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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2007 17:19:13 GMT -8
Barnacle: I wish I knew you were working that day I was on the Elwha I would have been happy to talk with you if you would have had a moment. Thank you for apologizing for the bad experience that we had riding her. I completely understand about the galley being closed now since there wasn't much time to get it stocked up. I am surprised that the Safety Office took away your vandalism remover that must be a real pain but I guess they have there reasons. The sailing was quite crowded not as bad I have seen the Evergreen at times coming out of Sidney but if we hadn't got the seat we did in the upper cabin we would have been sharing it with someone else. There were a few seats in the main cabin but not many and I was pretty loud down there. Are you normally assigned to the Elwha? Which Super is your favourite to work on?
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Post by northwesterner on Aug 14, 2007 18:50:10 GMT -8
Overall I was most uninpressed by the Elwha. How much did the WSF spend on her while she was out? How come they don't care about their customers and think about what they might want aboard the vessel? I enjoy travelling on BCF so much more that WSF at least BCF has good customer service and better vessels! I believe that the people "behind the scenes" need to get out a ride some of their boats and then maybe they will learn to put some money towards customer service and better interiors for the passengers so they dont feel like cattle. Or better yet start thinking of some new boats to replace the Super Class all together! I think that they have past their prime and are ready for retirement. I don't agree with the opinion that BC Ferries has better boats and better customers service. The only leg up they have on WSF is their food service is much better, and has been for years. The Elwha was out of service for over a year for paint and mechanical repairs. Why would they put a new interior in at high expense? She had her interior rehabbed about 15 years ago, and it has been well kept up since then. You claim that there was a lack of places to sit without having to share those big benches down on the lower level. Those benches are designed to sit 6-7 passengers per side. How much space do you need? I am curious, however, if Elwha still has a full compliment of single chairs in the forward lower lounge at each end. The Hyak, which still uses the same chairs, is definately missing some. As for BCF having better interiors than WSF, I call b.s. Overall, WSF has a better fleet for passengers. While SOME of the BCF fleet has nice interiors, only the main line fleet is decent. And besides, I've seen the pics posted here of the Queen of Esquimalt. You can't tell me her interior is better than the Elwha. In addition, all of WSF's smaller vessels have better interiors than the hard shell seats seen on the smaller vessels BCF operates. Compare the Skeena Queen and the Tillikum for example. They run on routes of a similar length and are a similar size, but while the Tillikum has a full passenger cabin with a galley and comfy seats, the Skeena Queen has a couple of narrow, sheltered cabins with bus station shell seats. I will gladly admitted that BCF has better food service. WSF's variety of galley contractors over the years have pretty much all sucked. The food has been overpriced for years, and the quality has been pretty poor. BCF's mainline routes are longer, and people expect a higher quality of food. I haven't eaten onboard WSF in years because the food is overpriced, looks bad, and really, the longest run in the system isn't long enough to require a meal on board. The two systems have very different purposes, and while journeys on some of the mainliners at BCF can be quite pleasant, many of their smaller vessels are down right dismal. I think WSF overall provides a better experience, even if the food stinks.
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Post by hergfest on Aug 14, 2007 19:40:18 GMT -8
Elwha broke down tonight, they canceled the 3:10pm round trip to Friday Harbor due to "engine problems". Looks like she is running now. At least WSF says what is wrong with the boat, unlike BC Ferries which everything is an "operational issue".
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Post by Barnacle on Aug 15, 2007 6:54:27 GMT -8
...even if what WSF says is the problem isn't always accurate. 'Engine problems' was close enough for this one, barring a windy technical explanation. ;D
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Post by zman on Aug 16, 2007 1:00:13 GMT -8
It seems that every (almost) every time that WSF boats go down due to engine/electrical issues, it is much more comprehensive than meets the eye. The Elwha was out of service for so long, it seems surprising that there are not more problems. The sea trials obviously helped out, but in all honesty, she was not running enough to work all the bugs out.
On another note, the Kaleetan has been overloading A LOT at Bremerton since the I5 construction started. The service bulliten from WSF seemed to focus on the increased passenger capacity. Even with the increased traffic, the Walla Walla would be very tough to fill up with passengers. It is good to see the Elwha back and all, but it seems (note that I say that it seems (to me)) that it would have been good to have the Walla Walla and Kaleetan at Bremerton until the construction mess is cleaned up.
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Post by Political Incorrectness on Aug 16, 2007 9:30:57 GMT -8
Well you can blame WSF for their dumb tactics of having to get the Tacoma in before school starts. Talk about the worst time, couldn't they have just taken her out at the end of the construction?
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Post by hergfest on Aug 16, 2007 10:54:47 GMT -8
The Tacoma is getting painted now due to weather. It is better to paint boats in the summer.
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Post by EGfleet on Aug 16, 2007 11:15:21 GMT -8
The Tacoma is getting painted now due to weather. It is better to paint boats in the summer. They also have to take drydock time when they can get it. Todd is the only one that has a drydock large enough for the Mark II's.
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Post by Barnacle on Aug 16, 2007 14:50:33 GMT -8
On another note, the Kaleetan has been overloading A LOT at Bremerton since the I5 construction started. The service bulliten from WSF seemed to focus on the increased passenger capacity. Even with the increased traffic, the Walla Walla would be very tough to fill up with passengers. I'm not following you... the Kaleetan has a 2500 pax max vs. the Walla Walla's 2000.
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Post by SS San Mateo on Aug 16, 2007 20:23:23 GMT -8
The Tacoma is getting painted now due to weather. It is better to paint boats in the summer. They also have to take drydock time when they can get it. Todd is the only one that has a drydock large enough for the Mark II's. Drydocking isn't part of this project. On another note, the Kaleetan has been overloading A LOT at Bremerton since the I5 construction started. The service bulliten from WSF seemed to focus on the increased passenger capacity. Even with the increased traffic, the Walla Walla would be very tough to fill up with passengers. I'm not following you... the Kaleetan has a 2500 pax max vs. the Walla Walla's 2000. Maybe he meant to say that even with the increased foot passenger traffic the Walla Walla would've had enough room for more passengers. I'm assuming the overload refers to vehicles.
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Post by EGfleet on Aug 16, 2007 21:09:28 GMT -8
Really? I've yet to see an exterior paint job done out of drydock. How do they keep the paint contained otherwise? Both the Sealth and the Elwha were in drydock to get their exterior paint. Or is the Tacoma not getting exterior paint?
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Post by SS San Mateo on Aug 17, 2007 6:30:22 GMT -8
Really? I've yet to see an exterior paint job done out of drydock. How do they keep the paint contained otherwise? Both the Sealth and the Elwha were in drydock to get their exterior paint. Or is the Tacoma not getting exterior paint? Maybe she got exterior paint when she was in drydock earlier this year.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 17, 2007 16:20:51 GMT -8
I haven't seen "yvr" comment on the lack of amenities on this thread, yet. But I do see that QPR has had a chance to ride the Elwha since it has returned to service, and has written a thurough report on he's experience aboard the vessel. ooooops: my eyes saw "QPR", but my brain registered it as "YVR". My only defense is that they both end in "r". ;D
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Post by zman on Aug 18, 2007 0:18:02 GMT -8
Sorry, I meant the vehicle overloads...The Walla Walla could handle the vehicles loads alot better without having passenger overloads.
Either the Tacoma was painted earlier this year, or she has been well kept...the exterior (of the car deck and passenger areas) looks great. The Puyallup is the one that needs some attention.
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Post by SS Shasta on Feb 6, 2008 16:55:21 GMT -8
Looks like MV Elwha is scheduled for a SOLAS upgrade in April and May. Are they planning to use her on the International Route this summer rather than MV Chelan?
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Post by EGfleet on Feb 6, 2008 18:24:57 GMT -8
Looks like MV Elwha is scheduled for a SOLAS upgrade in April and May. Are they planning to use her on the International Route this summer rather than MV Chelan? No, they are not. The Chelan is scheduled to be the international boat through the summer. Currently the Elwha's SOLAS certificate should be expired, or pretty close. She only got a six month extension the last time. Depending on who you ask, the sewer valve that she needs replaced will either take 2 months, 6 months, or a year. When they replaced the same piece of equipment on the Chelan, they had to replumb the entire boat.
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Post by SS San Mateo on Feb 6, 2008 18:50:23 GMT -8
Looks like MV Elwha is scheduled for a SOLAS upgrade in April and May. She is? I didn't see any information on the WSF website about this. She isn't scheduled for any commercial yard work this year (at least not until after summer). Would this supposed SOLAS upgrade information have been based on the fact that the Chelan was scheduled for dockside work for much of the spring schedule?
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Post by EGfleet on Feb 6, 2008 20:19:07 GMT -8
Looks like MV Elwha is scheduled for a SOLAS upgrade in April and May. She is? I didn't see any information on the WSF website about this. She isn't scheduled for any commercial yard work this year (at least not until after summer). Would this supposed SOLAS upgrade information have been based on the fact that the Chelan was scheduled for dockside work for much of the spring schedule? You must be looking at the old schedule, posted in November. A new one has been released, and SS Shasta is correct--the Elwha is going out for SOLAS upgrades. The Chelan's extended maintenance period was rescheduled for the fall at last look. Here's the latest, which brings you up to June. www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/B5636EA1-B3CB-49B0-8E02-61BBE4FC4DD0/0/VesselStatus_012808.pdf
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Post by SS San Mateo on Feb 6, 2008 20:38:04 GMT -8
I wasn't even aware that a new maintenance schedule was released. I was looking in the wrong place (I always look at the "Business With WSF" section).
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Post by EGfleet on Feb 6, 2008 21:28:26 GMT -8
I wasn't even aware that a new maintenance schedule was released. I was looking in the wrong place (I always look at the "Business With WSF" section). I only found it by going directly to the DOT website and typing in "Maintenance Schedule" in their search engine.
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Post by BreannaF on Feb 7, 2008 2:28:13 GMT -8
OK. A question about the maintenance schedule: Just what is "credit drydock" and how is it different than any other inspection, for example, the annual USCG inspection?
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Post by searider on Feb 7, 2008 11:46:15 GMT -8
Really? I've yet to see an exterior paint job done out of drydock. How do they keep the paint contained otherwise? Both the Sealth and the Elwha were in drydock to get their exterior paint. Or is the Tacoma not getting exterior paint? Maybe she got exterior paint when she was in drydock earlier this year. Here is a photo I took of Tacoma in Fairhaven near Bellingham, on September 1, 2007: hull534.smugmug.com/photos/190492124-L.jpg
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Post by Barnacle on Feb 7, 2008 13:12:20 GMT -8
OK. A question about the maintenance schedule: Just what is "credit drydock" and how is it different than any other inspection, for example, the annual USCG inspection? I've seen that myself, and I must somewhat shamefacedly admit I haven't a clue what it means. But I can fix your water cooler for you, provided that the problem is that the circuit breaker in the plug-in tripped... ;D
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Post by SS San Mateo on Feb 19, 2008 20:09:14 GMT -8
The latest maintenance/drydock schedule (which I can't access now since the links were removed) seemed to indicate that the SOLAS work depended on what happens with the Yakima.
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Post by EGfleet on Feb 20, 2008 8:58:03 GMT -8
The latest maintenance/drydock schedule (which I can't access now since the links were removed) seemed to indicate that the SOLAS work depended on what happens with the Yakima. Interesting...her SOLAS cert expires this month. If the work doesn't get done, we'll have the Chelan for the fall too. Oh darn.
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