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Post by Starsteward on Jul 28, 2017 5:09:52 GMT -8
The man sitting on the middle seat sure looks like Premier Bennett? That is the former Premier, WAC himself. He is shown here in 1969 aboard the first of the stretched ferries, the Q of Esquimalt. Unless there's security people milling about out of the camera shot, I'm thinking security wasn't that big an issue back in the day. Looking at that photo again, one might ask: 'A penny for your thoughts Mr. Premier?' I wonder if the man had any idea of the huge legacy his administration would leave behind? For those of us who were of 'tender years' in the 'sixties', 'WAC's' many initiatives (many doled out prior to an impending election call), appeared to be selectively sprinkled throughout the province. Back then, I had no blessed idea of what 'Social Credit' meant, only that they were the only 'game in town'. What history has taught us, is that a man from very humble roots, with no formal education, had put together a master plan for this province that was truly remarkable. In hindsight, I often wonder what timeline it would have taken this province to emerge into the 20th century had not William Andrew Cecil Bennett left the family hardware store in Kelowna and entered the political arena?
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Post by hwy19man on Jul 28, 2017 11:55:04 GMT -8
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Post by Departure Bay on Jul 29, 2017 9:37:54 GMT -8
Hello there! First time poster, please let me know if I make any forum etiquette mistakes.
My husband and I are moving to Nanaimo this fall. We have a couple of very low clearance sports cars. We live far enough away that it's not easy for us to go check out all available terminals to see what would work for us, but we've travelled to and from Tsawwassen (in our SUV) and we would not be able to get the cars up the ramps to the upper deck at that terminal.
Some questions for you experts:
How does BC Ferries handle "special needs" cars like this? It's not like they're overheight or anything, they just have really low clearance and we really don't want to scrape up the underside of the cars as we board or exit the ferry.
Is there a particular ferry terminal that is less problematic? We may be limited in our choices because we're likely bringing the cars over after October 1 and they won't have snow tires so we can't legally drive them over the Malahat. However, if it's absolutely necessary, we could likely bring the cars over early.
We could consider the Anacortes-Sidney Washington State ferry if we absolutely had to (same Malahat limitation as above).
Is there anything we should consider about tides and timing?
Do you guys have any tips for protecting the cars once they're on board?
One of the cars is going to have to go for service on the Lower Mainland so an ongoing solution / method is optimal. (ie. we could put it on a flatbed for a one-time move, but that's not really sustainable long-term unless absolutely necessary.)
We'll have views of the Departure Bay terminal from our new place so we're really looking forward to watching the ferries! Thanks in advance for all your help.
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Post by futureferrydriver on Jul 31, 2017 10:23:41 GMT -8
Hello there! First time poster, please let me know if I make any forum etiquette mistakes. My husband and I are moving to Nanaimo this fall. We have a couple of very low clearance sports cars. We live far enough away that it's not easy for us to go check out all available terminals to see what would work for us, but we've travelled to and from Tsawwassen (in our SUV) and we would not be able to get the cars up the ramps to the upper deck at that terminal. Some questions for you experts: How does BC Ferries handle "special needs" cars like this? It's not like they're overheight or anything, they just have really low clearance and we really don't want to scrape up the underside of the cars as we board or exit the ferry. Is there a particular ferry terminal that is less problematic? We may be limited in our choices because we're likely bringing the cars over after October 1 and they won't have snow tires so we can't legally drive them over the Malahat. However, if it's absolutely necessary, we could likely bring the cars over early. We could consider the Anacortes-Sidney Washington State ferry if we absolutely had to (same Malahat limitation as above). Is there anything we should consider about tides and timing? Do you guys have any tips for protecting the cars once they're on board? One of the cars is going to have to go for service on the Lower Mainland so an ongoing solution / method is optimal. (ie. we could put it on a flatbed for a one-time move, but that's not really sustainable long-term unless absolutely necessary.) We'll have views of the Departure Bay terminal from our new place so we're really looking forward to watching the ferries! Thanks in advance for all your help. Low clearance sport cars is a regular thing for BC Ferries, you can just tell the ticket agents that you would like to be loaded on the main car deck (due to the low clearance of your vehicle) and they will assign you a lane with the trucks and other overheight vehicles. They can accommodate this request on any route, however one consideration to make is that on route 30 (Tsawwassen to Duke Point (Nanaimo)) there is almost always more truck/overheight traffic than there is under height vehicle traffic, and it is not uncommon to see the main deck full, while the upper car deck still has tons of room left. This is the opposite of the Tswawwassen to Swartz Bay (route 1) and Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay (route 2) routes, where the majority of traffic is (usually) normal cars and the main deck is filled with some trucks and then topped up with cars. The point I'm trying to make is that you are more likely to encounter a sailing wait trying to get loaded on the main deck for route 30 then you are on routes 1 and 2. If you REALLY care, it might be worth mentioning that the berths for route 1 and route 30 are active lift, meaning the ramps automatically adjust during loading to keep them at an ideal angle. However for route 2 (with the exception of when the Coastal Renaissance is used, which only happens in the summer) the ramps are conventional lift, and they have to be manually adjusted during loading, which involves clearing the ramps of all traffic and takes a few minutes, so they only do it the minimum amount of times required during each load/unload. Basically you're more likely to have a less than ideal ship/ramp angle in Horseshoe Bay which might lead to some scraping in a low clearance vehicle. This is probably a bit nit-picky of an issue though, most low clearance sports cars seem to be fine with the method of 'going across the ramp very slowly at a 45 degree angle' I don't know anything about the Washington ferries, but I'm fairly sure BC Ferries has more modern equipment than the Sidney terminal and would be safer for your cars' underside. Hope this helps a bit!
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Post by Departure Bay on Jul 31, 2017 19:55:44 GMT -8
Thanks so much, FutureFerryDriver! This is incredibly helpful.
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John H
Voyager
Admin Emeritus
Posts: 2,919
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Post by John H on Aug 24, 2017 22:13:39 GMT -8
A question for our northern ferry travellers. How early ahead-of-time do you need to reserve for the northern routes in the summertime, specifically the Inside Passage and Haida Gwaii. Do they tend to ever sell out? Is this something that needs to be planned months ahead of time or is a week or two sufficient? The reservation system on BC Ferries for the northern routes seems pretty old-school compared to the southern routes. Have forum-members who use the northern routes find that the reservation system works quite well?
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Post by Mike C on Aug 25, 2017 7:31:39 GMT -8
A question for our northern ferry travellers. How early ahead-of-time do you need to reserve for the northern routes in the summertime, specifically the Inside Passage and Haida Gwaii. Do they tend to ever sell out? Is this something that needs to be planned months ahead of time or is a week or two sufficient? The reservation system on BC Ferries for the northern routes seems pretty old-school compared to the southern routes. Have forum-members who use the northern routes find that the reservation system works quite well? The Route 10/11 reservation system is brutal, no question about it, but I've used it a few times now and never had a problem with getting the reservations that I 'requested'. In the summer months, I believe sellouts are not uncommon, but I don't think booking should be any trouble, as long as you're thinking a couple months in advance. If you're travelling with a car, be mindful of that as well. I usually only travel during winter to get better deals, and during those off-season months, booking a couple weeks in advance is sufficient. Sometimes it's also good to give them a call to see what space is looking like, and even to complete your reservation over the phone.
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Post by articulated on Aug 27, 2017 16:18:08 GMT -8
A question for our northern ferry travellers. How early ahead-of-time do you need to reserve for the northern routes in the summertime, specifically the Inside Passage and Haida Gwaii. Do they tend to ever sell out? Is this something that needs to be planned months ahead of time or is a week or two sufficient? The reservation system on BC Ferries for the northern routes seems pretty old-school compared to the southern routes. Have forum-members who use the northern routes find that the reservation system works quite well? As Mike C posted, a few months in advance is probably recommended. I traveled the Inside Passage route last year in late September (so not quite 'peak' summer season, but still a bit busy) and made the reservation in mid-July without an issue. The booking agent did say we got the last cabin available, however he said it was a little unusual for that trip to be sold out that early, so I guess that particular trip happened to be busy. The current northern online booking is a bit odd and definitely not great, but making a reservation by phone was quite easy and simple so I personally would recommend that. They will also send you an email confirmation so you have something in writing for your reservation.
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Post by Departure Bay on Dec 7, 2017 8:57:49 GMT -8
I posted a question above about bringing our low-clearance cars over on the ferry, and FutureFerryDriver posted a very helpful answer. We brought both cars over in the past week with no trouble at all. We came over on route 2 and took it slow and had no trouble with scraping the noses (although I did get yelled at to hurry up as I slowly drove the first car on, taking the ramp at 45 degrees as recommended!). Thanks to FutureFerryDriver for the help!
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Post by hullnumbers on Dec 16, 2017 21:27:40 GMT -8
Does anyone know when the Gift shop service both at the terminals and on board the ferries began?
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Post by WettCoast on Dec 16, 2017 23:14:22 GMT -8
Does anyone know when the Gift shop service both at the terminals and on board the ferries began? Way back when they did not call them gift shops ... They were 'Newsstands' ... They were on all the major vessels from Day One in the early 1960's. All seven of the Seven Sisters had the original newsstand located opposite the forward Men's washroom on the Promenade Deck (main passenger deck). A member here ( pscurr) once posted a photo of one of those old newsstands. They were moved & replaced by the first 'gift shops' as vessels were stretched between 1969 & 74. As for terminals I am not certain but 'newsstand' sort of facilities date back into the very early years, but maybe were not there right at the start.
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lohium
Oiler (New Member)
Posts: 18
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Post by lohium on Dec 20, 2017 11:26:54 GMT -8
Hello all, long time/first time here, slowly working my way through the old threads, got my Experience Card, yadda yadda...
My question is about the Mill Bay ferry. I understand that it's cash only but that you can also purchase discount tickets at the Thrifty Foods in Brentwood and Mill Bay. Do they sell single tickets or only a sheet with several tickets?
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Nick
Voyager
Chief Engineer - Queen of Richmond
Posts: 2,078
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Post by Nick on Dec 20, 2017 13:43:39 GMT -8
Hello all, long time/first time here, slowly working my way through the old threads, got my Experience Card, yadda yadda... My question is about the Mill Bay ferry. I understand that it's cash only but that you can also purchase discount tickets at the Thrifty Foods in Brentwood and Mill Bay. Do they sell single tickets or only a sheet with several tickets? You can buy one ticket at a time. I usually buy two or three and stick a couple in the glove box just in case.
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jonesy
Oiler (New Member)
Posts: 1
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Post by jonesy on Jan 21, 2018 17:23:17 GMT -8
Hi there,
Does anyone know if its possible to obtain blue prints for any of the vessels?
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Post by fivethej on Jul 7, 2019 18:02:13 GMT -8
Is there anywhere on-line to find sounds heard on BC Ferries? For example sound that would play before PA announcement is made. All i've been able to find on youtube is various different horn sounds.
I don't know what Ferries is like these days as last time I was on them was way back in 90's.
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Post by fivethej on Jul 27, 2019 17:29:01 GMT -8
Did BC Ferries ever have TV Ads during very late 80s - early to mid 90's?
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Post by WettCoast on Jul 27, 2019 21:37:28 GMT -8
I don't recall such. Perhaps some of the other older members of the forum will have better memories ...
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on Jul 27, 2019 22:02:54 GMT -8
I don't recall such. Perhaps some of the other older members of the forum will have better memories ... Best as I can recall, the extent of marketing for BC Ferries was that slogan "Follow the birds to Vancouver Island", which was on the sides of the old Pacific Stage Lines buses, and maybe elsewhere. After the 'privatization', David Hahn was the first to really articulate the notion of BC Ferries competing for vacationers' dollars.
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Post by WettCoast on Jul 28, 2019 11:14:44 GMT -8
I don't recall such. Perhaps some of the other older members of the forum will have better memories ... Best as I can recall, the extent of marketing for BC Ferries was that slogan "Follow the birds to Vancouver Island", which was on the sides of the old Pacific Stage Lines buses, and maybe elsewhere. After the 'privatization', David Hahn was the first to really articulate the notion of BC Ferries competing for vacationers' dollars. BC Ferries did advertise through print media back in the day. But not so much to promote business in general as to, for instance, introduce new ship or services, or to promote off-peak travel. The attachment here shows a newspaper ad promoting the newly minted Queen of the North as the new Inside Passage ship in 1980.
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Post by Dane on Jul 30, 2019 19:54:21 GMT -8
They definitely weren't TV ads in the traditional sense, but, The Friendship Fleet campaign was also in all sorts of media including BC Lions promotions. That was in the public days.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on Jul 30, 2019 20:46:32 GMT -8
They definitely weren't TV ads in the traditional sense, but, The Friendship Fleet campaign was also in all sorts of media including BC Lions promotions. That was in the public days. I was just looking through my old BC Ferries brochures, and even there, there was not much emphasis on marketing, in terms of selling BC Ferries as part of an overall tourist experience. Some mention back in the '80s of promotions with hotels on package deals, but it was not prominent. The brochure introducing day cruises on Queen of The North just talked about the shipboard experience. Despite the flak BC Ferries gets for their advertising, I think it's completely justified. They are indeed competing in a diversified consumer market. One thing that really caught my eye from a 1995 brochure, on the fleet page- the line "At BC Ferries, diversity is definitely the spice of the fleet!", exclamation mark theirs. How attitudes have changed.
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Post by Kahloke on Aug 7, 2019 6:14:30 GMT -8
Bump to signify that I moved the two posts above into this thread as an effort to consolidate threads.
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Koastal Karl
Voyager
Been on every BC Ferry now!!!!!
Posts: 7,747
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Post by Koastal Karl on Aug 18, 2019 11:19:31 GMT -8
So I do not really know where to put this so I will put it here. I was on the SOVI's 9pm sailing last night from Tsawwassen. About 30 min or more out of Swartz Bay there was an incident between two groups on board and there were altercations. This took place in the deck 6 lounge closest to the Seawest Lounge. I am sure it was a racist comment that sparked it. There were some threatening words exchanged. I think someone reported it cause a whole bunch of crew came and were taking to them and standing around. I think the person who initiated it they took away. The interesting thing is I just found out today that our Youth Pastor at our church was on the same ferry and was talking to the ferry workers at the time and asked them about what their policy's are regarding that situation and he said that the person said they dident know which I thought was odd they should know and he even offered to walk off with them for security as I think both parties were walk on. So for security purposes I do think a few crew members walked off with them after everyone else left. But I mean should they not have called the cops if this person threatened them?? As we were talking if someone walks off the boat after an altercation and gets hurt or in another fight or whatever you wanna call it while still on BC Ferries property whether it's on waiting for a bus or in the parking lot that would not be a good situation. I don't know if this guy was taking a bus home or if he parked at the terminal or what so I was just curious on this type of situation. I saw a security officer on the SOBC earlier that day but not on the SOVI. Do they only work certain hours?? You think they would be on all sailings. I didn't even see one at Swartz Bay. The ferry was only like 30% full so at least it wasn't a full load.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on Aug 18, 2019 18:11:44 GMT -8
So I do not really know where to put this so I will put it here. I was on the SOVI's 9pm sailing last night from Tsawwassen. About 30 min or more out of Swartz Bay there was an incident between two groups on board and there were altercations. This took place in the deck 6 lounge closest to the Seawest Lounge. I am sure it was a racist comment that sparked it. There were some threatening words exchanged. I think someone reported it cause a whole bunch of crew came and were taking to them and standing around. I think the person who initiated it they took away. The interesting thing is I just found out today that our Youth Pastor at our church was on the same ferry and was talking to the ferry workers at the time and asked them about what their policy's are regarding that situation and he said that the person said they dident know which I thought was odd they should know and he even offered to walk off with them for security as I think both parties were walk on. So for security purposes I do think a few crew members walked off with them after everyone else left. But I mean should they not have called the cops if this person threatened them?? As we were talking if someone walks off the boat after an altercation and gets hurt or in another fight or whatever you wanna call it while still on BC Ferries property whether it's on waiting for a bus or in the parking lot that would not be a good situation. I don't know if this guy was taking a bus home or if he parked at the terminal or what so I was just curious on this type of situation. I saw a security officer on the SOBC earlier that day but not on the SOVI. Do they only work certain hours?? You think they would be on all sailings. I didn't even see one at Swartz Bay. The ferry was only like 30% full so at least it wasn't a full load. Over many years, BC Ferries has established a pretty good record of onboard safety. There have been many 'police incidents' where law enforcement has been waiting after crew saw something, and vessels will certainly turn around if need be. You say a number of crew were present. I'm betting that some of them were qualified to determine the temperature of the situation, and that they made the call that things had been resolved safely. As a side note, I've always wondered if there is a secure room on the major vessels where someone could be segregated from other passengers if they were deemed a threat.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 18, 2019 18:38:01 GMT -8
As a side note, I've always wondered if there is a secure room on the major vessels where someone could be segregated from other passengers if they were deemed a threat. The Queen of the North had a brig. I saw it on a tour that I had of the ship, during a 2004 inside passage sailing.
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