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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 1, 2007 19:54:06 GMT -8
I've just noticed this schedule posted....just noticed it today. I'm not sure how long it has been there, but I recall Wet Coast Kid lamenting the lack of a schedule, recently: ============================== www.bcferries.com/schedules/inside/prph.htmlI suppose that by analysing the dates on the schedule, re which ship is operating when, we should be able to determine when each northern ship will be out of service. Here's what I can figure: Q.P.R.: - last day of service - Sept.29th 2007 - first day of service - February 27, 2008. (so it looks like the QPR gets a 5 month break) Northern Adventure:- day service on Inside Passage goes until Sept.30, 2007 - Operating on Port Hardy, Bella Bella, Klemtu, Prince Rupert service during months of October 2007 to March 2008. (Klemtu is only on a few days...) She would also be on the Charlottes winter run, during this period too. (so where is the Nor Ad's break? It doesn't look like she gets the big refit this off-season) Nimpkish:- service during October 2007 to March 2008. Looks similar to what she did last year. ================== re NorAd: Her last trip on this schedule is March 22, 2007. If 2008 day-cruise schedule is similar to that of 2007, it would start in mid May. That leaves a gap of March 22 to say May 22 2008 for any Nor-Ad refit.
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Post by hergfest on Sept 1, 2007 22:09:38 GMT -8
No positioning cruise for the QPR this year.
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Post by Scott on Sept 1, 2007 22:12:06 GMT -8
The Queen of Prince Rupert gets a well deserved break! But does she need one since she'll probably be gone in a year or two? I now have my hands on a BC Ferries schedule (printed) from Sept. 4, 2007 to June 24, 2008. Not sure how long it's been around... but it was picked up last night. No mention of a repositioning cruise. Anyone know about one?
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Post by Retrovision on Sept 1, 2007 22:50:06 GMT -8
No positioning cruise for the QPR this year. Seems like a dying trend - I've been itching to take one for years.
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Post by Curtis on Sept 2, 2007 14:34:42 GMT -8
Q.P.R.: - last day of service - Sept.29th 2007 - first day of service - February 27, 2008. (so it looks like the QPR gets a 5 month break) Northern Adventure:- day service on Inside Passage goes until Sept.30, 2007 - Operating on Port Hardy, Bella Bella, Klemtu, Prince Rupert service during months of October 2007 to March 2008. (Klemtu is only on a few days...) She would also be on the Charlottes winter run, during this period too. (so where is the Nor Ad's break? It doesn't look like she gets the big refit this off-season) I Wonder Why the QPR would Get the long 5 Months But the NorAd gets only 1, I wonder why it isn't the opposite? The NorAd Should be getting a longer refit but the QPR also needs one. They Need some things improved and replaced on the NorAd from what I've heard.
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Post by WettCoast on Sept 4, 2007 21:07:21 GMT -8
The northern schedule was posted late on Friday or on the weekend. I have been keeping a close eye on it to see what they would be doing. Now we know.
My observations:
1 - They have the NorAd calling in at Klemtu. That is interesting. I know that the QotN could not fit into the makeshift berth at Klemtu, but the QPR can. Does that mean that the NorAd, being shorter than the North, is able to get in? I know that she did not call there at all last spring, when she first entered service. Possibly they have improved the berth at Klemtu, maybe even built a new one. It may also be that Transport Canada has put the brakes on the use of the Nimpkish to serve Klemtu due to it having to operate in the winter months across the open waters of Millbanke Sound.
2 - The Nimpkish will operate to serve all the other little places. It will exchange traffic with the NorAd at McLouglin Bay. Contrary to what Mr. Fluge said above, the Nimpkish did not operate last winter, from Christmas on to when the NorAd took over. The QPR did everything. There is significant extra cost in serving the northern routes over the fall & winter when they have to have the second vessel in operation.
3 - It appears that taking the time and money to correct the major 'issues' on the NorAd will not happen this year. Too bad.
4 - The QPR is pushing 42 years old. It has taken a pounding and quite frankly deserves to get the winter 'off'. Nevertheless, they had better keep her in a ready for action state as I have a feeling she'll be back sooner than the schedule shows. 5 - The NorAd seems to have settled into a more reliable mode as the summer progressed so perhaps most of the little issues are worked out. On the other hand, Hecate Strait in October/November is much more of a workout than the Inside Passage is in summer.
I should plan a winter trip on the NorAd.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,172
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Post by Neil on Sept 4, 2007 21:19:36 GMT -8
I think they must have been trying to beat last year's record for 'Longest, Most Convoluted Ferry Schedule in History'.
Eventually, there will be a different northern schedule for every single day of the winter.
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Post by Balfour on Sept 5, 2007 15:35:24 GMT -8
One crew member told me that the NorAd doesn't handle storms as well as the Queen of the North did or the QPR.
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Post by queenofcowichan on Sept 5, 2007 18:20:37 GMT -8
My understanding is that in the Long Term the Nor-Ad is intended as the replacement for the QPR when the Northern Ex is put into service. IF this is true QPR Crews should get used to the Nor_AD now.
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Nick
Voyager
Chief Engineer - Queen of Richmond
Posts: 2,078
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Post by Nick on Sept 5, 2007 21:25:11 GMT -8
From my experience, the NorAd does not handle seas nearly as well as the QotN did. When I was on it this summer, it was fairly calm (less than 10 knot wind speed) and yet in the stretch of open water coming from port hardy you could feel the ship heaving quite a lot. Of course the green wallpaper in the cafeteria doesn't help much.
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Post by Balfour on Sept 5, 2007 21:35:19 GMT -8
I personally had a lot of fun with the rolling seas on the NorAd. I decided to jump up and down at the bow and I timed my jumping with when the ship's nose went down a swell. I went weightless a few times and it was the most fun I've had on the BC Ferry.
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Post by Barnacle on Sept 6, 2007 6:55:08 GMT -8
Just watch your knees and ankles when you do that. Good way to break 'em.
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Post by Coastal Canuck on Sept 6, 2007 14:20:21 GMT -8
guess what. they are upgrading the Klemtu dock Klemtu Dock Modifications Posted September 06, 2007 Passenger-Only Service – September 30, 2007 As part of our ongoing commitment to our terminals, BC Ferries will be making modifications to the existing dock facilities at Klemtu. These modifications are necessary to prepare the terminal for use by the M/V Northern Adventure. The work will commence in mid-September and is expected to continue for two weeks. As a result of this work, the scheduled arrival in Klemtu on September 30, 2007 will be adjusted to a passenger-only service. Arrivals in Shearwater, Bella Bella and Prince Rupert will not be affected as a result of this temporary closure. Following completion of the work, service to Klemtu will resume with the next scheduled arrival on October 6, 2007. BC Ferries thanks its customers for their understanding and apologizes for any inconvenience caused as a result of this service interruption. For additional sailing information, visit www.bcferries.com or call 1-888-BCFERRY (223-3779).
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Post by Balfour on Sept 6, 2007 15:06:45 GMT -8
Just watch your knees and ankles when you do that. Good way to break 'em. Actually my knees and ankles take much more than that in winter. I am a professional skier.
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Post by Retrovision on Sept 6, 2007 15:41:51 GMT -8
guess what. they are upgrading the Klemtu dock Klemtu Dock Modifications Posted September 06, 2007 Passenger-Only Service – September 30, 2007 As part of our ongoing commitment to our terminals, BC Ferries will be making modifications to the existing dock facilities at Klemtu. These modifications are necessary to prepare the terminal for use by the M/V Northern Adventure. The work will commence in mid-September and is expected to continue for two weeks. As a result of this work, the scheduled arrival in Klemtu on September 30, 2007 will be adjusted to a passenger-only service. Arrivals in Shearwater, Bella Bella and Prince Rupert will not be affected as a result of this temporary closure. Following completion of the work, service to Klemtu will resume with the next scheduled arrival on October 6, 2007. BC Ferries thanks its customers for their understanding and apologizes for any inconvenience caused as a result of this service interruption. For additional sailing information, visit www.bcferries.com or call 1-888-BCFERRY (223-3779). Although not much to look at in the dark, here's a video clip I captured from aboard the Queen of Prince Rupert while arriving at Kemtu on the night of the 23rd of March this year.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 13, 2007 16:01:07 GMT -8
This just posted as a service notice, re NorAd refit: --------------------------------- www.bcferries.com/schedules/notices/notice09130702.htmlM/V Northern Adventure Refit - October 1 – November 21 Posted September 13, 2007 From Monday, October 1 through Wednesday, November 21, the M/V Northern Adventure will be removed from service to undergo a scheduled refit.
During this refit period, and in conjunction with the beginning of our Fall/Winter/Spring schedule, the M/V Queen of Prince Rupert, along with the M/V Nimpkish, will serve the mid and north coast regions.
For a complete listing of our schedules, please visit www.bcferries.com/schedules/inside/prph.html. For reservations or additional sailing information, visit www.bcferries.com or call 1-888-BCFERRY (223-3779). -------------------------------------- So NorAd is out for Oct 1 - Nov 21. Is this a "new development"? Let me revisit the genesis post of this thread: - the schedule from Sept.1 had indicated that the QPR would be out of service starting Sept.30th, and that the NorAd would be sailing in October-November. I just checked the BCFS website schedule, and it's now been updated, to show the QPR doing the sailings for Oct-Nov. I wonder if something new has come up, or if the original schedule was just a "rough draft". They call the NorAd's removal a "scheduled refit", so maybe the original fall schedule was just a mistake? Or maybe Mark Collins just got back from vacation, saw the schedule, and ran into George Capacci's office yelling & screaming? www.bcferries.com/about/executive_team.html
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Post by WettCoast on Sept 13, 2007 17:56:28 GMT -8
All I can say is that "the soap opera continues". We now have the fourth refit in the space of one year. The ship has spent more time in refit than it has in service. They have scheduled about seven weeks for this refit. Will they be doing useful work like converting her for loading the car deck over the bow, or putting in a descent forward lounge? Or is this refit to finally get the plumbing to work reliably? Hopefully someone on the inside can shed some light. It is interesting that they call it a "scheduled refit". Just twelve days ago it was not in the schedule. Another thing that leads me to conclude that BCFS management has been 'dithering' on this file is the long delay in publishing any schedule for the North Coast beyond the end of September. Finally on Sept 1 they post a schedule, only to change it less than two weeks later. Then there is the announcement regarding berth modifications at Klemtu. It seems clear that they were not planning to have the NorAd out of action so soon.
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Post by kylefossett on Sept 13, 2007 19:09:32 GMT -8
the space at either deas or the dry dock would have been booked a while back. they know it will be a vessel from the north. probably whatever is needed for the qpr refit is not available yet. might as well send a vessel in anyway so lets make it the norad
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Post by royalroadscaptain on Feb 21, 2008 17:07:57 GMT -8
Maybe this has occurred to others before, but it occurred to me today for the first time and I found it interesting and mysterious enough to bring it to your attention. It's a twofold issue. The two issues aren't necessarily related, but they both have a ghostly character. I'd love to hear your reactions and find out if anybody else has had similar experiences. 1. Seemingly I got to the Swartz Bay terminal too early this morning. What exactly does "too early" mean? 4.45am: too early for the ticket sales agents to be at work. When the very first BCF employee (and the first human being to arrive at the terminal after me) arrived at 4.57 I was told that I could get to my destination for free. Is this a common thing, to sail for free because ticket sales agents get to work later than the early vessels depart? To boot, I wondered, do you know of any other ways to sail a ferry for free when technically you're supposed to pay? 2. Even weirder was the following: I wanted to catch the Queen of Nanaimo from Mayne this morning. So, from Swartz Bay I had to get to Mayne first. The BC Ferries schedule (I'm referring to the paper brochure) shows that my first chance to get to Mayne from Swartz Bay was the 5.30 sailing: the Bowen Queen. But in looking at the schedule I figured that I could go to Saturna instead with the 5.10 Mayne Queen. The schedule shows the 5.10 departure to Saturna, but it doesn't indicate it on the Mayne schedule, despite the fact that she gets there (after leaving Saturna) 10 minutes before the Bowen Queen. When I asked the same employee who told me to get on for free she told me that it is an "unadvertised run" because "it's not guaranteed that it will stop on Mayne." Still, I was told to ask the ship's mate if I "could get a ride to Mayne." So I asked. The mate questioned why I wanted to sail with the Mayne Queen instead of the Bowen Queen (to which I replied: "Well, it leaves earlier and it gets there earlier, so why not?" and after he chatted with somebody on the phone about me, they decided to "give me a ride." I guess I can now say I hitch-hiked a ferry! Indeed I got to Mayne, on that "unadvertised sailing" for free, and 10 minutes before everybody else who caught the Bowen Queen. I asked half a dozen BCF employees today about this mysterious ghost sailing, but nobody even knew there was such a thing as a non-advertised sailing, let alone give me a reason for it. The reason that the stop-over at Mayne is not guaranteed--as the friendly lady claimed--makes absolutely no sense to me, though. Saturna islanders MUST catch that boat to get anywhere before noon so it is impossible that BCF could not guarantee that stop. Has anyone got any explanation for this unadvertised sailing? Do other such ghost sailings exist that you know of? Have I just found a loophole in the BC Ferries schedule or what? Sleepy but excited in Ladysmith. p.
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Post by WettCoast on Feb 21, 2008 18:37:09 GMT -8
On the northern services the schedules indicate that a 'Request Stop' will be made in certain locations such as Ocean Falls. The ferry goes there and makes a stop only if there are passenger(s) wishing to embark/disembark.
I expect that the morning sailing out of Saturna will go to Mayne only if there are passengers aboard wanting to get off at Mayne, or connect to the Queen of Nanaimo and the Lower Mainland via Village Bay, Mayne Island.
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Post by Gues on Feb 21, 2008 20:53:20 GMT -8
Well technically it's not a ghost sailing, it's just unadvertised. The schedule is designed so that people going to Saturna and Pender get on the MQ at 5:10 and people going to Mayne and Galiano get on the Cumberland(Bowen right now) at 5:30. The reason may seem a little vague but it works out better for loading. Most people going to Mayne island dont' care that the Cumberland gets them there 5 or 10 minutes later than the Mayne anyways. Similar thing happens in the afternoon where you have two options to get to mayne island. Either you can go with the MQ at 1500 or the cumberland at 1615. The Mayne queen will get you there about 15-20 minutes faster than hte cumberland but a lot of people chose to go wit h the cumby for the elevator and snackbar. As for getting on free early in the mornings, this is not atypical. The ticket agents start at 5:00 but most people get to the terminal more than 10 ,minutes prior to the sailing. It's not a big deal because it only affects walk ons and there's usually not more than one or two a week(who in gods name wants to travel at that time in the morning anyways )
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Koastal Karl
Voyager
Been on every BC Ferry now!!!!!
Posts: 7,747
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Post by Koastal Karl on Feb 21, 2008 22:20:19 GMT -8
plus the Cumberland 4:15pm sailing is direct to Mayne Island. The 3pm Mayne Queen goes all the way to Saturna then to Mayne Island. I have taken that sailing and it hasent been that busy. But I have heard the Cumberland 4:15pm sailing is the busy one.
I wouldent travel at that time of the morning either. I heard somewhere that those sailings arent popular cause who the hell would go to the gulf islands at that time of morning. It is mainly to have the ships coming back from the islands that are the busier ones seeing the ships are based out of Swartz Bay. I remember taking the 7am sailing to Tsawwassen and arriving at Swartz Bay before 6am and no one was going through the toll booths they were lining up outside as probably the ticket agents werent there yet!
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Post by WettCoast on Feb 21, 2008 23:06:14 GMT -8
Ghost sailings could be any sailing with one or more 'Invisible Users' aboard...
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Post by kerryssi on Feb 22, 2008 21:56:50 GMT -8
There was once a real "Ghost" sailing from SWB to LH on Saltspring. The run to TSA and back left a lot of free time on the schedule in use at the time. It was suggested that the rte 9 ferry could make a trip from SWB to LH to fill that time. It would be good as it would relieve the SWB/FUL ferry at rush hour and since most traffic was going to the north end of Saltspring it would relieve traffic congestion on the island and would actually be faster than the SWB/FUL route. No one used it, why? First, it was never advertised or shown in the schedule, secondly the staff at SWB were told to deny it existed and if someone ( such as knowledgeable employees ) insisted on using it to refuse them passage. I do not know why management seemingly sabotaged their own route but the management of BCFC moves in mysterious ways its screw ups to make. I was talking to a resident of Saturna Isl one trip several years ago. He was most upset. Saturna had been left off the schedule that year and he had been appointed by the residents to talk to BCFC management and find out what they were going to do about it. The answer he got back was that there would be no problem as they would just have the Nanaimo/Horseshoe bay ferry stop in at Saturna on its way past. Who could possibly make this stuff up?
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,172
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Post by Neil on Feb 22, 2008 23:36:45 GMT -8
Who could possibly make this stuff up? Well, I'm not sure, but looking back over my old schedules (to 1966) I can't see a time where Saturna Island was ever left off. Perhaps you're refering to one sailing? Couple of other points: I can't imagine how the route 9 vessel could ever have done a round trip from Long Harbour to Swartz Bay in the afternoon, given the time it has always arrived at Long Harbour from the morning Tsawwassen departure, and taking into account that it has always left Long Harbour for Tsawwassen between 3:00 and sometime after 4. In any event, it would have to leave Swartz Bay before 3:00, which hardly puts it in rush hour. Also looking in the old schedules, I see quite a few mentions of Long Harbour -Swartz Bay service, so there doesn't seem to be a pattern of keeping those sailings secret, when they exist; again, perhaps you're refering to one instance where the schedule was wrong.
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