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San Juan Islands News

15 Aug 2022

Sunken Fishing Vessel Spilling Oil Off San Juan Island

(Photo: U.S. Coast Guard)

A commercial fishing vessel that sank Saturday near San Juan Island, Wash. is spilling oil, the U.S. Coast Guard said.All five crewmembers from the sinking Aleutian Isle were rescued by a Good Samaritan, and no injuries have been reported.The 49-foot vessel sank with approximately 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel and a combined 100 gallons of hydraulic fluid and lubricant oil aboard, according to the Coast Guard. A sheen has been observed spanning more than two miles and was reported to have entered Canadian waters as the vessel continues to release small amounts of diesel.At approximately 2 p.m.

21 Aug 2018

EBDG Designs Landing Craft that Services San Juan Islands

M/V Nordland II (Photo: Elliott Bay Design Group)

Over the last 30 years, Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) has been involved in numerous waterfront projects including the design of ferries, barges and tugs. Although its history is rich with traditional vessel designs, occasionally the firm is involved in more unique projects, one of them being the design of a purpose-built landing craft for San Juan Ferry & Barge.EBDG partnered with Latitude Marine Services (LMS) to update the design of a current landing craft operated by San Juan Ferry & Barge, designed by EBDG and built by LMS.

10 Apr 2018

Latest Innovations in Heavy Duty Machinery

RollDock Shipping: sophisticated loading/unloading systems for wind turbine component transportation. (Photo courtesy of Roll Group)

In the first of a series of marine industry sector reviews, MR&EN correspondent Tom Mulligan reports on the latest innovations in heavy lifting machinery technology with a selective overview of new product launches and recent equipment installations on board ships, ferries and workboats, as well as in ports, docks, harbors and shipping terminals worldwide. Markey Machinery’s Render/Recover and Asymmetric Render/Recover ‘active heave’ compensating winches have been recognized as…

17 Jan 2018

Washington State Ferries Ridership at a 15-year High

(Photo: Washington State Dept of Transportation)

Washington State Ferries, the nation’s largest ferry system, carried nearly 24.5 million passengers in 2017, its highest ridership since 2002. Ridership increased for the ninth consecutive year and was up by more than 250,000 over 2016. “We expect our ridership to continue to grow as more people move to Western Washington,” said WSF head Amy Scarton. “As part of the state highway network, the ferry system is a critical link between more affordable housing on the west side of the sound and key employment centers on the east side.

05 Jan 2018

Washington State Christens New Ferry Suquamish

Washington State’s new ferry Squamish was christened at Vigor's Harbor Island Shipyard in Seattle, on January 4. (Photo: WSDOT)

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) christened Suquamish, its fourth Olympic Class auto/passenger ferry, to serve passengers on the Mukilteo/Clinton route beginning in 2019. The christening ceremony was held at Vigor's Harbor Island Shipyard in Seattle, where the new 144-car ferry has entered the final stages of construction and preparation ahead of sea trials starting in mid-2018. In addition to summer operations on the Mukilteo/Clinton route, the new ferry will also serve as a maintenance relief vessel in the winter, filling in when other vessels are out of service.

12 Dec 2017

Cruise Shipping: Eight Trends to Watch in 2018

Š Andrey Armyagov / Adobe Stock

As cruises and sailing experiences are booming as never, travelers are able to choose from a variety of sailing adventures that suit their goals and pocketbooks. Cruise lines come with up innovative ways of enticing sailing passengers every year. Dream a destination or favorite vacation activity, and it’s very likely you can get there via water. The following are the eight top sailing trends for 2018. Travel by boat might have had luxurious dining rooms, but the sleeping accommodations were more like a sailor’s bed than a luxury hotel.

24 Mar 2017

WSF’s M/V Kaleetan on Board with Sherwin-Williams

(Photo: Sherwin-Williams)

A total of 5,300 gallons of Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings ensures that one of Washington’s most valuable assets will provide service for years to come. With a longstanding history of ferry operation in the Puget Sound, Washington State Ferries (WSF) was in need of a coatings company with just as strong of a reputation when preserving the 3,634-ton M/V Kaleetan auto/passenger ferry in the summer of 2015. Built in 1967 in San Diego, Calif., the M/V Kaleetan – which means “arrow” in Chinook – first went into service in early 1968 and was rebuilt in 2005.

01 Mar 2017

Washington Sells Its Oldest Ferry

Evergreen State (Photo: WSF)

Washington State Ferries (WSF) has sold its oldest ferry, Evergreen State, for $300,000 to Jones Broadcasting, LLC., who plans to use the 63-year-old vessel for ferry service in the protected waters of the southern Caribbean. “The Evergreen State is a special ferry. It was the first vessel custom built for Washington State Ferries in 1954,” said Ferries Chief of Staff Elizabeth Kosa. The first of the three Evergreen State class auto/passenger ferries, the 87-car, 854-passenger Evergreen State features surplus drive motors from World War II.

07 Feb 2017

Retired Ferry Gets a New Lease on Life

Hiyu (Photo: Washington State Department of Transportation)

A 50-year-old retired Washington State passenger ferry will get a refit, and with it another life as a floating entertainment space. Washington State Ferries (WSF) has sold its smallest retired ferry, Hiyu, for $150,000 to Menagerie Inc., who plans to repurpose the vessel as a floating entertainment venue. “We make every effort to keep our retired ferries operational, instead of being sold for scrap,” said WSF Chief of Staff Elizabeth Kosa. At 162-feet-long, the ferry is considered to be the among "cutest and most cherished" in Washington history…

14 Sep 2016

WSDOT Christens New Ferry Chimacum

WSF’s third Olympic Class vessel, M/V Chimacum, will will replace an older vessel on the Seattle/Bremerton route in 2017. (Photo: WSDOT)

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) christened Chimacum, the third Olympic Class vessel to join the Washington State Ferries (WSF) fleet. The ceremony took place at Vigor's Harbor Island Shipyard in Seattle, and marked the vessel’s final stage of construction and its preparation for sea trials. In a traditional maritime ceremony, Washington State Ferries Assistant Secretary Lynne Griffith broke a bottle of champagne to officially welcome the new ferry to the fleet. Gov.

01 Apr 2016

Bridge Overhaul for Washington State Ferries

Photo: Furuno

Washington State Ferries (WSF) maintains the largest fleet of ferries in the United States, and the fourth largest in the world. With 23 vessels in operation and two more under construction, WSF transports over 23 million passengers and vehicles a year across 10 routes around the Puget Sound and San Juan Islands. WSF has decided it is time for a bridge update, returning to Furuno for its latest large-scale fleet modernization beginning with the Issaquah 130 Class. Built in 1979 and rebuilt in 1989 to increase capacity…

01 Feb 2016

Rough Waters for Washington State Ferries

The process of installing the superstructure built by Nichols Brothers Boat Builders onto the hull of the M/V Tokitae at Vigor’s yard, March 2013.

Improved funding and management changes have the nation’s largest ferry system on a course to better times. Challenges remain, but WSF tackles each one in turn. Unlike the citizens of British Columbia, which pays a German shipyard to build its ferries, Washington state residents resolutely invest at home. By law, ferries are built locally and the results, overall, seem win-win. The state’s Office of Financial Management estimates that every $75 million in ferry construction generates about $90 million for the state’s economy.

21 Jan 2016

FRS Acquires Clipper, Plans North American Expansion

Photo: Clipper

FRS has acquired a majority interest in Clipper. FRS is a global ferry and shipping group, currently operating 60 vessels in 12 countries, and carrier of more than 7 million passengers and 1.9 million vehicles last year on national and international ferry lines. Clipper, operator of Clipper Vacations, is a recognized company in the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada, offering unique regional travel experiences, including high speed Victoria Clipper ferry services from Seattle to Victoria, and Seattle to San Juan Island.

12 Jun 2015

Washington State Ferries Ramp Up Summer Service

The new ferry M/V Samish undergoing sea trials in April 2015 in Seattle (Photo: Washington State Dept of Transportation)

The Washington State Ferries (WSF) summer 2015 sailing schedule will take effect Sunday, June 14, with a new Olympic Class vessel, additional sailings, vehicle reservations to the San Juan Islands and increased service hours on many routes, the state’s transportation department announced. For the Anacortes/San Juan Islands service, WSF added a fifth vessel, the new Olympic Class 144-car ferry Samish, for more sailings, providing better connections to Anacortes and Friday Harbor during commute hours. Also new this summer, customers can make vehicle reservations to and from the San Juan Islands.

22 Sep 2014

Two WSFs Due Back in Service

Washington State Ferries (WSF) inform in its latest newsletter that the ferries 'Kitsap' and 'Yakima' are expected to return to service next week. Commercial shipyards and Eagle Harbor staff completed work this week on both the Yakima and the Kitsap. Work included refurbishing the 50-year-old drive motor on the Yakima, repainting the Kitsap and renovating the Kitsap’s galley. After sea trials, the Yakima will go into service in the San Juan Islands. The Kitsap will replace the Sealth on the Seattle/Bremerton route. Source: WSF Newsletter

22 Apr 2014

NOAA Begins Hydrographic Survey Season

Photo courtesy of NOAA

New data will update nautical charts around the country. As sure as spring arrives, NOAA vessels and independent contractors are hitting the seas for the nation's 180th hydrographic surveying season, collecting data for over two thousand square nautical miles in high-traffic U.S. coastal waters. "Nautical charts are the foundation for the nation's maritime economy, and NOAA hydrographers spend months at sea, surveying critical areas to ensure safe navigation for the shipping, fishing, and boating communities," said Rear Admiral Gerd Glang, director of the Office of Coast Survey.

21 Mar 2014

State leaders christen first Olympic-class ferry at Vigor

State elected, transportation and manufacturing leaders were on hand today to celebrate the christening of the state’s first 144-car Olympic Class ferry, the M/V Tokitae, at Vigor Industrial’s shipyard in Seattle. Lynn Peterson, Washington’s Secretary of Transportation, served as the ship’s sponsor and broke a bottle to christen the new ferry before a crowd of more than 200 people. Speakers at the ceremony explained that the vessels will ensure safe, reliable ferry service, save taxpayers money and provide jobs for the state’s maritime workforce.

31 Dec 2013

Steamship Mutual: US Vessel Response Plans – Contingency Plans

Washington State – Alaska – Non tank final rule & Washington State – Contingency Plan requirements. We refer to our circular no. B.613. As stated in that circular, every tank vessel and every other vessel over 300 GT is required under State law to file a contingency plan prior to entry into the waters of Washington State but that instead of filing his own plan an owner can subscribe to an umbrella oil spill contingency plan. Since publishing the abovementioned circular, Washington State Maritime Co-operative (WSMC) has changed its enrolment agreement and the version with footer “WSMC Enrolment Agreement – December 2013” conforms with the International Group’s guidelines on vessel response plans.

29 Jan 2013

American Cruise Lines Welcomes Wave Season 2013

new paddelwheeler, Queen of the Mississippi

A strong start to the season, American Cruise Lines experiences record sales. American Cruise Lines (www.americancruiselines.com), a  U.S. cruise company, announced today record sales at the start of what it is predicting will be its strongest Wave Season to date. Each of the past four weeks has broken previous company sales records during Wave Season, with last week being the most successful sales week in the company’s entire history. “We predicted sales growth this year with a full second season on the Mississippi and the addition of our new Puget Sound itinerary…

26 Mar 2012

U.S. Senators Urge Support for Small Port Dredging

Senator Cantwell meeting with U.S. Coast Guard personnel on Washington waterfront (photo: Senator Cantwell's WEB site)

Cantwell, Senators Urge Support for Dredging of Small Ports, Including Swinomish Channel, Port of Ilwaco. U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) has joined a group of Senators in urging key appropriators to include funding for dredging small and low-use ports in the fiscal year (FY) 2013 budget. Small and low-use ports are ports that don’t have enough tonnage to meet the Army Corps of Engineers’ threshold to qualify for annual dredging support but represent important economic engines of the communities they serve.

13 Jun 2012

New Puget Sound Cruises

'American Spirit': Photo courtesy of ACL

American Cruise Lines announce the addition of a new itinerary for 2013 – Puget Sound and San Juan Islands . Offered aboard the 100-passenger American Spirit, roundtrip cruises from Seattle will showcase the most beautiful inland waterways on the West Coast. Puget Sound, which will include the San Juan Islands, will be the newest offering in American Cruise Lines’ Pacific Northwest cruise collection, which includes Alaska’s Inside Passage and the Columbia & Snake Rivers. Inaugural cruises are slated to begin on April 6, 2013.

10 Aug 2012

Manhunt for Ship Captain Condemned by Whale Watch

Photo credit Whale Watch Alaska

Whale Watch Alaska condemns manhunt for 'Sea Shepherd' captain. In light of the news late last month that Sea Shepherd’s founder, Captain Paul Watson, had forfeited his bail after being held under house arrest for 70 days in Germany, WWA made the decision today to publicly back the beleaguered captain. It is a controversial position to take for for any business, politician or celebrity (which include American actors Sean Penn and Martin Sheen as supporters) - let alone a tourism…

24 Oct 2012

BCF & WSF Security and Operations Control

Across the globe, populated islands and the desire of their inhabitants to travel elsewhere has led to a need for reliable waterborne transportation. Nowhere is an organized water transportation system more highly utilized than in the shared waters of Washington State and British Columbia. The international border zigzags around the Gulf Islands of Canada and the San Juan Islands of the US. Ferry traffic from the US and Canada traveling to these islands cross each other’s watery borders daily.