FNS
Voyager
The Empire Builder train of yesteryear in HO scale
Posts: 4,948
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Post by FNS on Dec 31, 2011 6:14:07 GMT -8
WSDOT has a neat page on stories of the Hood Canal Bridge: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR104HoodCanalBridgeEast/rststories.htmMr. Dave Black, who worked for WSF, wrote a nice story on the development of ferry service on Hood Canal after the sinking of the Hood Canal Bridge in February of 1979. This also mentions putting together a self propelled barge with ramps at each end and naming this BEACH GIRL. Here's his story: David Black Retired Manager of Marine Operation for Washington State Ferries“Our family was on vacation on Maui and only learned about the damage when a friend (half owner of Kingston Lumber) called from down the beach and told us about what happened. He was most interested in the event as Kingston Lumber also owned a retail lumber yard in Port Townsend. Once back at work the focus on creating a [ferry] service plan was well underway with the first efforts slanted towards establishing a passenger-only service from the old ferry property at Lofall to Southpoint on the west side. In addition to the normal day-to-day ferry system operations the experiences were expanded to devote attention to solutions for moving vehicles to and from the Olympic Peninsula. One quick fix was to shift the “Walla Walla” [ferry] to a new route: Edmonds to Port Townsend. This hardly put a dent into the number of folks used to crossing the bridge but it did create a new "poster child" for downtown traffic congestion on the main street of Port Townsend. Work with the CG established a blue print for "crude but effective" canal crossing. This was the “Beach Girl”; a self-propelled barge built for the exclusive use of moving commercial vehicles back and forth. East side was off of the boat ramp at Salisbury Park across to Shine on the boat launch there. The “Beach Girl” was a series of pontoons bolted together with four diesel engines mounted from side to side each driving a vertical thruster...just like an electric egg beater. A control tower sat on one side of the vessel with all of the levers being spread on a dash board. There was one ramp for raising and lowering at each barge end. The thruster displays were often out of whack so the operators were never certain in which direction the flow was going. One time when I was aboard the engineer laid on his stomach at the vessel edge and watched for flow to come out from beneath the barge and when spotted he would signal the tower with the direction. While all of this was taking place the “Beach Girl” was making bigger and bigger circles coming close to the beach, through the crab pot buoys out along Whiskey Spit and into the Canal. It was on one of these great circle routes that the Captain shut down and let the Foss Tug which was in the area heading to the Port Gamble Mill come to our rescue. .................................................. The most challenging part of Canal Crossings was in the selection process for what could be done [for a couple years]. The proposal was for a contracted service expected to operate for a couple of years but was stopped in two and one-half months after an accident. Ferry vessels were taken from other routes and shuttled to the canal. This is the chapter that is the genesis of my appreciating the hard work of the [ferry] system employees as they were forced to make a system work that was uphill every step of the way.” Here's what the BEACH GIRL looked like: Researched photo from the web.
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Post by compdude787 on Jan 8, 2013 8:34:28 GMT -8
Hmm this is interesting. Never knew about this ferry.
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FNS
Voyager
The Empire Builder train of yesteryear in HO scale
Posts: 4,948
|
Post by FNS on Jan 8, 2013 11:51:37 GMT -8
Hmm this is interesting. Never knew about this ferry. She was one of a few that most ferry fans don't have any knowledge of in the maritime encyclopedia of their brains. Right after the Hood Canal Bridge (the west half) sank in that ferocious windstorm of February of 1979, state transportation brainers had to think and work fast in how to get commerce moving across the canal. They did! The result is the BEACH GIRL making landings on the beach at each side. They didn't have any time to create the docks you normally see at ferry terminals. So, this self-propelled barge had a ramp at each end and ferried trucks and commercial vehicles across the canal until real ferry docks were assembled at Lofall and South Point. Enter the TILLIKUM and KULSHAN, exit the BEACH GIRL, in 1980. Foot passenger docks, on the other hand, were assembled quickly (quicker than driving in wingwalls and installing transfer spans and aprons). So there was foot passenger service across the canal and a network of buses in 1979. I will always remember that day, a day my school was closed due to the obvious power outages and the worst battering of wind I have ever heard on my windows at home. Good thing I'm still here instead of Oz. The BEACH GIRL isn't on "evergreenfleet.com" yet. She should! ;D
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Post by EGfleet on May 4, 2016 11:46:13 GMT -8
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Post by EGfleet on May 4, 2016 12:00:07 GMT -8
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Post by EGfleet on May 4, 2016 12:16:02 GMT -8
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Post by EGfleet on May 4, 2016 12:35:56 GMT -8
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Post by EGfleet on May 4, 2016 12:55:06 GMT -8
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Post by Barnacle on May 5, 2016 6:52:59 GMT -8
Interesting read. It's a little surprising that there is virtually NOTHING about this out there. Some incidents just seem to disappear...
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Post by rusty on May 5, 2016 10:13:18 GMT -8
It is my opinion that in that era WSDOT, Marine Leasing, and the USCG were in cahoots. A situation largely resolved by the Issaquah crisis.
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Post by northwesterner on May 5, 2016 20:30:10 GMT -8
Interesting read. It's a little surprising that there is virtually NOTHING about this out there. Some incidents just seem to disappear... This are some tremendously interesting news clippings that EGfleet dug up. As you note, there is very little out there about this. I knew they cancelled the tug and barge operation because there was an accident. I'm not even sure I knew that there was a fatality involved and that the accident including the capsizing of a huge MIKI tug. Looks like there was a ton of history involved, including the WSF crews actually operating the tugs. I knew nothing that a couple of Captains stepped down from operating this thing literally a month before the accident. It also seems incredible that they were putting such extreme stress on the drivetrains of these tugs to move this barge around that the prop sheered off the shaft. That's just unreal. And I knew nothing of the WSF and Marine Power and Equipment connection. It would seem that they were doing a great job of low bidding and providing junk. I'd love rusty to fill in more if he knows more about the WSF/MP&E/USCG connection he alluded to in another post. Finally, for all the griping on the list about too many photos and not enough content, here's some incredible content but only a couple of replies and no "likes." Hello? Anyone home?
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Post by Low Light Mike on May 6, 2016 7:06:13 GMT -8
Mr. Ever Green Fleet:
Thanks for the work of scanning and posting these newspaper clippings. Much appreciated.
Thank you for the history lesson.
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Post by rusty on May 6, 2016 14:14:32 GMT -8
northwestener wrote: "And I knew nothing of the WSF and Marine Power and Equipment connection. It would seem that they were doing a great job of low bidding and providing junk. I'd love rusty to fill in more if he knows more about the WSF/MP&E/USCG connection he alluded to in another post."
All I have is eyewitness anecdotes. Like when the USCG was testing the operation of the rescue boat davit on the Issaquah. At that time the davit was on the pickle fork. The boat was on the run, so they the held the cars off that end of the boat, swung the davit over the cardeck and began lowering the boat. The davit broke off and fell to the cardeck almost crushing the Coast Guard inspector. The Captain ordered the davit and appurtenances thrown over the side, and the boat continued on the run. Nothing much was said about it but the aluminum davit arm would subsequently be replace by a steel arm.
Someday I'll write about the high-speed shaft on the Issaquah.
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Post by sounder on May 7, 2016 16:55:00 GMT -8
Mr. Ever Green Fleet: Thanks for the work of scanning and posting these newspaper clippings. Much appreciated. Thank you for the history lesson. Finally had time to go through and read these news clippings that EGfleet posted. Thanks for posting these! I had read about the "tug" incident in a older book titled the "ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?) It was very fascinating to see actual clippings on this. I realize that the Lofall-South Point run was not around for very long, therefore it seems like any pictures or history on this run is very rare to find. I have seen photos of ferries at Lofall but have never seen a photo of the South Point terminal in operation. Those barges must have been a harrowing experience in bad weather and sounds like maybe in good weather too I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges.
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FNS
Voyager
The Empire Builder train of yesteryear in HO scale
Posts: 4,948
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Post by FNS on May 7, 2016 23:17:50 GMT -8
Mr. Ever Green Fleet: Thanks for the work of scanning and posting these newspaper clippings. Much appreciated. Thank you for the history lesson. Finally had time to go through and read these news clippings that EGfleet posted. Thanks for posting these! I had read about the "tug" incident in a older book titled the "ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?) It was very fascinating to see actual clippings on this. I realize that the Lofall-South Point run was not around for very long, therefore it seems like any pictures or history on this run is very rare to find. I have seen photos of ferries at Lofall but have never seen a photo of the South Point terminal in operation. Those barges must have been a harrowing experience in bad weather and sounds like maybe in good weather too I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges. "ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?)Michael Skalley is the name of the author. I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges.It might be. By the way, on the same day the ISSAQUAH celebrated her first birthday by bashing Fauntleroy on December 29, 1980, the KITTITAS did the same, but with lesser damage, to Lofall on the Canal. I was at the Eagle Harbor VMC that day touring the retired VASHON. The staff there were being assembled to go to Lofall to fix the dock that afternoon. It was a traffic circus that evening at the Seattle waterfront with cars going to four destinations rather than two.
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Post by sounder on May 8, 2016 12:25:10 GMT -8
Finally had time to go through and read these news clippings that EGfleet posted. Thanks for posting these! I had read about the "tug" incident in a older book titled the "ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?) It was very fascinating to see actual clippings on this. I realize that the Lofall-South Point run was not around for very long, therefore it seems like any pictures or history on this run is very rare to find. I have seen photos of ferries at Lofall but have never seen a photo of the South Point terminal in operation. Those barges must have been a harrowing experience in bad weather and sounds like maybe in good weather too I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges. "ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?)Michael Skalley is the name of the author. I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges.It might be. By the way, on the same day the ISSAQUAH celebrated her first birthday by bashing Fauntleroy on December 29, 1980, the KITTITAS did the same, but with lesser damage, to Lofall on the Canal. I was at the Eagle Harbor VMC that day touring the retired VASHON. The staff there were being assembled to go to Lofall to fix the dock that afternoon. It was a traffic circus that evening at the Seattle waterfront with cars going to four destinations rather than two. "It was a traffic circus that evening at the Seattle waterfront with cars going to four destinations rather than two." Knowing on that particular evening that those destinations were Bremerton, Winslow, and Vashon; was that fourth destination to South Point? Read more: ferriesbc.proboards.com/thread/8347/beach-girl#ixzz4868Bbtrg
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Post by PeninsulaExplorer on May 9, 2016 17:29:50 GMT -8
"ferry story" by Micheal S. (Can't quite recall his last name?)Michael Skalley is the name of the author. I think this is the route the Kittitas made her inaugural voyge on after the barges.It might be. By the way, on the same day the ISSAQUAH celebrated her first birthday by bashing Fauntleroy on December 29, 1980, the KITTITAS did the same, but with lesser damage, to Lofall on the Canal. I was at the Eagle Harbor VMC that day touring the retired VASHON. The staff there were being assembled to go to Lofall to fix the dock that afternoon. It was a traffic circus that evening at the Seattle waterfront with cars going to four destinations rather than two. "It was a traffic circus that evening at the Seattle waterfront with cars going to four destinations rather than two." Knowing on that particular evening that those destinations were Bremerton, Winslow, and Vashon; was that fourth destination to South Point? Read more: ferriesbc.proboards.com/thread/8347/beach-girl#ixzz4868BbtrgI think with the four destinations was inferred to as: Winslow, Bremerton, Southworth, and Vashon.
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