Tag Archives: ferries

Ferries Bunching Up At Lopez

We took the ferry to Friday Harbor when mum was staying and there is no way that I am going to be on a ferry for a while without the camera coming out to shoot the other ferries we passed.  We were on the direct service from Anacortes to Friday Harbor but there are the other services that stop at the other islands.  Our route took us passed the terminal on Lopez Island and, both outbound and return, we saw ferries docked there.

It seems that the schedule results in one ferry arriving at Lopez shortly after the preceding one departs.  I assume that this doesn’t make it too tricky to stack up the awaiting vehicles but there doesn’t look to be a huge amount of space at the terminal.  Then again, Lopez is a quieter destination than Friday Harbor.  It was fun trying to get shots that combined both ferries in one frame and they passed on their respective routes.

Anderson Island Ferry

My lockdown interest in different ferry operations continues unabated.  Since I was down at Nisqually checking out the wildlife refuge, I figured I was close to Steilacoom which is the home of a ferry service provided by Pierce County.  This one operates across to Anderson Island – a location where some friends of ours have a place.  It occasionally stops at a smaller island too but that is not a frequent service.

There were two ferries tied up at the dock when I got there.  One was the Christine Anderson and it was the one in use.  The other was called Steilacoom II and I wonder whether that is an older ferry that is kept in reserve.  Not long after I arrived, the ferry departed.  I hadn’t positioned well to catch it but it turned immediately and headed south so was soon visible away from the other dock vessels.  I got myself some lunch while I waited for it to return.  The sun was out and the conditions were lovely as it made its way back to Steilacoom.  However, a big cloud bank rolled in at just the wrong time and, as it got close to its destination, it was suddenly in shade that did not make for good photos.  The Tacoma Narrows Bridge in the background was still bathed in good light though.  One more ferry to add to the tally!

Ferry Videos in Blustery Conditions

I have posted a couple of times with ferries at Guemes Island and Lummi Island.  While I mainly was shooting stills at these locations, I did get some video too.  When the boats are being tossed about, I figured that video was a better way of conveying what the conditions were like.  Below are a couple of videos I edited of the two ferries.

Stored Ferries

Bainbridge Island is the location of Eagle Harbor.  This is the maintenance base for the Washington State Ferries.  Look at it on Google Maps and you will see a ferry moored up in maintenance or long term storage.  However, since the onset of the pandemic, the ferries have been operating at a reduced schedule.  This has continued even though traffic levels during summer have increased markedly.  This reduced schedule means not all ferries are in service and a bunch are stored at Eagle Harbor.  Shooting in to the sun is not ideal but it was the only available shot.  Here are some of the ferries either in storage or awaiting a return to the full schedule.

Ferry After Sundown

Growing up on an island must bring a special affinity for ferries because, whenever I see them, it brings a spark of interest as to what people are going to or from.  I lived on the seafront for a portion of my teenage years and the ferries would pass our window each day as they headed to the mainland.  Ferry travel at night was often a thing because it would be either the beginning or end of a longer journey.  Something about the lights on a ferry at night seems very welcoming to me.

We had a terrace overlooking Puget Sound that we were able to hang out on in the evenings and the regular ferry traffic across the sound caught my attention.  It is dark out on the water but the lights from the passenger decks and the lighting on the open car deck beneath shine out across the water.  Seeing it from a slightly elevated position on the shore helps as well.  Seeing this just makes me feel good.  I guess decades away from living on an island hasn’t changed some things deep inside.