Saturna Island ferry

[Low Light Mike]

I was checking the schedule out of Swartz Bay, and I was surprised at the number of non-stop sailings between SwartzBay & Saturna Island. I had presumed that any route to Saturna would involved stops & transfers at Mayne.

My questions: Why are there daily non-stop trips between SwartzBay & Saturna? This seems illogical to me, given the low traffic to this most-remote island. What ship is used for this, and what is the rest of its route? Surely it's not a direct back-and-forth between Swartz & Saturna? Or is Saturna just the first stop on a longer milk-run trip?

Just wondering, because I expected Saturna to get the worst service (ie. transfers & stops), but the schedule shows daily non-stop trips each way.

Also, is the trip to Saturna beautiful (by BC Standards).....ie. is Navy Channel as nice to sail thru on a sunny day as Active Pass or Grenville Channel is?

last question, and this is satire: I wonder if the Southern Gulf Island ferries are specially designed to carry the maximum # of late-model VW Vans ?

[Koastal Karl]

The Mayne Queen does the 5:10am sailing to Saturna. God knows who would go to Saturna at that time of morning. Mayne Queen also does the 9:00am sailing to Saturna. She does the 3pm sailing too. All the non stop sailings to Saturna are only during the week. The weekends there is no non stop. But most of the sailings to Saturna are done by the Mayne Queen. The Cumberland does do sailings to Saturna, cause I have been on the Cumberland to Saturna, I have never actually been on Saturna though, just stopped there. The Cumberland dosent do any non stop there and back though. There are tranfers on Mayne Island to Swartz Bay and the Mayne Queen takes alot of the Tsawwassen transfers to Mayne Island as the Nanny dosent serve Saturna.

VW vans, I have seen lots on the Gulf Island ferries and beat up old cars.

[kylefossett]

the mayne queen after going to saturna then goes onto mayne and pender. saturna just happens to be the first stop on those trips

[Ian]

the reason for those non-stop sailings is because people use the <<through fare>> from tswwassen to go to saturna and sometimes pender.