Your Ferry Best of 2012

[Low Light Mike]

It's almost time for the 2012 year-end review of what you liked and best remember in the ferry world this past year.

Use this thread to share what was memorable for you in ferry items for 2012. Such as:

- Share your favourite photo of 2012. Show us the photo and tell us why you like it so much.

- Your most memorable ferry trip?

- Your most memorable ferry forum happening?

- Your biggest 2012 ferry disappointment?

- Your most memorable travel item from 2012 ?

- Anything else memorable from 2012 ?


And looking ahead:
- Your 2013 hoped-for ferry item (either a trip thing, a photo thing, or a ferry system thing that you hope to see happen)

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ps: You can start this now, or (if you're like WCK) you can wait until January 1st so that you have a full & complete 2012 to review.

[WettCoast]

I am not likely to get close to any ferry over what remains of 2013 2012, so I might do something to contribute here, later today.

[WettCoast]

Dec 27, 2012 11:28:40 GMT -8 @4roads said:

Dec 27, 2012 10:43:25 GMT -8 WettCoast said:

I am not likely to get close to any ferry over what remains of 2013 2012, so I might do something to contribute here, later today.

A bit odd considering 2013 hasn't arrived yet.

Perhaps Mr. K you are just a bit quick on the trigger finger with my typo there. I will fix it.

If we had been looking at our best back in 2006 and the year had not yet wound down to its end, I might have missed this one, which was my best, of that entire year.


Queen of Cowichan, the Salish Sea & Mount Baker - 29 December 2006 [photo © WCK-JST] by Wett Coast, on Flickr[/size]

[Mike C]

Most memorable trip: All of them were fantastic, hard to hold one up among others - we all had good times in the buffet, but I think naturally my favourite trip from 2012 was our Northern Extravaganza on the Northern Adventure. Even though the ship was a major let-down, we still all had an absolute blast. For those who haven't been up north yet, I sincerely hope we show you what REAL ferry riding is all about this year from the 4-5 meter seas to the crew truly going above and beyond for a group of ferry geeks.

Biggest let-down: The fact that they are still sounding single-tone whistles on the Coastal Celebration...

Favourite Photo: Although probably not my best from this year, this particular photo of the Bowen Queen in Jervis Inlet spoke to me as one of my favourite moments:

Bowen Queen, Earls Cove by MileagePhoto, on Flickr

Most memorable travel experience: I did a trip to New York and Washington, DC this year with my mom for a few days. That was a fantastic experience - I had been to NYC before and will definitely be back, it's one of my favourite cities in the world. Here's a photo of our Amtrak Acela Express train at New York - Penn Station:

#2034 Acela, Penn Station, New York, NY by MileagePhoto, on Flickr

[WettCoast]

I don't have a ferry photo this year that really stands out as 'the best' among those that I have taken. Nevertheless, I have chosen the following photo just because I like it and doing a day trip through the San Juan Islands and riding on one of the WSF fleet was just a little bit exotic for me, even if the boat in question is not all that fancy ...


M/V Chelan (WSF) - Head-on View - approaching Sidney, Vancouver Island, BC - 9 June 2012 [photo © WCK-JST] by Wett Coast, on Flickr[/size]

I did get many very nice rail photos this year. Here are two of them:


Rocky Mountaineer on CN's tracks heading west on the Robson Sub @ Charles, just north of Valemount, BC - 28 June 2012 [photo © WCK/JST] by Wett Coast, on Flickr[/size]


CP west bound grain train @ Martel on CN's Ashcroft Subdivision east of Spences Bridge, BC - 3 June 2012 [photo © WCK-JST] by Wett Coast, on Flickr[/size]

A low-light, ferry-wise, was getting a first-hand look at some of the beauties operating in Europe, such as the Piana, below. Does anyone know what's up with those big doors?


MS Piana (La Méridionale) @ Marseille, France - 22 July 2012 [photo © WCK-JST] by Wett Coast, on Flickr[/size]

Our 7-week long European holiday had many highlights, including musical highlights that we found in the city of Annecy in the French Alps. In the evening there were excellent free concerts of all sorts of musical genres happening everywhere including in many outdoor locations. An example, featuring traditional Gypsy music, is shown in the photo below.



Some things that I would like to see happen in 2013:

1 - personal - to do a grand daddy 'northern extravaganza' when daylight is long (June?) aboard the AMHS's flagship Columbia as she travels between Ketchikan & Bellingham or vice-versa. Voyager trip potential?

2 - A changed livery for BCFS and an end to the slugs. Bring back the dogwood to its rightful place, please.

[Scott (Former Account)]

Share your favourite photo of 2012.

May I have three? Yes? Okay...

While it's unfortunate that BC Ferries ended up pulling the Northern Expedition a week early for refit in late-March (...causing a well-planned group trip to be moved to the Northern Adventure), we could not have asked for better weather on Saturday, March 24th when she departed Port Hardy for Deas. With the nicest captain in the fleet bringing her down, the awesome weather conditions and the subject being one of the most beautiful modern ferries in the world (IMHO and thank you, FSG), makes this one of my favorites out of all 101,600+ photos I have taken.


BC Ferries - Northern Expedition sailing southbound in Discovery Passage. by BCFS, on Flickr

After the Coastal Inspiration's incident at Duke Point on Tuesday, December 20, 2011, the resulting damage forced Route 30 service to return back to Departure Bay. This allowed for opportunities that haven't been seen in well over a decade, like this unique starboard profile shot of the relatively fresh from refit Queen of New Westminster outbound from Departure Bay.


BC Ferries - Queen of New Westminster departing Departure Bay. by BCFS, on Flickr

On the night of day two of our October 2012 "Northern Extravaganza", I asked if we could have the Northern Expedition lit-up while in the berth at Skidegate. During this time, we would take photos while we did a round trip aboard the Kwuna. Here's the awesome view we were treated to up close...


BC Ferries - Northern Expedition at Skidegate. by BCFS, on Flickr

Your most memorable ferry trip?

Witnessing the Queen of Vancouver depart to meet her doom in Ensenada, Mexico. I did two trips, one to get photos of her from the water...


Queen of Vancouver at Fanny Bay. by BCFS, on Flickr

...and the other on the day she left our waters, Friday, August 10th.


Farewell, old friend... by BCFS, on Flickr

RIP, Queens of Vancouver and Saanich.

Your most memorable ferry forum happening?

While staff here have been kept on their toes for the majority of the year, I really appreciated the opportunities our Voyagers had to get together just to hang-out. Especially the great turnout of eleven members for the Spaulding 100 trip where we spent most of the day aboard the Queen of Nanaimo. You're all awesome!

Your biggest 2012 ferry disappointment?

As with others, the majority of Swartz Bay bridge crews who continue use the single-tone whistle on the Coastal Celebration. Bob Swanson is probably rolling in his grave knowing that two of his Airchimes are being silenced in favour for a ridiculous high-pitched B-flat to screech in the pass and on departure. It's honestly the most embarrassing sound in the fleet...

However, thank you to the Departure Bay, Tsawwassen and Duke Point bridge crews who continue to keep the tradition alive by using the three-tone (chord) whistle on the Renaissance and Inspiration.

Your most memorable travel item from 2012?

I got to ride aboard my first WSF vessel. As luck would have it, the first WSF vessel I photographed (at VDD in North Vancouver) was the first WSF vessel I ended up sailing on, the Puyallup.


WSF's Puyallup en route to Kingston. by BCFS, on Flickr

Your 2013 hoped-for ferry item?

We have had group trips on every ship in the fleet, including a handful of members who have sailed on every ship in the fleet (myself included). Maybe we should contact BC Ferries to see if we could arrange a group trip to one place we have yet to visit, The Atrium?

Anything else memorable from 2012?

Counting fares, parking and on-board purchases only, I spent $1353.36 in 2012 to travel aboard BC Ferries. In terms of fares, most of that were trips to simply ride aboard a specific vessel for a round trip or two as a foot passenger, not travelling to an actual geographical destination...

This is an ever increasingly expensive hobby, sadly...

All the best to our members and guests in the New Year!

[Low Light Mike]

My ferry best photo of 2012 is this one.
- Taken on a fun day of NorEx chasing down Johnstone Strait & Discovery Passage. I met up with Scott part way through this evening, and we had fun doing this photo shoot at Campbell River.
- Here is NorEx making the turn into Discovery Passage, at Seymour Narrows.
- March 24, 2012. A sunny Saturday.


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I also discovered the fun of doing sped-up video. My ferry best of this one is a Route-5 Gulf Islands Day Trip from a sunny day in
November 2012. This one is fun for me to watch, over and over again.



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Many of my favourite forum events were solo. The type where I anticipate an event, go out and record it, and then present it on the forum for all to see.
- For this type of item, one of my favourites was on Saturday April 21, 2012 when the Queen of New Westminster did a 1-trip appearance on Route-30 out of Departure Bay (so that she could stop by Duke Point and test the almost-repaired docks there). So I anticipated the Departure Bay powerslide photo opportunity, and had lots of fun capturing it.


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My other favourite forum items for 2012 (and my most memorable travel item) involved sharing some of my summer vacation experiences with the forum, by way of photo, video and trip commentary. Things seen included coal trains, rail tunnels, big mountains, red-jammer buses, a 1927 wooden excursion ship, a few inland ferries, a restored sternwheeler and a gathering of Super ferries.

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My most memorable ferry trip?
- Riding the MV Balfour on Kootenay Lake, in July. I had last rode that ship in 1969, and I don't remember much from that time. So it was good to ride it again, before she's retired. A good time-capsule moment.

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2012 ferry disappointment:
- That I didn't ride the final 2 ships on my "I've ridden all the BCFerries ships" list. It would have been easy to have ridden the Kahloke or SoBC in 2012, but I didn't and I will have to try again in 2013.

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2013 hope-for item to experience:
- To enjoy this forum more, to ride the Uchuck-III again and to ride a few more WSFerries.

[Mike C]

I did forget one detail in my post:

For 2013:
- I would hope to see a larger group-trip organized for up north, potentially for the forum's 10-year anniversary;
- I would hope that Jim's vision of the dogwood's return comes true, potentially after our provincial election in May, likely bringing a change of governance and a change in the way BC Ferries is operated; and
- Finish my goal of riding on every single BC Ferry. The Nimpkish will be a challenge, but I feel that it is conceivable, provided the funds are in place, and the likelihood that I will be stationed up north for school in the fall.

[Neil]

Dec 28, 2012 13:51:30 GMT -8 Mike C said:

- Finish my goal of riding on every single BC Ferry. The Nimpkish will be a challenge, but I feel that it is conceivable, provided the funds are in place, and the likelihood that I will be stationed up north for school in the fall.

Yes, I hear that the University of Ocean Falls has an excellent urban planning and transportation development department.

[Mike]

My favourite photo



The Queen of Burnaby looking spiffy in fresh paint, back in February. After seeing so many photos of her exterior all rusty, it was nice to see her looking fresh.

- Your most memorable ferry trip?

It would have to be the Northern Extravaganza that I did in October. It was 4 days of fun, and an experience I will remember for quite some time.

- Your most memorable travel item from 2012 ?

Finally doing a Northern trip, something I've wanted to do since I was a kid.

- Anything else memorable from 2012 ?

The ships I crossed off my "haven't been on yet" list were:

- Coastal Renaissance
- Coastal Celebration
- Queen of Burnaby
- Queen of New Westminster
- Queen of Oak Bay
- Bowen Queen
- Mayne Queen
- Powell River Queen
- Kwuna
- Northern Expedition
- Skeena Queen
- Quadra Queen II

- Your 2013 hoped-for ferry item.

More group trips!

[Mike C]

Dec 28, 2012 14:18:28 GMT -8 Neil said:

Dec 28, 2012 13:51:30 GMT -8 Mike C said:

- Finish my goal of riding on every single BC Ferry. The Nimpkish will be a challenge, but I feel that it is conceivable, provided the funds are in place, and the likelihood that I will be stationed up north for school in the fall.

Yes, I hear that the University of Ocean Falls has an excellent urban planning and transportation development department.

Correct. I am hoping that this institution provides me, with the 4 (thousand? I'm sure that's a typo on their website) students some skills on how to deal with unique challenges, such as how to get people (all 300-something residents) walking on the street(s) with rainfall 365 days a year.

But seriously, UNBC in Prince George is in the cards. I have not heard raving reviews about this town, nor have I ever taken the liberty of visiting, but I'm hoping it will be a positive experience to finish the undergrad. Maybe I will save on ferry expenses (or maybe not).

[WettCoast]

The Francois Forester is available, and free!, just a two & a half hour drive west of PG. It is a 'very beautiful' ;D barge type ferry that operates on Francois Lake, south of the town of Burns Lake.

[SolDuc]

favourite photo(s) of 2012

Let me add a s to photo. There. It is surely hard to choose between 2,140 photos (in what 4 months, if I were a ferry fan since longer, doing the math, I would have... around 6,400 pictures!)

Now let's actually post them:

1. Kitsap and Tacoma, August 23^rd, 2012. The space needle is one of the greatest places to spot ferries in Seattle, giving views like airplanes, except without glass reflection. It was my second time up there this year and a mix of good weather, an almost setting sun and a good camera gave me that shot:

MV Kitsap and MV Tacoma - Washington State Ferries by BrasegaliWA, on Flickr

2. MV Tacoma in the sun, November 9^th, 2012. Early November had an unusual sunny and not very windy weather, which with a few days off from school, led to a ferry trip, and finally to this spectacular shot:

MV Tacoma - Washington State Ferries by BrasegaliWA, on Flickr

3. MV Salish departing Bremerton, December 8^th, 2012. And finally, it does not matter what the weather is, rare vessel assignments often lead to trips. Taken here from Steve Rosenow's signature spot, the Salish departs Bremerton, her starboard side lighted with the sun. (extra point for the one who spots ferrynut)

MV Salish - Washington State Ferries by SolDuc Photography, on Flickr

Your most memorable ferry trip?

Has to be the Kaleetan back in June, I was there with my family on the sun deck and those two people were feeding seagulls, and they gave us (human) food to feed them. The later conversation went like this:

Lady: Did you give it to the seagull? Did it eat it?
Me: No, I ate it
Both, plus other people on the sun deck; laugh for a minute

Your most memorable ferry forum happening?

Definitely the Salish group trip, proving that a lot of ferry fans can meet up totally randomly

Your biggest 2012 ferry disappointment?

I guess I'll have three:

1. The Walla Walla's breakdown, as I was hoping for a trip on her, as she's the only Jumbo mark I/II that I've not been on.

2. Not being able to ride the Hiyu on her quick sint at F-V-S

3. Not being able to go see the ferries at Calais or Dunkerque, even though I (at the time of this writing) am less than 2 hours away.

Your most memorable travel item from 2012 ?

Our Utah trip in June

Anything else memorable from 2012 ?

-Orcas Island, July, on a sunday afternoon: arrived at 12:30, were in the first 10 cars for the 17:20

-Stehekin, late August

-Vancouver/Denman/Hornby islands trip, late July

Your 2013 hoped-for ferry item

-The "birth" of WSF organized group trips.

-Seeing the Walla Walla back in service, if possible not a lot of large ferry breakdowns.

-Riding the rest of the WSFs

-The Tokitae!

[Scott]

Haven't done a lot of ferry travelling this year. Next year will probably be even less. And when you've got kids with you, the photo opportunities are even fewer:) But we had one nice long circle trip in the summer and that's where most of my "moments" for 2012 come from.

Favorite photo of 2012:


The Queen of Nanaimo approaching Sturdies Bay on a mid-August evening.


The above photo is from our most memorable ferry trip. A somewhat unplanned evening sail from Long Harbour to Tsawwassen on the Bowen Queen. It was the last leg of several ferry trips we made over a week or so. First we headed over to Parksville via the Sunshine Coast on the Queen of Surrey and Island Sky (this was my first trip on her).

During the drive from Comox down to Parksville, I stopped off at Fanny Bay for a few evening pictures of the Queen of Vancouver days before she was shipped to Mexico. Then we spent a week camping on Cortes Island which included round trips on the Powell River Queen and the Tachek.

Coming home we drove over to Port Renfrew from Cowichan Lake which was quite a nice quiet drive through clearcut forests. That stretch was also a first for me. We camped for a couple nights at China Beach, spent a night in Victoria and came home via Saltspring Island.



I wanted to come home on the Bowen Queento get the kids back home in time for bed, but to my surprise she was packed, even on a Thursday afternoon. We were the last car left - they even drove us down the ramp, but we had to back off. Some of you know my car (1989 Buick wagon) and she doesn't slip into small spaces too easily. So we had to wait for the Bowen Queen to do the round trip - about a 5 hour wait! But it was a beautiful sunset sail over calm seas on a little ferry that was only a quarter full.

Other than that, my ferry travels were just a few round trips on Route 2 and 30 to visit the inlaws - usually as a walk-on.

This coming year, I don't know if I'll get any holidays so ferry travel will be minimal - probably just a few quick visits to Parksville. I like to get a round trip in on route 1 on a summer evening. Also, if that Powell River - Departure Bay relief route goes ahead, I'd love to take that trip.

Also for 2013, I'm very interested to see what changes come to BC Ferries, whoever wins the election. I too hope the slugs will be a memory by the end of the year.

One more trip home on Route 2 planned for tomorrow. So I may have to edit this before the year is out.

[Kahloke]

2012 was not a big year for me in terms of Forum events and ferry outings. Most of my ferry travels were going to and from Orcas for all of the house projects we had going on this year. In fact, we went up again yesterday, although this time was just to see my dad for Christmas. I did not do any forum trips this year. The only time I saw any forum members was my farewell cruise on Rhododendron almost a year ago.

Favourite Ferry Photo:
I got to see the San Juan ferries a lot this year, so it is no surprise that my favourite ferry photo comes from that part of the Northwest. This is Hyak docked at Orcas Island on April 1, 2012. What makes it my favourite is the vibrant blue water and elements of the scene.



Most Memorable Ferry Trip:
My most memorable ferry trip this year was a trip that wasn't supposed to happen. My wife and I did a Victoria Clipper Vacations Package to Victoria last February, which included round-trip passage on the Clipper, and an overnight at the Grand Pacific Hotel. It was a great deal and a fun trip. The return trip back to Seattle is what was most memorable. It was a very nice, albeit, VERY windy day in Victoria, and we found out late in the morning that Victoria Clipper had cancelled its sailings that day, and that we were to check in at our normal time for the return trip to find out what arrangements they had made for us. Well, the arrangements turned out to be chartered busses to take us all the way to Seattle via MV Coho and Port Angeles. The journey across The Strait of Juan De Fuca turned out to be quite an adventure. We hit seas that would have kept any WSF vessel, and I daresay, most BCF vessels, from leaving port. Coho handled it in stride, which is more than I can say for my stomach. I did OK, but I will admit, I was getting a little green around the gills for part of that trip.

Also noteworthy was getting to see MV Matanuska in Petersburg, Alaska. Although I did not get to travel on any of the AMHS vessels, it was cool to see their operations in Alaska.



Most Memorable Travel Item from 2012:
I actually got to travel a fair amount in 2012, all of it on the west coast spanning from Glacier Bay in Alaska to Tijuana in Mexico. But, the signature travel event for me was undoubtedly the Alaska cruise in early August on Holland America's MS Westerdam. Here's a few photos from that trip:

our ship - MS Westerdam anchored in Sitka


sistership MS Zuiderdam traveling parallel to us up Stephens Passage en-route to Juneau


A very cool ice cave in Lamplugh Glacier - Glacier Bay National Park


An Alaska sunset - off Baranoff Island just south of Sitka



Anything Else Memorable in 2012:
2012 was the year of construction and repairs for me, mostly at the Orcas House. One of the biggest accomplishments and milestones was bulding a new deck and front porch for the house there.

New deck at Orcas House - July, 2012:


And, the construction continues, this time at our house here in Gig Harbor. We are right in the middle of a major kitchen remodel, which we expect to complete sometime in February.

Before (November, 2012):


Right now - kitchen demolition & new support beam (December, 2012):


Rendering of the finished product (we hope):



Hoped-for 2013 Ferry Items:
I am looking forward to the progress on the Olympic Class vessels, Tokitae and Samish. I am hoping these will turn out to be really good ferries, and good additions to the fleet.

I don't know what 2013 will hold for me personally. A job would be really nice since I am out of work right now. Outside of that, there will always be home projects, and I hope to do a little traveling, too. We've already planned an overnight Vancouver getaway on Amtrak in February, so I am looking forward to that. I hope everyone has a great 2013!

[Balfour]

My Favourite Ferry photo this year:

IMG_0941 by Coastal Skier, on Flickr

Most memorable ferry trip?

My most memorable ferry trip was the March 2012 trip up north on the Northern Adventure. It was fun times spent with fellow ferry fans.

Biggest 2012 ferry disappointment?

Most certainly the fact that Swartz Bay crews are still using a single tone whistle on the Coastal Celebration

Most memorable travel item from 2012 ?
My trip over to Europe was pretty awesome...

Prague by Coastal Skier, on Flickr


Budweiser by Coastal Skier, on Flickr


And looking ahead:

I'm hoping to get a large group trip together to celebrate our forum's tenth anniversary this July. Either a Northern Trip or a Large gathering on Galiano. Also I'd like to get on an Alaska State Ferry.

[Ferryman]

Ah yes, another year end review. These are always fun to compile my own experiences of the year and to also see other peoples experiences.

2012 has been a good year overall, except that I haven't done a whole lot of Ferry travel in my own personal time. That is because I work for BC ferries, and I have the advantage of seeing the fleet and working on the Ferries on a regular basis. So it's difficult for me to find the time to ride a ferry during my time off, and in fact I look for ways to avoid ferry travel on my days off. But, that's pretty well impossible since I'm at the mercy of the Ferries on my days off living on an Island that is served by the Ferries. So the Ferries are more than just a hobby of mine. They're a place of work, and also a bridge that links me to the rest of civilization.

Here's my year end review.

I have a number of favourite photos that I had taken this year. So this was a tricky one to try and figure out. I'd post them all if I could, but since I can only pick one I will pick this one I took of the Howe Sound Queen on May 12th. The story on it is below the photo.

Howe Sound Queen sailing into the sunrise.

Howe Sound Queen at Sunrise by Deck-dog SSI, on Flickr

Just a day or so before, I was enjoying a few days off on the Sunshine Coast in Sechelt when suddenly I had a change of schedule. Being a Casual for the Ferries comes with a pretty huge lifestyle change if you're a person who enjoys having a schedule and a routine. All of that gets thrown overboard if you're a Casual so you never know what can happen. I was given a call with a request to change my schedule and sail the Howe Sound Queen to Deas for refit. This was something I didn't have to take since I was on some time off, but I'll never turn down a ship move because they can usually be the most fun with sailing somewhere different. So to take advantage of the sunny weather we had at the time, I decided to leave the Sunshine Coast at the last possible minute basically. I was to meet the Howe Sound Queen at the end of her scheduled working day, so I didn't end up leaving Langdale until the 1 or 2 o'clock ferry (I can't remember the sailing time). However I didn't take into account of what day of the week it was - it was a Friday, and I was hoping to simply connect with the Route 2 Ferry to Departure Bay. I happened to look at the current conditions on my smart phone and sure enough it was busy. Luckily I was able to score a reservation on the 5:20pm ferry. I rarely ever reserve a spot on the Ferry since I like to take my chances to save a bit of money by forecasting the travel rush and when to arrive. Needless to say, I never made it back to Salt Spring until around 8:30pm where I basically unpacked my bags and gathered up my gear and a lunch for the ship move. Traditionally, everyone in the crew brings food to share for the shipmove, since they can last alot longer than typical working hours. So it becomes a bit of a potluck cruise. I met the Howe Sound Queen at the end of her working day at 10:30pm where we traded places with the afternoon watch. Terminal Maintenance vehicles came aboard to readjust the dock at Vesuvius for the higher freeboard on the Bowen Queen. We had to do this as well at Crofton before we could leave too. This is a pretty fast process, so we actually tied up in Crofton for a couple of hours before we actually set sail for Deas. This gave us time to prepare the ship for the refit. This usually includes packing alot of loose items and the majority of safety equipment. It can be a lot of work, but it's not too bad on a ship as small as the Howe Sound Queen. When we finally set sail from Crofton, around 2 or 3 in the morning, he cruised on through the Islands through Houston Passage and Porlier Pass. Once we were clear of the Islands, the engines were brought to a slow idle for the Strait crossing since we had a scheduled ETA for Deas and we were running ahead of schedule. We were given a beautiful sunrise on the Strait. So beautiful, I got to take the Rescue Boat out for a run on the flat calm water to take photos of the Howe Sound Queen in the sunrise which was around 5:30am. It's a pretty neat feeling being in a small little vessel in the middle of the Strait. We had a pretty good run in the rescue boat and then it was time to bring it back onboard so we could begin to head up the Fraser River to Deas. It wasn't until 8:30am when we secured the ship at Deas. We ended up catching the 11:00am SOBC to Swartz followed by 1:00pm Skeena Queen back to Salt Spring. That was a long day of Ferry travel having traveled on 5 ferries over a period of 24 hours. Wow. That's a lot more than I was originally intending to write.

My most memorable Ferry Forum happening would be

My biggest 2012 Ferry disappointment would hands down be seeing the Queen of Vancouver and Queen of Saanich head for the scrapyard in Mexico. I always knew it would happen someday, but those ships definitely had a bit of a special place in my heart. But I know it was for the best since they were being vandalized and destroyed by ignorant hooligans.

My most memorable travel item would be what I mentioned up above with the Howe Sound Queen.

Another memorable travel event from 2012 would be traveling back and forth to Port Hardy to train the crews up there on the new Pump Ashore systems that the majority of the fleet has now. I made a total of three trips there this year, two of which I flew up and the last one I drove up for in the heat of the summer. As part of one of the trips up there, I got to witness sea trials of the Northern Adventure when she was coming out of refit. So I can finally say I've sailed aboard the Norad. Unfortunately, I didn't get to sail the Inside Passage while I was up there.

For 2013 I'm really hoping to finally do a Northern trip. I hope to have a more flexable schedule to be able to plan ahead and finally do this trip. This should hopefully complete my list of riding on all of the BC Ferries which would be the Northern Expedition, Kwuna, Quadra Queen II and Quinitsa.

Thanks for reading!

[Curtis]

The Year of the Ferry. That's how I would Describe My 2012. The trips, experiences, and all the happenings were some I'll never forget. Not to mention completing the BC Ferries Grand Slam by boarding the 5 Vessels that I'd still yet to sail on when this year began. Those being the Northern Adventure, Quadra Queen II, Northern Expedition, Kwuna, and Kahloke.


My Favourite Photo of 2012 is one taken fairly early in the year. This was taken February 14th with my iPhone 4S. Probably one of the Earliest Examples that it could take pictures equal to or better than my Olympus Point-and-Shoot. (They're both 8 Megapixels so you see why I had to Upgrade to a DSLR) It shows too as this picture still graces my iPhone's Home and Lock Screens over 10 Months Later.

To refresh your memory, the NIP and Tachek were running Route 17 and 18 at this time because the Burnaby had broken down and required engine work. The NIP had to dock bow in at Westview while doing this so the path she departed was the one she usually takes for arrival. The main attraction for going down to photograph her that day. Add in a beautiful sunset and you get my Photo of the Year. It also acts as a great precursor to how my Spring and Summer would go.


My Most Memorable Ferry Trip? I'd say it's a tie between both the Fall and Spring Northern Extravaganzas. Both were such good trips that I couldn't pick just one. Spring was my first BC Ferries Trip North of Campbell River so everything was new and exciting for me. The Ship, the Operations, the Places, Everything about the trip was Great. I've got to wonder though how the trip would have gone if we sailed aboard the Northern Expedition like we thought was the case. One thing is for sure, I wouldn't have given much thought into going on the Trip in the Fall. While I had a better view of how things are up North this 2nd time, the NorEx made up for that. (Also getting aboard the Kwuna after missing it in Spring) The Crew Connections Scott had for this trip helped make it really memorable. Probably some of the best Behind the Scenes Tours I've been given aboard any Ferry. Many Thanks to the Northern Vessels and their Crews!


For a Memorable Ferry Forum Happening, I'm going to go with what happened on CirclePac Weekend back in September...
If you don't remember what conspired that Saturday Night, I'll say it was a Pretty and Witty Evening of Silliness... Featuring Flugel Horn.


Oh, did I forget to mention I fulfilled my dream of Working for BC Ferries? I got hired Seasonal as a Deckhand based on Texada Island. I was glad to finally get my foot in the door and take in all that goes on in a regular work day. It was great to work aboard the North Island Princess too. Being the Ferry I've sailed on the most over the years it seems fitting that she would be the first vessel I work aboard. I developed quite a bond with the vessel over the months I worked aboard her. Unfortunately it was not to be, summer ended and so did my seasonal term with BC Ferries. Easily my Biggest Ferry Disappointment of 2012. Looking at it now though, it was probably for the best. Texada isn't exactly a happening place as you'd expect. In the Summer it's fine, but in Winter I'd likely spend a lot of time waiting for Crewing to call.

With that in mind getting re-hired by BC Ferries is high on my mind in 2013 with an ultimate goal of being kept as a Casual. While I might end up on Texada again, getting hired in a new area would be preferred. (*cough Saltspring *cough)


Here's hopes that things go well in the new year for us all and we see a good number of trips as we close in on the Forum's 10th Anniversary
Cheers to us all and Happy 2013!

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My favourite pictures of 2012:



I have no idea why it is my one of my favourite photo.



Because I like the Seattle skyline.



Because of the lights



Because she is the only WSF I have been on.



Because I never had a more than one ferry at terminal.



Because I have never gotten the same class vessels in one photo.


Your most memorable ferry trip?
My Powell River trip.

Most memorable travel experience:
Going to Montreal by self.

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Favourite photo:

The afternoon on September 15th, 2012 was a nice one. Here is the Queen of Surrey coming in berth 3 for her 1750 sailing.

Favourite ferry trip was back in October when I got to steer the Skeena Queen.

Most memorable forum happening
When I met all my fellow voyagers on the Queen of Surrey on September 30th, 2012.

My biggest dissapointment was not having the time to ride the Bowen Queen on route 7. That was a unique vessel assignment that we'll probably never see again.

Something else that was fun this year was free unlimited ferry riding (with a bus pass) in Quebec City earlier this year. What makes that rather short route interesting is the river current. Each docking seems different.

In 2013, I hope to sail on all the ferries that I haven't had a chance to ride (Mayne Queen, Klitsa, Kwuna, NorAd & NorEx, Nimpkish, QQII, Tenaka and the Kuper). Riding the Nimpkish is defenitely going to be difficult.