The smaller of the locks at Ballard has mooring points that float with the water level so the boats can tie up and wait for the process to be over.  In the big lock, the boats have to let out or take in their lines as the level changes because they are tied to the lock side itself.  When the boats were down, the lock crew shouted out clear instructions to everyone to keep their lines tight until instructed to do otherwise.  As the boats had come in, we had watched with some amusement a guy who didn’t seem to know how to handle his boat.  Judging by the text on the boat, it was a share scheme of some sort.

I wandered away as they started to move out of the lock but Nancy and Mum stayed to watch.  Judging by the shouting that followed, one of the boats had let off his lines early.  When the gates open, there is a flow out of the lock which starts to take loose boats with it.  One of them started to rotate and take the other boats with it.  I missed the whole thing but I was able to guess who was the one that hadn’t followed instructions.  Hmm…