Puget Sound may be bone-chillingly cold, but that doesn't stop folks from jumping in to cool off. Besides brave swimmers, who congregate on the small strip of sand between the parking lot and the canteen, this Ballard-area park is packed with sunbathers and walkers in summer. In other seasons, beachcombers explore during low tide, and groups gather around bonfires to socialize and watch the glorious Seattle sunsets. The park has drinking water, grills, picnic tables, a playground, restrooms, and a snack shop. It also has two wetlands, a short loop trail, and unbelievable views of the Olympic Mountains. The park has two dedicated parking lots, but they fill up quickly on summer weekends.

Celebrating the Nordic cultures of Sweden, Finland, Norway, Iceland, and Denmark (of which there are many descendants in Ballard), this museum opened in its spacious new building in 2018. Exhibits trace Scandinavian art, artifacts, and heritage all the way from Viking times. Galleries give an in-depth look at how immigrants came to America and settled in the Pacific Northwest. There's also a relaxing "Sense of Place" area, where visitors can immerse themselves in the scenery and sounds of the Nordic region while getting comfortable on plush stuffed rocks. Models of boats lead to the back garden, which contains a century-old functional sauna and a Viking ship.