What is a Lock? And how do they work?

Written by Sam & C:
A lock is a boat elevator that brings narrow-boats up or down a hill. A lock uses water to lift boats up or down like an elevator. Locks are needed because most boats cannot handle rapidly moving water. We know about locks because our family has been narrow boating and have used two locks: once up, and once down .We are giving an example of how to a pilot a boat down hill using a lock.

To explain how to operate a lock we will give you this excellent procedure. A lock is mostly a channel with gates at each end. It also has valves at each gate to let the water in and out. This procedure explains how to move a boat downstream through a lock. If the upper gate is closed, then close the lower gate and open the upper gate valves to fill the lock. Then open the upper gate. Once the upper gate is open, or if it already was open, drive in. Then close the upper gate and make sure the upper gate valves are closed. Open the lower gate valves to lower the boat and then close the lower gate valves. Open the lower gate and drive the boat out.

Locks are important because they move boats up and down hills. Canals were used to bring goods out of the hills and locks were used to bring boats in and out of the hills.

[The photo of the boat stuck in a lock was one we saw in the paper. It sunk when part of it got stuck in the lock, allowing the front to tip down into the water and fill up.]