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Post by Ferryman on Jun 29, 2022 8:33:39 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Jun 22, 2022 10:27:41 GMT -8
The Salish Raven is totally out of the picture for running this summer. It’s sitting in layup at Deas right now. The Salish Heron however, will be staying on Route 9a for the foreseeable future while they get more hours on her and it’s easier to handle warranty items while on the Vancouver side. When the summer is over and crew are freed up from extra sailings, etc, then the Salish Raven will be brought out to sail Route 5 until further notice. Yay! So it looks like I'll get a ride on the new boat this summer. We will be on the 8:30am sailing from Pender to Tsawwassen on Saturday, July 23. Nice to know it will likely be Salish Heron. Back to my original question, and I realize there likely isn't a definitive answer, but what is a reasonable time to show up for the 7:00pm sailing from Swartz Bay to Pender on a Thursday in July? There's a pretty big gap from the previous sailing (2:35pm) until 7:00. Is 1 hour before usually enough? 2hrs? What have others here witnessed, or experienced? It's summer, so I'm guessing it will be busy, but it's not a Friday. I’d be checked in nice and early, perhaps 2 hours early just for peace of mind. There’s no doubt it will be very busy that afternoon. If I was you, I’d be periodically checking the current conditions at Swartz Bay to monitor how busy it is. Pro-tip from all the years I’ve waited for the ferry back to Salt Spri ng. Once you’re parked, take your ticket stub with you and see if you can exit the terminal at the vehicle ticket booth. The Stonehouse Pub is about a 10 minute walk away from the terminal, and a great spot to pass the time. Tell them you’re waiting for the ferry, but plan to be back at your vehicle by 6:30pm. You’ll need your ticket to be able to enter back into the terminal at the vehicle ticket booth. Cumberland will likely be running late, but I just figure this is the best way to make the best of it. Stonehouse Pub (250) 655-8870 goo.gl/maps/xFgdEJEJP9ezG4Gd7Alternatively, a sneaky way to get to Pender is via Salt Spring at Long Harbour. It might be equally as difficult to travel to Salt Spring on a Friday afternoon, but it’s much easier to travel inter-island. With two Salish Class running on Route 9/9a, there has been a bunch of travel options added since the days of the Nanaimo and Bowen Queen on that route
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Post by Ferryman on Jun 22, 2022 7:42:41 GMT -8
If it says two different ships it’s probably a transfer most likely at Village Bay. So you’d probably be on both those ships. If it’s a transfer or multiple port sailing it’ll say view itinerary. The Salish Raven is totally out of the picture for running this summer. It’s sitting in layup at Deas right now. The Salish Heron however, will be staying on Route 9a for the foreseeable future while they get more hours on her and it’s easier to handle warranty items while on the Vancouver side. When the summer is over and crew are freed up from extra sailings, etc, then the Salish Raven will be brought out to sail Route 5 until further notice.
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Post by Ferryman on Jun 21, 2022 2:12:19 GMT -8
I wonder. She currently has more capacity with her two lift decks, and she will be usually found on route five, I guess in the junior 5A position, where there is perhaps more time to raise and lower. But gallery decks are more straightforward, and she's got a lot of years ahead of her. Don't know which option I'd put my betting money on. It appears she will become the 'refit boat' for several routes (Bowen, Jervis Inlet, any others?). That would be a factor in deciding on a change. I had understood that using the current hoistable ramps often puts the Cumberland way behind schedule on the run she has been doing for the last 25 years. She also has been relieving at Fulford Harbour in place of the Skeena Queen. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the platform decks. As a rule of thumb, they apparently add a 20 minute delay overall during loading. They’re not only extremely slow to operate and setup/put away, but drivers parked on the ramp portion have to exit their vehicle before the ramp can either be raised or lowered. That in itself also takes time to convince drivers to exit their vehicle. They can return to their vehicle once the operation is complete of course. Because of that, regular commuters or people that know the routine may protest having to park on the platform deck, adding another delay factor. It’s time to move away from using platform decks on the ferries. Galleries are better to work with overall, but they too have their own little challenges which are non-issues in comparison to platform decks.
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Post by Ferryman on Jun 6, 2022 20:15:35 GMT -8
I found a short video clip of the propeller pitch test while she was recently in drydock. Inspections to ensure it all runs smoothly. with no leaks, etc, after having the hubs fully rebuilt and new blades installed.
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Post by Ferryman on May 30, 2022 20:57:27 GMT -8
Drone footage of the recent tow of the Burnaby, upbound on the river back to Deas
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Post by Ferryman on May 30, 2022 20:37:14 GMT -8
So, she will not be scrapped at Alang? That's interesting. The news reports in Fiji were pretty clear in saying she will be scrapped in India. Recently, some photos of the Nanaimo surfaced on Facebook, in the “BC Coastal Mariner’s” facebook page. They show a water hose hooked up to the ship and a small amount of provisions being brought on for the crew. They still have to clear customs and immigration, and receive a health clearance in order to proceed to the breakers. Yes, even for a scrap voyage. As with any industry that engages in international trade, there are always hoops to jump through, including taxes/penalties/bribes to avoid delays or further grief….
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Post by Ferryman on May 24, 2022 17:54:05 GMT -8
Coastal Inspiration has been in dry dock for some time. I never heard if there was a significant damage of work needed but at nearly and month and bit now, She still hasn't seen water. Any leads. I have a contact at SeaSpan I might ask. Coastal Inspiration is undergoing a Quarter Life Upgrade. She’s the first of the three Coastal Class to undergo the refit. Really, it’s just a large maintenance scope so I doubt we’ll see much in the way of changes to passenger amenities. She is also said to have the most running hours, running nearly 20 hours a day for the majority of her life so far. Yes, the Coastals are 15 years old already…
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Post by Ferryman on May 12, 2022 10:48:48 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on May 10, 2022 15:29:22 GMT -8
TUE 2022-05-10 0301PDT Current location of the QUEEN OF NANAIMO (LP5). Anchored east of Singapore. Yes, and now it looks like she’s underway again. AIS destination is now showing as Alang, India with an eta of May 23rd.
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Post by Ferryman on May 5, 2022 18:10:04 GMT -8
Assuming they haven't updated this in error, the Salish Heron is scheduled to have her first departure with passengers onboard tomorrow afternoon at 2:25 down to Salt Spring and back. Guess we'll see about that! Well, seeing as how the Salish Raven has been moved back over to Deas, I would say that the Salish Heron is indeed running on Route 9a effective tomorrow
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Post by Ferryman on May 2, 2022 22:54:16 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on May 2, 2022 22:47:27 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 25, 2022 18:36:05 GMT -8
I am thinking about those alarming doors that allow you to pass so slowly between outer decks and cabin interiors. I hope they are going with something less cumbersome ... I was on the Coastal Celebration today at Tsawwassen and the Heron was out doing training or whatever. It sure sounds like the doors are the same, I could hear the beeping from several ship lengths away. The decals, which look good in pictures and renders look even better in person! Sharp looking boat. The Heron is equipped with Bohamet doors, version 2, and are apparently better overall compared to version 1 on Salish 1-3. It’ll be interesting to see the differences of a second generation vessel of the same class, something that hasn’t been achieved in decades (C-Class?), aside from the Island Class. Different from the Island class in the sense that this is a 2022 model compared to a 2016/7 model…
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 22, 2022 13:00:56 GMT -8
Can the load on a vessel be restricted and therefore operate with less crew? Yes. On some vessels with varying crew/passenger ratios, also known as Licenses, in the context of Transport Canada’s Safe Manning Document issued to each ferry, areas of the ship will be closed off to reflect the crewing levels. This is done in an effort to simplify deck sweeping duties to coral passengers to the designated assembly station(s) in the event of an emergency, based on the amount of crew physically present designated for those duties.
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 18, 2022 9:32:39 GMT -8
I do know that the locals were never happy when the Bowen Queen came over as the fill-in. I can just imagine how happy they would be if something smaller showed up. Ah, island life. The Cumberland without platforms is exactly the same capacity as the Cap was before the gallery decks were added a few years ago. As long as the replacement is done in the off season, it will be fine. The Cumberland is a fair bit bigger than the Bowen. Also, the platform decks are independently operated on either side of the centre casing. So by using only one side of the platform decks for full loads, leaving the other side clear for over height traffic helps traffic moving a little more smoothly and likely match the capacity of the Capilano.
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 16, 2022 13:05:23 GMT -8
With the retirement of the Bowen Queen, what ship is going to spell off the Cap when she goes in for maintenance? Well, let’s break it down to see where everything is at. Up until the Salish and Island Class came around, the Bowen Queen served on a huge variety of routes. Let’s look at these route’s previously covered by the Bowen and how these were more recently covered without the Bowen: Swartz Bay-Southern Gulf Islands: Salish Class replaces Queen of Cumberland. Bowen would replace the Mayne. Perhaps Quinitsa or another Salish would be deployed to cover Route 5a Swartz Bay to Fulford. Queen of Cumberland would cover for the Skeena and a Salish would cover the Cumberland Vesuvius-Crofton. Quinitsa will now be a relief vessel for this run Tsawwassen to Southern Gulf Islands: Another Salish Class replacement, or traffic rerouted to Swartz Bay Descanso Bay to Nanaimo Harbour: Another Island Class, or Quinitsa Horseshoe Bay-Bowen Island. Previously covered by the Bowen. I could see the Cumberland being sent here because that’s an easy trade, as far as crew training is concerned (sister ship). Saltery Bay-Earls Cove. In recent years this was covered by the Bowen Queen. Could also be covered by the Cumberland as there are some resemblances. Could also be covered by a Salish Class, however not sure what LNG services, if any are available in Powell River, which would be problematic to plan logistics around for a temporary basis Campbell River-Quadra. Will be covered by another Island Class Alert Bay-Sointula-Port McNeil. Likely just continues to be covered by another Island Class, or the QQII
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 13, 2022 6:15:20 GMT -8
The Coastal Renaissance is on its way in to Departure Bay. Time for service? Oddly, it's on the schedule for the Swartz Bay run tomorrow. She’s about to relieve the Inspiration next to allow her to go for refit/drydock Today the Queen of Surrey has finally left Deas and is conducting sea trials
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 12, 2022 6:03:36 GMT -8
I should clarify that the Inspirstion simply discharged the traffic she had onboard at Departure Bay, so people weren’t stuck onboard any longer than they had to. By the time the discharge was complete, the Alberni had departed Duke Pt, allowing the Inspiration to proceed to Duke Pt to pick up traffic, likely everything that had showed up for the 12:45 sailing. Foot passengers were given the option to stay aboard until the ship was able to reach Duke Pt, of course.
There has also been a huge issue with having enough crew to run the ships. Licensed Engineering and Licensed Deck personnel are in high demand at the moment.
The Queen of Surrey is also delayed coming out of refit, with the earliest she’ll be back online being April 15, hopefully.
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 11, 2022 17:44:25 GMT -8
Queen of Alberni making the headlines this afternoon with a “steering issue” that occurred on the Duke Point side. This affected the arrival on the Coastal Inspiration, who then headed to Departure Bay to offload traffic until the Alberni was cleared out from Duke Pt. The Alberni has since deadheaded back to Tsawwassen, tying up in berth 2, with assistance of the tug, Seaspan Osprey. Inspiration is sailing quite late now, keeping things moving on Route 30 as best she can.
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 11, 2022 7:43:58 GMT -8
Goundar Shipping now reports via Facebook that she will “finally” depart on April 12th. No time given given.
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 7, 2022 5:56:56 GMT -8
The Bowen Queen is now en route to Deas
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 6, 2022 21:08:55 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 6, 2022 21:05:21 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 5, 2022 5:44:21 GMT -8
Goundar Shipping’s Facebook page is advertising that the ex Queen of Nanaimo is departing Fiji for the last time this coming Saturday. Commentary on the post indeed suggests that it’s her last voyage to her “resting place”
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