In the normal course of events, SSSS sailors have few opportunities to transit the Hiram M. Chittenden locks in Seattle. They are, after all, over 60 nm away as the gull flies, hardly a practical destination for a weekend cruise. But, with a bit more time at your disposal, and summer cruising season is fast approaching, there are several good reasons to give locking through a try.

First, for soft-core racers who like to party, and who doesn’t, the Duck Dodge offers races on Lake Union each Tuesday night from May to September. Each week promotes a different theme: e.g. Duct Tape night, Toga night, Pajama night, etc. You might drop in on your summer cruise, or on your way to Whidbey Island Race Week, perhaps, accepting the risk that you may never any get farther up Sound for the rest of the summer. http://www.duckdodge.org/

Second, a periodic freshwater dip is good for your boat. Not only does it float lower to soften the grime on your waterline, but fresh water gives fits to any barnacles claiming real estate on your hull. And while you harass the crustaceans, Seattle offers ample attractions to divert you and your crew. There is the Center for Wooden Boats at the south end of Lake Union, Gasworks park at the north, and all of Lake Washington to the east. http://cwb.org/

Too much to do in a day? Well, thanks to the efforts of our Cruise Chair, Mark Welpman, SSSS sailors now enjoy reciprocal privileges with Queen City YC on Portage Bay. Stretch out your freshwater visit and enjoy myriad restaurants and other shore side temptations of the inner waters of the Emerald, formerly Queen, City.

Finally, going through the locks is just plain fun. But the Army Corps of Engineers, which operates the locks, needs you to be prepared with the right equipment, sufficient crew, and a bit of knowledge.

Equipment
For equipment, you need two or more 50-foot mooring lines with an eye in one end, minimum diameter 12 inches. Tie in a bowline for an eye, no slip knots, or better yet, splice in a permanent eye to avoid hang-ups. Such lines are useful for all sorts of things, such as rafting up at an SSSS Cruise! So make them up and keep them on-board as a permanent part of your inventory.

You will need fenders for both sides of your boat; on one side to keep you from exchanging gel-coat with the concrete sides of the lock wall, and on the other side to keep rafted boats off of you!

Of course, you need PFDs for each person on board, wear them during transit, and fire extinguishers of the type and quantity prescribed by USCG regulations. As the Corps of Engineers points out, escape from a burning vessel within the confines of the lock chamber could be very difficult, and might very well ruin your whole day.

Finally, ensure that your boat and its auxiliary propulsion is in good mechanical condition, especially reverse gea, this is crucial. And while not specified in the literature, you might also find a gas mask useful. Vessels that heedlessly keep their engines running during transit, for fear they won’t re-start, perhaps, soon fill the confines of the lock chamber with noxious fumes.

Crew
Regarding crew, it is essential that you have enough people on-board to control your boat and handle your lines while transiting the locks. At least two persons, one at the bow and one at the stern are needed to pass lines to the lock attendant, take in or pay out lines as the water level changes, and ensure a safe passage.

Boats in the lock chamber can experience up to 6 knots of current as water is let in and drained out, and vigilant management of lines is essential. Filling the locks on a busy summer weekend is like assembling a giant jigsaw puzzle. The more the merrier as additional crew can help monitor and control the boats rafted next to you as well as your neighbors fore and aft.

Knowledge

The best knowledge comes from experience. At minimum, a visit to the Locks to observe the process from a cool and dispassionate perspective would seem sensible. Better, a ride through the locks on someone else’s boat is good preparation for skippering your own.

The Corps offers several useful information resources for first-time and infrequent skippers and crew. From April to September free classes are offered on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month and on the 2nd Wednesday of each month between January and March. They are at 1900 at the Locks Visitor Center. Why not make it an excuse to visit the Locks during the summer and take in the mayhem stately proceedings first hand?

The Corps also offers a free brochure called Guidelines for Boaters, and helpful articles and videos are available at their web site. You think I’m being flippant? How about the article with the felicitous title, “How to Conquer the Ballard Locks and Maintain your Sanity”?

Useful information you need to learn includes fine points such as how and where to queue up for passage through the locks, traffic priorities, differences between the large and small locks, directions for entering a lock, communication with lock personnel, which line to cast off first when exiting so the backwash doesn’t spin you in circles, and so forth.

All in all, a transit through the locks can be a fun experience unique to the Northwest. These are, after all, the second-largest locks in the Western Hemisphere after the Panama Canal. And, if your mast is tall enough, your fun is just beginning. Make the Ballard, Fremont, and/or Montlake bridges go up and down and you, too, can experience the sublime satisfaction of annoying our sophisticated urban neighbors to the north while contributing to Seattle’s notorious traffic gridlock!!

John Sherman, Grendel

apologies to Charles L. Dodgson, aka Lewis Carroll