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Post by yak on Nov 17, 2015 2:20:37 GMT -8
Meanwhile on Route 9 with two sailings cancelled and an aborted landing in Tsawwassen due to wind the Queen of Burnaby isn't having much luck the last few days either. Yet the website says she left on time this morning... ...But not this evening or last Thursday's ;-) It is a reality of November sailing. Sometimes the tough call is the prudent call.
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Post by yak on Nov 16, 2015 20:57:01 GMT -8
Meanwhile on Route 9 with two sailings cancelled and an aborted landing in Tsawwassen due to wind the Queen of Burnaby isn't having much luck the last few days either.
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Post by yak on Nov 10, 2015 9:41:50 GMT -8
Just in response to gulfislandkayaker,
I'm not sure why there haven't been public updates like there were with other projects such as the Coastals. I have seen undated pictures posted in the crew areas on the Burnaby that show one of the vessels under construction and with the majority of the hull complete. There's a series of them showing a crane moving the bridge into place.
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Post by yak on Nov 8, 2015 16:27:50 GMT -8
Yak or anyone else, Are many routes are TC defined as "sheltered waters"voyages? Thanks. Yes, many routes are "Sheltered Waters" and are actually written into the Vessel Certificates Regulations as recognized "sheltered water voyages for a ferry": Scheldule 2 That said though, many other BC Ferry routes fall into more advanced classifications of voyage. For example, any of the routes crossing the Strait of Georgia count as Near Coastal 2 time and are sufficient for a Watchkeeping Mate or for a "Near Coastal" Chief Mate or Master license. BC Ferries has actually earmarked some positions on these boats as "Sea Time Accrual" jobs that they place employees in to gain seatime for their higher tickets.
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Post by yak on Nov 6, 2015 18:29:24 GMT -8
I had no idea this thread existed... Last December I had a once in a lifetime Amtrak experience. I walked off my ship the MV Baie St. Paul in Montreal at the end of my four month contract and I'd wanted to cross the continent by train for quite some time. Amtrak was the best option because it was not only cheaper than VIA Rail but the system allowed me to see some interesting cities along the way. I started the journey by shipping most of my belongings back to Vancouver Island by Greyhound and lightening my load. I spent a night in Montreal before boarding the Amtrak Adirondack to New York City. From what I remember it was a comfortable ride but I definitely chose the wrong side of the train (the views of Lake Champlain were on the lefthand side of the train and by the time we reached the Hudson River it was too dark to see much on the righthand side). A highlight for me was right at the start of the journey as we crossed St. Lambert Lock which was a common place to join the ships heading up or down the St. Lawrence Seaway. Customs was way more relaxed than at the airport and were frankly a breeze. The train stopped in Albany NY for a short break and I enjoyed walking around the small platform as light snow was falling. We pulled into Penn Station in NYC late evening and while it wasn't the prettiest of stations it was definitely a great introduction to New York bustle. I enjoyed four nights in a New York hostel experiencing every aspect of the city that I could as a solo traveler (and made my round trip on the Staten Island Ferry of course). After New York I boarded Amtrak's Northeast Regional slow train to Washington, DC (the Acela didn't quite work for my schedule). What I remember most about that train was the miles of industrial wasteland in New Jersey and the crashing and banging of the carriage as it traveled over the older tracks. If I'd had more time I would have stopped in Philadelphia but on this trip I had to be content with a view of the skyline from the station. I made it to Washington in time to drop my stuff off at the hostel and still have time to walk the mall. I spent three nights in the city soaking in everything that I could from the museums on the mall to the selections of monuments to a visit to Congress. After Washington I could have taken the Capitol Limited to Chicago but I decided to backtrack to New York and then take the Lakeshore Limited to Chicago. I did this because I worked on the Great Lakes and I was familiar with them from the point of view of the water but I hadn't really connected any dots on the shore side. The problem I hadn't really taken into account was that the point at which the Lakeshore Limited traveled along Lake Erie was in the middle of the night... Anyways, this was the first night I had to spend on an Amtrak train. Ultimately I decided against buying a roomette since I was a solo traveler and endured my coach seat. As far as sleeping in coach goes I don't think that you could do much better than Amtrak as the seats are wide and they recline nearly flat. It also helped that due to the season it was a pretty empty train and I was able to spread over two seats. That said, by the end of my journey (where I think I spent a total of 6 nights on the train) my body was breaking down a little bit. I spent a couple of days in Chicago doing the whirlwind thing again before embarking on the real transcontinental leg of my journey - the California Zephyr. The California Zephyr wasn't the shortest way home but I'd heard that the last half of the journey was spectacular. As we left Chicago the sun had already begun to get low in the sky but the observation lounge available on this route already began to pay off - I sat there and enjoyed crossing the mighty Mississippi before heading to bed. In one of the biggest surprises I found myself waking up at sunrise in Denver, Colorado. I say this is a surprise because I'd always associated Denver with being a western city as I'd driven there on a few occasions and it felt like I'd skipped a huge part of the continent in one night. Anyways, after Denver is where the real pleasure of train travel took place as we wound our way through the Rockies. Despite the sparsely populated train the seats in the panoramic observation lounge were definitely at a premium. There were some amazing canyons and tunnels and our westward march across the continent slowed to a snail's pace. By the time we reached the Great Salt Lake it was well into the next night and the sun only returned a few hours before Reno. As the sun came up that morning I remembered the beautiful desolation as the train crossed badlands on the thin ribbon of rails. The Sierra Nevada was even more spectacular than the Rockies. Despite being the middle of December by this point the only snow I encountered on the entire trip (until that point) was encountered in the Donner Pass. The dramatic changes in landscape culminated in the endless stretches of orange grove as we approached Sacramento. Sacramento was the end of my California Zephyr journey and it was also the only connection that was somewhat awkward on the entire journey. I ended up having a nine hour layover as I awaited the Coast Starlight. Since Sacramento Station was in the process of a major renovation I had the extra incentive to overcome being "train-lagged" and explore California's capital city. After a nice dinner and a movie I caught the train that would take me North toward Seattle. The last part of the journey covered a lot of the same track as the Amtrak Cascades (which I had taken 10 months earlier) but that didn't detract from the spectacular west coast scenery. The Cascades were a scenic highlight of the journey and the Starlight was equipped with not only an observation car but also (for a few hours) a live commentary by a local historian. I finished the journey in Seattle and caught the Victoria Clipper to cap off my journey the next morning. I could have flown home from Montreal in about 4 hours and instead I took 2 1/2 weeks enduring the train, but it was an experience I wouldn't trade in for anything. In fact I'm currently musing about a train trip to New Orleans... The real highlight of taking the train as a solo traveler wasn't the scenery or the romanticism of covering the continent by land. It turned out to be the people who rode the train. I made a point of dining in the dining car for every meal on the route. As I was alone I was always invited to have a sitting with two to three other travelers and the result was fantastic. It was great learning about why people would choose to ride the train in this day and age. The undertaking may have been a little bit eccentric but that meant meeting lots of other eccentric people. I met ex-CN Rail employees, Federal Judges, Ex-Cons, Geologists and everything in between. Anyway, at some point when I feel like fighting with photobucket I will share a few pictures from the journey.
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Post by yak on Nov 6, 2015 13:43:02 GMT -8
Island Sky is holding at Little River. www.bcferries.com/bcfservicenotice?id=930324Sentry Shoal is reporting 1.2m seas and gusts of 23 knots as of 10:00 am I sure hope the new intermediate vessels are more capable of handling adverse weather conditions. I would think so, considering the plan to sail them from Poland. Also, in terms of deck spray, from the pictures I've seen it looks like there should be no issue with the open decks considering the high walls and the visor.
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Post by yak on Nov 5, 2015 16:12:31 GMT -8
It was a bizarre sight this morning seeing the LSA liferaft sitting in Miner's Bay...
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Post by yak on Nov 4, 2015 15:19:59 GMT -8
Kuper making a blind landing on Thetis in the fog: And it cleared up later in the day:
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Post by yak on Nov 4, 2015 14:50:39 GMT -8
The last time I saw these chairs was during the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria. We started our family vacation that summer by hopping on the short lived Victoria to Seattle ferry run. I never forgot the heavy wrought iron clamshells. Never would I imagine that I'd be working on the boat that made that run 21 years ago when I was nine years old. There are a few of these relics kicking around in the crew area and when I'd heard that they were still there I knew that I had to find one.
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Post by yak on Nov 4, 2015 14:31:02 GMT -8
Just going to chime in here... I am a BCIT Nautical Science alumni who is currently working as a Mate for BC Ferries. You are right that under such a program you'd probably have to accrue seatime either overseas or at least on the east coast or the great lakes (I did my cadet time with Canada Steamship Lines). The longest period of time I spent out at once was 8 months (though that was against CSL's policy I managed to slip under the radar). That said, BCF has started taking cadets since I finished BCIT's program and TC is recognizing at least some seatime completed that way. I would suggest that accruing seatime on the Great Lakes is quite applicable to what you'd like to do on this coast - a lot of it is pilotage and you are a lot more autonomous in your watch than on some deep sea vessels. I'd also suggest that if you go this route it is worth continuing to accrue seatime (360 days as a Watchkeeping Mate) where ever it is most efficient to until you can sit your Chief Mate's orals. The higher ticket opens up a lot of doors in places like BCF. I also concur with the other poster that if you are interested in the Nautical Science program at BCIT then Jeff Otto is the person to get in touch with.
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Post by yak on Oct 21, 2015 9:15:05 GMT -8
I'm curious if you will even be allowed down there during sailing, is it below the water line? Frankly I think the consultation BCFS is essentially needless, but those are some nice softball questions. Lets be real, anything substantive in design was already signed into the contract. Looking at the vessel's design, I personally don't think the ICF Garage Deck will actually dip below the water line. You can see in the renderings that there is an incline at both ends of the Main Car Deck so the MCD won't be level with the top of the hull like it is on every other ship in the fleet while the lower car deck more or less will be. It's pretty much the opposite of what we're used to. The overheights go on Deck 3, while the underheights go on deck 2. At least, that's how I interpret it. From the drawings I've seen it looks like the garage deck is going to be about 6 1/2 metres above the keel while the design draught will be around 4 1/2 metres, so about 2 metres of freeboard. I concur that the overheights will be on Deck 3 while underheights are on Deck 2 from what I've seen.
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Post by yak on Oct 19, 2015 19:02:58 GMT -8
She should be heading into Esquimalt for refit tonight.
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Post by yak on Oct 18, 2015 23:31:59 GMT -8
The Nanaimo is heading to Esquimalt for refit tomorrow night and the Burnaby will start servicing the Southern Gulf Islands.
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Post by yak on Oct 15, 2015 13:49:24 GMT -8
Sunrise from the bridge wing of the Queen of Nanaimo this morning.
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Post by yak on Oct 15, 2015 13:47:26 GMT -8
Unfortunately I only had my cellphone on me, but I managed to catch the Mayne Queen at sunrise this morning from the Queen of Nanaimo.
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Post by yak on Oct 10, 2015 21:39:05 GMT -8
The first ship (the Orca I believe) should be starting to take shape by now you would think. I've almost had my fill of everyones favourite "skimboard", the BSC...a gradual shift in attention towards the new Salish "triplets" would be a breath of fresh air for many. Remontowa was pretty good at providing updates about these ships early on, but it's pretty much been radio silence for months now. Without going into too many details, I recently saw a representation of the amount of completion on each of the three vessels. It looks like the first of the three is definitely getting there with most of the modules already completed and assembled into a ship. The second is also well under way and the third has a ways to go.
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Post by yak on Oct 5, 2015 22:02:04 GMT -8
Just an update from the question I had in August about whether the Salish Class vessels would be sailed from Poland or carried by a heavy lift - I have had it confirmed by someone "in-the-know" that they will indeed be sailed over.
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Post by yak on Sept 28, 2015 20:28:02 GMT -8
that was at least 15 years ago on the New West, before they opened the coast cafe, i heard the Burnaby and Nanaimo are for sale , ride em while you can Burnaby and Nanaimo are being replaced by the Salish class vessels. I also understand that the Burnaby may soon be relieving the Nanaimo while it is on refit - so if you are in Powell River you may want to take your ride imminently.
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Post by yak on Sept 27, 2015 11:53:38 GMT -8
i think the Queen of New Westminster had one too, i remember the one time i rode it, an eerily abandoned restuarant with a kitchen that still had appliances that worked, i turned a stove dial on and the hotplates burned some cardboard that was on there, the whole place was unlocked for anybody to enter has anybody rode the Nanaimo or New Westminster lately ...whats up there in those upper deck lounges, theres only 2 of these classic ships left, gotta ride them before their gone Correct me if I am referring to the wrong space but I was on the New West last week and at the stern there was a Coastal Cafe style restaurant approximating what they have on the C-Class ferries amidships.
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Post by yak on Sept 16, 2015 0:14:13 GMT -8
The sad fact is that a recreational boater may only have passed a 50 question multiple choice quiz before being handed their PCOC and as a result policies may have to be developed on the assumption that they will be largely unfamiliar with their responsibilities. Finally, I'm curious as to the trailing gear used by various vessels that precludes passing close astern. As mentioned before, it is custom for vessels on perpendicular headings that either the slower or the smaller will pass astern. How else would another vessel cross the BSC's path? One would hope that as a matter of "custom" boaters are smart enough to keep well clear of another vessel even if they are passing astern, but I acknowledge that the reality is quite another thing. Keeping a reasonable closest point of approach is the expectation when avoiding collision precisely for the reason of unseen hazards or unexpected actions by the other vessel. Lets assume that boaters will be unfamiliar with the Cable Ferry regulations posted earlier that bar crossing during operation of the ferry. If a boater treats the crossing as they would under the ColRegs then a boat that crosses the path of the BSC and that is considered the "give way vessel" should (if practicable) pass astern (Rule 15). However, the give way vessel is also responsible for keeping well clear (Rule 16). In other words the boater must pass at a safe distance (Rule 8,d). The "custom" of passing near the stern of another vessel is therefore wholly contrary to the rules and is inviting disaster whether the interaction involves a cable ferry or not. I'm also not sure what the relevance of the "slower vessel" has to collision avoidance and "smaller" also has limited relevance, particularly in this case.
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Post by yak on Sept 14, 2015 10:42:07 GMT -8
It will be interesting to see what the practical implications are of barring transit across the cable during the operation of the ferry. I wouldn't have much faith in people understanding the hazard or being familiar with the inevitable update to the Sailing Directions.
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Post by yak on Sept 8, 2015 18:47:37 GMT -8
When the BS Thing is doing test runs, she shows the symbol (ball,diamond,ball) for "restricted ability to manouver" at the mast, but that could be for an unpredictable variety of reasons/disabilities. There is no symbol to identify her as cable ferry to other vessels ( with preceding and trailing partially and shallow submerged cables ), probably because a cable ferry is not really considered a ship, despite sharing the same waters. Other marine traffic has to stay out of the way of a vessel showing 2 balls ( and having privileges ), but how are they to know to watch for that unpredictable navigational hazard behind the ferry? Is anybody responsible for this or is it another safety loophole/oversight by the regulator? None of the interior ferries show symbols on their masts although it appears to be required for inland waters as well. Just for reference, the definition of "Vessel" is found in the Canada Shipping Act 2001 and this is the definition that applies to the Collision Regulations in Canada; I bolded the part that refers to this type of vessel for emphasis. The applicable parts of the ColRegs are clearer when the Connector is definitively labeled as a "vessel" with the same responsibilities as any other ship. She is fully required to follow the Collision Regulations and no loophole exists, at least in that regard. One reason that inland vessels may not show the same symbols is because in Canada the ColRegs until recently applied to vessels only on the high seas and connected navigable waters. That said, I noticed that since the latest amendment the rules now apply to "Canadian Waters" so perhaps this will change things for inland vessels? Also, two black balls is not an appropriate signal as N.U.C. requires some exceptional circumstance - R.A.M is more appropriate. However, as I mentioned in my last post, quoting regulations isn't much help when common sense tells you that there could still be trouble for a recreational boater.
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Post by yak on Sept 8, 2015 18:19:35 GMT -8
This weekend I watched a crossing of the Connector from Denman to Buckley Bay under the escort of a Seaspan tug while I endured a one sailing wait for the Quinitsa. It is definitely the subject of much scuttlebutt. Even the "Sandwich Artist" at the Subway on the Buckley Bay side seemed to take great interest in discussing the alleged flaws with customers who echoed their own concerns with equal vigor. Everyone seems to know about the potential issue with the cables remaining just below the surface near the vessel. By the time I'd returned to my vehicle one of my travel companions (who hadn't even heard of the cable ferry until I mentioned it to him earlier that day) had thoroughly debriefed with one of the BCF terminal employees (who I'd imagine is getting tired of such frequent inquiry). My friend reiterated to me his new-found expert opinion regarding issues with the cable and echoed the opinions of many on this forum regarding the dangers to boaters. Anyway, as for my own observations I noticed that the Seaspan tug did indeed have to warn away one boater who was crossing too close to the cables. I imagine that few recreational boats will fully understand the need to "keep out of the way of" a vessel displaying R.A.M. signals (or even recognize those signals). My aforementioned friend also mentioned something cryptic about green and red lights to warn boats of the cable. I wondered if he was referring to something like Rule 27 d) of the Collision Regulations. Unfortunately my friend is not familiar with the rules so I couldn't hammer down the details with him. Regardless I didn't see any day shapes corresponding to this part of Rule 27 on the Connector. I only had a chance to ask a quick question of a BCF employee before I needed to board the Quinitsa and I satisfied my own curiosity about Officers on board the cable ferry - it was a definitive "No", which I am sure others on here were already aware of. The other bit of information volunteered by the BCF employee is that last week's windstorm was a "non-event" for the cable ferry (I hadn't even asked about that, so it has clearly been a pet question of customers heading to Denman). Take that for what it is worth. I only managed one quick cropped shot of the control booth (I won't call it a wheelhouse) and the mast with the R.A.M. signals displayed.
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Post by yak on Sept 8, 2015 17:31:15 GMT -8
Nothing special, just a quick shot of Quinitsa making her way into the dock at Buckley Bay during the long weekend.
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Post by yak on Aug 28, 2015 17:18:36 GMT -8
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