Checking WDFW counts and freshness.
The viewing-room recommendation uses fresh in-season counts and current visitor access.
Open the tour map →How to read these numbers
Latest daily is the newest published WDFW count row, not a real-time fish counter. Data age tells you how old that row is. Run context keeps a species-specific zero from being overinterpreted outside its typical migration period. The recent average and trend are descriptive, not a forecast.
Source and limits
Counts come from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife Lake Washington salmon-count tables. Published counts can lag the current date and are preliminary. This tool does not estimate uncounted fish between updates.
Ballard Locks questions answered
Are these Ballard Locks salmon counts live?
They are the latest published daily counts from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Each species is shown with its source date so an older count is not presented as a same-day observation.
When is the Ballard Locks fish ladder open?
Check the current U.S. Army Corps of Engineers visitor schedule before visiting. Fish ladder viewing hours can change with operations.