On a sunny April afternoon in Seattle, I boarded an Argosy Locks Cruise, not knowing how much of the city I'd see in just two hours. What followed was a floating front-row seat to the sights, sounds, and stories that define the Emerald City from Lake Union's houseboats and seaplanes to the Ballard Locks, where we "rode the elevator" from freshwater to saltwater, and finally into the wide-open views of Puget Sound.
If you're short on time but want a deeper understanding of Seattle's geography and maritime culture, this cruise is a great choice. You cover a lot of ground (or water, rather) while soaking in skyline views and learning from the onboard guide.
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Seattle Locks Cruise
Afternoon Departure
At 1 p.m. on a Thursday, I checked in at the Argosy Cruises booth in a parking lot in the southwestern corner of Lake Union. I departed from Lake Union in the early afternoon so the sun would be behind us when we reached Elliott Bay and the Seattle skyline. The sun's position would be ideal for photographing the city from the water.
The alternative is to depart Pier 54 in Elliott Bay at 10:30 a.m., when the sun is still rising above downtown Seattle. But shooting into the sun can be problematic.
Passengers began boarding the Goodtime II at about 1:15 p.m., at which point I headed straight for the top deck at the front of the boat. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis, but it didn't matter.
I was happy to learn the cruise that day was only running at 20% of capacity (about 40 passengers out of a maximum of 200). In addition to the sunshine, clear skies, and mild temperatures, I couldn't have asked for better conditions!
Nate, our guide for the day, introduced himself and shared the location of the bar and bathrooms. At 1:30 p.m., we embarked on our Seattle locks cruise.
Lake Union and Fremont
Argosy Cruises operates from a dock adjacent to Kenmore Air and offers scenic seaplane tours around Seattle. I was excited to see their planes take off and land on water, a bucket-list activity I'd like to experience one day.
I've been on similarly small planes over the Okavango Delta and Ushuaia, but I want to experience what it's like using a lake as a runway.
When departing on the locks cruise, you also get a good view of the Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI). It's one of the few major Seattle museums I still have to visit.
Floating Homes
Lake Union's floating homes are among Seattle's most iconic sights. These colorful houses line the shore, forming a series of floating neighborhoods. One of the most famous is the cedar-shingle home featured in "Sleepless in Seattle," which fans can spot along the locks cruise route.
While they may look laid-back, these houses are prime real estate. Our guide said prices can be upwards of $1 million, and then there are the higher expenses of maintaining a floating home. The pricy houses reminded me of the ones I saw in Sausalito on a day trip to Muir Woods in northern California.
Gas Works Park
As the cruise continued, we drew closer to a one-of-a-kind urban green space. Gas Works Park is situated on a grassy promontory at the north end of Lake Union, built atop the ruins of Seattle's only remaining coal-gasification plant.
Since its opening in 1975, landscape architect Richard Haag's design has fused industrial grit with grass fields (and wildflowers in the spring). You'll find steel towers, play structures fashioned from old machinery, picnic shelters, sundials, and sweeping skyline views. This 20-acre steampunk-meets-parkland is a beloved Seattle icon.
Bridges
Cruising beneath the Aurora Bridge on the way to the Ballard Locks offers a striking moment of scale and history. Known officially as the George Washington Memorial Bridge, this 2,945-foot-long truss and cantilever marvel soars 167 feet above the canal.
From the cruise ship's deck, you feel dwarfed by its vast span, which connects the Queen Anne and Fremont neighborhoods. It opened in 1932 after two years of construction.
The famous Fremont Troll sculpture can be found at the northern end of the Aurora Bridge. It's not visible from the water; however, Kel and I had visited the troll previously on my first trip to Seattle.
After passing under the massive Aurora Bridge, we approached the bright blue-and-orange Fremont Bridge. Built in 1917, this double-leaf bascule bridge opens roughly 35 times daily to accommodate boat traffic.
Its cobalt-blue paint and tangerine accents, chosen by neighborhood vote in 1985, lend it a distinctly playful, Fremont-artsy vibe.
Through the Ballard Locks
At this point in the cruise, we passed from the Fremont neighborhood into the Ballard area. Our guide pointed out some deep-sea fishing boats, including one featured in a Discovery Channel TV show. We also passed several marinas with everything from small recreational boats to multi-million-dollar luxury yachts.
Having skipped the chance to take a boat ride through the Panama Canal, I was excited to have a similar albeit significantly scaled-down experience in Seattle.
The Ballard Locks, officially known as the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, are one of Seattle's most impressive engineering feats. Completed in 1917, they connect the freshwater of Lake Union and Lake Washington to the saltwater of Puget Sound via the Lake Washington Ship Canal.
The locks function like a boat elevator, raising and lowering vessels to match changing water levels. Over 40,000 boats, from kayaks to large fishing vessels, pass through yearly. Visitors can also view migrating salmon through the fish ladder, which was added in the 1970s.
What's a Fish Ladder?
A fish ladder is a structure that helps migrating fish, such as salmon, bypass obstacles like dams or locks as they swim upstream to spawn. It works by creating a series of stepped pools or a sloped channel that mimics the natural flow of a stream, allowing fish to gradually climb to higher water levels.
At the Ballard Locks in Seattle, the fish ladder features underwater viewing windows that allow visitors to observe salmon swimming upstream from June to October.
Migrating salmon are easiest to spot here from June through October, when sockeye return (with a July peak), followed by chinook from July to November (late August peak), and coho from August to November (late September peak).
When we were there, the smaller of the two locks was closed, so the Argosy cruise ship entered the larger lock. Our guide said they'd typically use the smaller one, leaving only inches of space between the boat and the concrete walls.
It was about 2:15 p.m. when our ship entered the large lock, and the gates behind us closed. Over the next 10 minutes, water gently drained. Our guide said it was low tide, so we experienced a 10-foot to 15-foot drop in water level. The differential is less dramatic during high tide.
By 2:25 p.m., the gate in front of us had opened, and we motored through it. The green moss exposed along the concrete walls shows the difference in water levels.
Salmon Bay
We had one more bridge to clear before reaching the open waters of Puget Sound. The Salmon Bay Bridge, a striking Strauss heel-trunnion bascule railway span, was built in 1914 by the Great Northern Railway to cross the ship canal just west of the Ballard Locks.
With a stout 200-foot opening, it lifts to let boats pass below while about 30 to 40 trains traverse it daily, connecting Seattle with Everett and beyond.
The Salmon Bay Bridge's counterweight is massive, weighing approximately 1,750 tons of concrete and steel, which balances a roughly 2,100-ton movable span. Gliding beneath this hulking structure on a cruise is quite an experience.
Shilshole Bay
It was 2:30 p.m., and we were one hour into our two-hour Seattle locks cruise as we entered Shilshole Bay. To the north, we cruised past a colony of California sea lions who enjoy hanging out on the rocks protecting a marina.
To the west, we could see Bainbridge Island and the glacier-capped peaks of the Olympic Mountains beyond it. My Pacific Northwest to-do list includes a day trip to Bainbridge Island from Seattle and hiking in Olympic National Park, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
The view south was of Discovery Park, Seattle's largest green space, spanning 534 acres on a bluff overlooking Puget Sound. Located in the Magnolia neighborhood, it offers forested trails, open meadows, and water views. The park is also home to the West Point Lighthouse, visible at sea level as you continue cruising toward downtown Seattle.
One of my favorite views from the locks cruise was of a lone sea lion hanging out on a green buoy, with the lighthouse in the background.
Elliott Bay
The final 30 minutes of the Argosy locks cruise saw us motoring along Magnolia's residential coast, past a marina and cruise terminals on our way to downtown Seattle's waterfront.
We could see Mount Rainier through a distant haze, an active volcano whose last major eruption was about 1,000 years ago. At 14,410 feet (4,392 meters) in elevation, it's mostly covered in glaciers, which feed five rivers.
From May through October, there's more than a 50% daily chance of spotting it; from November to April, it's rarer due to persistent cloudiness. I didn't have time to visit Mount Rainier National Park on this trip.
Space Needle and Waterfront
The clear weather afforded us a spectacular view of the Seattle Space Needle on our locks cruise. During my first trip to Seattle a few years earlier, Kel and I did a wine tasting in the Space Needle (so much fun).
I also spotted several works of art in the nearby Olympic Sculpture Park, including Alexander Calder's "The Eagle." Every passenger on the cruise was visibly excited as we took in the views of downtown Seattle.
The last few points of interest we cruised past included the Seattle Aquarium at Pier 59 and the Great Wheel, a giant Ferris wheel at Pier 57.
I rode on the latter during my first visit to Seattle, and it provided some lovely downtown views. Seeing the Great Wheel from the water puts the height of the skyscrapers that dominate downtown Seattle into perspective.
At 3:25 p.m., we slowly slipped into Pier 54 and disembarked our Argosy locks cruise. We arrived on time and were free to continue exploring Seattle by land.
In just two hours, the Argosy Locks Cruise revealed Seattle from fresh angles, seamlessly connecting its industrial past, maritime culture, and natural beauty. It was money and time well spent, even if you're on a tight budget.
