Vessels: Tall Stacks Draws 800,000 to Queen City
Every four years the excursion vessel segment of the commercial marine industry stages one of the largest festivals in the United States, yet except for the vessels that participate in it, little is known about this event. It overshadows the Workboat Show but receives little attention in the marine press. From an attendance standpoint, if this event were the World Series of Baseball, the Workboat Show would be T-ball for five-year olds. The event is called Tall Stacks and is held on the Ohio River every four year in Cincinnati, Ohio. The 2003 event was the fifth such Tall Stacks event and was attended by over 800,000 people during a five-day period in mid-October.
Feature: Passenger Vessels : What's in Store in 2004?
The passenger vessel market is a classic mature marine market. Segments of it are doing well, while other parts have literally died. For example, the overnight segment of the market saw one substantial vessel delivered in 2003 with none on the horizon for 2004. The Empress of the North, a 360-ft. sternwheeler was put into service in September working the West Coast-Alaska route. Now that ice is a problem in Alaska, the vessel is working the Columbia River system in the Northwest U.S. The vessel was the largest vessel ever built by Nichols Brothers Boat Builders, Freeland, Wash. and is owned by American West Steamboat Company, Portland, Ore. Developing overnight service is the most difficult part of the passenger vessel industry to get established.
