SEATTLE, Wash. — This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com.
The Super-class ferry Elwha was born in the bustling waters of Puget Sound. Built in 1967, the Elwha was the last of the four Super-class ferries constructed for the Washington State Ferries (WSF) system. Now, the Elwha will have a more dignified retirement than the original plans of sending it to the trash heap in Ecuador.
Her retirement in April 2020 marked the end of an era, but her story was far from over. After a previous sale attempt fell through, Everett Ship Repair, a local shipyard and maintenance partner of WSF, purchased the Elwha for $100,000, according to the WSF website.
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They envisioned a new life for the vessel as a floating office and warehouse space. On a crisp January morning, a tugboat from Western Towboat Co., aptly named Mariner, arrived to tow the Elwha to her new home in Everett.
Elwha’s origins go back to 1968
The ferry made her maiden voyage on June 16, 1968, initially serving the Seattle-Bainbridge Island route.
For the first four years of her career, the Elwha faithfully transported passengers and 144 vehicles across the waters, becoming a familiar sight to many. In the fall of 1972, she was replaced by the Walla Walla on the Seattle-Bainbridge Island route and began her role as a maintenance relief vessel. Throughout the 1970s, the Elwha filled in for other Super and Jumbo-class ferries during their maintenance cycles, showcasing her versatility and reliability.
In the 1980s, the Elwha found a more permanent home on the Anacortes-San Juan Islands-Sidney, British Columbia route. This route became her primary assignment, and she served it with dedication until her retirement in 2020.
The ferry’s storied history
The Elwha’s career was not without its challenges. On October 2, 1983, she ran aground in Grindstone Harbor near Orcas Island, carrying 100 passengers. The incident was initially blamed on a steering component failure, which was later found to be caused by Captain Billy Fittro going off-course to give a visitor a view of her waterfront home. The collision caused $250,000 in damage and forced the ferry out of service for several weeks. The rock she struck was later named “Elwha Rock” in her honor.
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In December 1990, a winter storm with hurricane-force winds descended on the Puget Sound region while the Elwha was out of service for routine maintenance, according to historylink.org. The storm ripped her mooring lines, repeatedly slamming the partially adrift ferry into the concrete pier, resulting in millions of dollars in damage.
And so, the Elwha’s story continued, not as a ferry but as a floating office and warehouse, a testament to the ingenuity and resourcefulness of those who saw potential in her sturdy frame. The Elwha, once a symbol of travel and adventure, now stood as a beacon of transformation and new beginnings, proving that there are always new horizons to explore even in retirement.
Bill Kaczaraba is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here. Follow Bill on X, formerly known as Twitter, here and email him here.
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