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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 28, 2012 19:43:41 GMT -8
A sequence of the Osprey 2000 approaching Kootenay Bay terminal, and unloading. - July 17, 2012.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 28, 2012 19:45:22 GMT -8
Mr. Horn, your summer holiday was the trip that keeps on giving, photos that is. You must have spent a lot of time behind the camera. I've enjoyed the pictures and appreciate some of your detail work that I think I missed on some of my boundary region jaunts About 14 years ago when I regularly traveled to Creston and Nelson I remember seeing a large floating drydock about a mile or two towards Nelson from the Balfour landing. It was probably the last artifact of CP operations on Kootenay Lake. Although it looked pretty decrepit I was told that it was still used regularly for inspections and refits. It had, I was told, been used for the last major work on the Anscomb. They had to install some drive parts sourced in Africa. As I recall the Anscomb had right angled drives to the props. At the time the Anscomb was about 52 years old. What was most impressive about the drydock was its size. It looked more to the scale of what we see here on the coast, and could have been used for a good number of BCF minor vessels. Just wondering if you saw or heard anything about the old drydock. And, if it's gone where do they do their inspections. I believe that in fresh water operation Transport Canada will not generally require a yearly hull inspection. They will let some vessels go up to three years between pull-outs. Thanks for your kind words. I had lots of fun taking photographs. I didn't see the drydock, and I remember asking a deckhand about what they do for pull-out work, but I can't remember the answer. Sorry.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 29, 2012 6:48:29 GMT -8
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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 2, 2012 17:49:27 GMT -8
A couple of postcards of the Osprey 2000, purchased from the ship's snack-bar.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Oct 27, 2012 20:00:56 GMT -8
Osprey 2000 video. - a compilation of various clips shot by me in July 2012.
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Koastal Karl
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Been on every BC Ferry now!!!!!
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Post by Koastal Karl on Mar 4, 2013 18:30:32 GMT -8
Anyone know if you can park at Balfour or Kootenay Bay if you just walking on the ferry???
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Post by Low Light Mike on Mar 4, 2013 18:47:29 GMT -8
Anyone know if you can park at Balfour or Kootenay Bay if you just walking on the ferry??? Yes, room for parking at both. Better chance of finding parking near Kootenay Bay (less urban, so more space). - at Balfour, we parked next to the lakefront marina, which was right beside the holding compound.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 14, 2013 7:03:24 GMT -8
A new thread for photos, discussion and information on the ships and route on Kootenay Lake. ie. the route between Balfour & Kootenay Bay.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 14, 2013 20:34:42 GMT -8
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Post by Low Light Mike on Apr 24, 2014 19:27:45 GMT -8
I noticed this evening that Google Maps street-view includes a drive-on to the Osprey-2000 ferry at Kootenay Bay (East side of lake).
The Google-camera didn't go into the side-lounges, but it does show lots of the car deck and bridge.
...there is no drive-off at Balfour.
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 24, 2014 19:40:49 GMT -8
I noticed this evening that Google Maps street-view includes a drive-on to the Osprey-2000 ferry at Kootenay Bay (East side of lake). The Google-camera didn't go into the side-lounges, but it does show lots of the car deck and bridge. ...there is no drive-off at Balfour. That's a cool feature! You can also see it at Duke Point. They turned the camera on inside the Queen of Alberni when departing the vessel. I've also seen this on some of the Norwegian ferry crossings, mainly with the Fjord 1 ferries.
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on Oct 20, 2014 8:18:23 GMT -8
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Post by Wolf on Oct 20, 2014 11:27:15 GMT -8
But the columbia is brand new so essentially it is better. She may not look like much but it is a new vessel compared to the osprey which is 14 years old now
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Post by Low Light Mike on Oct 20, 2014 11:33:14 GMT -8
But the columbia is brand new so essentially it is better. She may not look like much but it is a new vessel compared to the osprey which is 14 years old now "Better" is a general word. In this instance of comparing two ships, how are you defining "Better?" Obviously one ship is older than the other. The newer ship might have newer technology or newer hull design. In terms of passenger amenities, one ship is very bare-bones, and the other has both an inside seating lounge and a snack bar. Wett Coast was clear in what he meant, re Osprey-2000 being more visually attractive. The only argument against that might be from someone who prefers the look of minimalist design.
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Post by compdude787 on Oct 20, 2014 15:48:53 GMT -8
From my recent journey around southern BC; the Osprey 2000 with some fall colour in the background... There is no doubt in my mind - she is a more attractive vessel than the new boat Columbia on Upper Arrow Lake. [snip]But the columbia is brand new so essentially it is better. She may not look like much but it is a new vessel compared to the osprey which is 14 years old now But "new" things aren't always better than what they replace! You need to look no further than some recent website redesigns that made the website look worse than it was initially.
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Post by Wolf on Oct 20, 2014 21:11:32 GMT -8
But the columbia is brand new so essentially it is better. She may not look like much but it is a new vessel compared to the osprey which is 14 years old now "Better" is a general word. In this instance of comparing two ships, how are you defining "Better?" Obviously one ship is older than the other. The newer ship might have newer technology or newer hull design. In terms of passenger amenities, one ship is very bare-bones, and the other has both an inside seating lounge and a snack bar. Wett Coast was clear in what he meant, re Osprey-2000 being more visually attractive. The only argument against that might be from someone who prefers the look of minimalist design. Thats exactly what i was getting at, the osprey is a nice ship but its loud, also its a complex design and by that i mean servicing the vessel takes way too long. Right now, the osprey is out of service and the balfour is running until october 28th i believe (i know this because i live in nelson now and when i came back from thanksgiving for college i rode it on its last day in service) The columbia is a simple design with easier servicing capabilities. I dont mean to start an argument on which ship is better but i just think the newest is the better one
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Oct 20, 2014 21:32:34 GMT -8
"Better" is a general word. In this instance of comparing two ships, how are you defining "Better?" Obviously one ship is older than the other. The newer ship might have newer technology or newer hull design. In terms of passenger amenities, one ship is very bare-bones, and the other has both an inside seating lounge and a snack bar. Wett Coast was clear in what he meant, re Osprey-2000 being more visually attractive. The only argument against that might be from someone who prefers the look of minimalist design. Thats exactly what i was getting at, the osprey is a nice ship but its loud, also its a complex design and by that i mean servicing the vessel takes way too long. Right now, the osprey is out of service and the balfour is running until october 28th i believe (i know this because i live in nelson now and when i came back from thanksgiving for college i rode it on its last day in service) The columbia is a simple design with easier servicing capabilities. I dont mean to start an argument on which ship is better but i just think the newest is the better one I defy anyone to contradict me when I suggest that Columbia is the largest ferry in the known universe that operates on a route of more than five minutes not to have even the tiniest of passenger lounges. Even if there is a minimal number of foot passengers or cyclists on this route, that is not something that recommends this as a decent passenger ferry. And when you look at how that car deck dwarfs the hull it sits on, this is perhaps a ferry that only a mother ferry might love. A mother that maybe looked like the Queen of Chilliwack, or worse, and felt her offspring's pain in the world of real ships.
All that aside, Columbia probably gets the job done, and since the capacity is more than the Galena and Shelter Bay combined, there is an eye to the future... something us peasants on the coast don't get from BC Ferries planners.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Nov 14, 2014 17:35:20 GMT -8
Here's an interesting story from the Nelson Star newspaper, based on an FOI request that they did. The issue is the POSSIBLE relocation of the west-side ferry terminal. What prompted a 2012 study on this issue is the impending cost of re-building the trestle/dock at Balfour. So before they spend the money on that rebuild project, they want to step-back and think about whether Balfour is the best west-side location for this route. Hey, that sounds like a familiar exercise.... ---------- The news story HEREThe link to the 2012 consultant report on alternative west-side locations: Consultant Report HERE
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on Nov 14, 2014 21:41:07 GMT -8
I first began looking at the route the Kootenay Lake ferries take quite a few years ago and I noted that the travel distance is about twice what the actual direct distance is across the lake. So I said to myself, and still say, 'Why don't they shorten it?' Maybe that will actually happen over the next few years. It seems like a 'no-brainer' to me.
If you look at the current route plotted on a map, you will see that its hardly a direct crossing. It is in fact similar to the elongated diagonal route taken by BC Ferries' route 30 (Tsawwassen - Duke Point).
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Post by Wolf on Nov 15, 2014 8:00:11 GMT -8
I first began looking at the route the Kootenay Lake ferries take quite a few years ago and I noted that the travel distance is about twice what the actual direct distance is across the lake. So I said to myself, and still say, 'Why don't they shorten it?' Maybe that will actually happen over the next few years. It seems like a 'no-brainer' to me. If you look at the current route plotted on a map, you will see that its hardly a direct crossing. It is in fact similar to the elongated diagonal route taken by BC Ferries' route 30 (Tsawwassen - Duke Point). But theyll take away the cool 360 turn at balfour! Its the best part when they wind up the engines on the sharp turn... But i see your point. It is pretty ridiculous.. They have to slow down when they enter the west arm and that takes up valuable time. If they shortened the trip, they could make more trips in a day and increase traffic flow during congested times.
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on Nov 16, 2014 20:33:03 GMT -8
Here are a few more photos of the Osprey 2000 from my brief visit to the Kootenay Lake area a month ago (October 7). At the dock on the west side of the Lake at Balfour Underway to Kootenay Bay on the east side of the lake. Note how close she is to the south shore in this photo taken in the 'West Arm' of Kootenay Lake shortly after departing the Balfour terminal. All Photos © WCK-JST by Wett Coast, on Flickr
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on Dec 10, 2014 22:28:39 GMT -8
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Post by Wolf on Dec 11, 2014 10:11:32 GMT -8
I wish they would replace the balfour with a ship the same size as the osprey, that way traffic flow wont be as bad in the summer. I remember having to take the osprey once many years ago during easter weekend because my relatives live in cranbrook, and that ferry was packed, im amazed we got on. That was back when the anscomb hadnt sunk yet
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jul 27, 2015 19:14:02 GMT -8
I've taken my Osprey-2000 and Balfour footage from July 2012 and made it into one YouTube video.
Here it is...from Kootenay Lake
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Post by Starsteward on Jul 28, 2015 6:27:06 GMT -8
Just looking at this thread, especially the features of the 'Osprey 2000', would it or a vessel somewhat similar in design be a more appropriate vessel for the Hornby Island folk rather than the 'BS Connector'?
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