THE PORT OF Port Angeles’ wash-down facility that was constructed last year was recently used for the first time.
The wash-down facility is an 18,500-square-foot concrete pad equipped to wash down large yachts, commercial vessels and military vessels that are hauled out of the water via a travel lift on the port’s travel lift dock.
The wash-down facility will accommodate vessels up to 164 feet in length. An on-site wastewater treatment facility will be constructed this year.
In the interim, the wastewater from the wash-down facility will be trucked to the port’s wastewater facility located in the Port Angeles Boat Yard.
Platypus Marine recently used the wash-down pad for the first time when they hauled out Deeahks, a wooden commercial fishing vessel that hails from Neah Bay.
Platypus also used the pad to clean the U.S. Navy Barge YC 1592, which is 110 feet long with a 32-foot beam. The vessel is a non-self-propelled steel barge designed to transport cargo in rivers, harbors or other protected waters. It is currently ensconced in a building at their facility, being sandblasted prepatory to receiving a fresh coat of paint.
Other vessels
Cable Innovator moored to the Port of Port Angeles’ Terminal one North on March 1 and will be there until about March 31.
The vessel is flagged in the United Kingdom and is permanently stationed in Victoria. The vessel’s owners have a contract with a number of companies to maintain their fiber optic cables that stretch from the West Coast to Asia along the ocean floor. When there is an issue with a cable the vessel is required to respond immediately.
Because the vessel is manned by a predominantly British crew, the ship is required to periodically leave its berth in Victoria and head out to sea for a brief period of time to comply with Canada’s immigration laws.
Ahoy, sailor
Friday was the last day that Dan Schmid set the alarm clock to go to work.
Many people know Schmid as the affable gentleman who has been managing the Port Angeles Boat Yard since 1987.
He was hired in 1984 by the then-harbormaster Chuck Faires, who told me that “Dan could always be depended upon to do a fine job.” There will be a retirement party for Dan on Saturday at Castaways Restaurant on Marine Drive.
Friday, Tesoro Petroleum provided bunkers to VSC Poseidon, a 738-foot bulk cargo ship that is flagged in Liberia.
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David G. Sellars is a Port Angeles resident and former Navy boatswain’s mate who enjoys boats and strolling the area’s waterfronts and boat yards.
Items and questions involving boating, marina and industrial activities and the North Olympic Peninsula waterfronts are always welcome. News announcements about boating groups, including yacht clubs and squadrons, are welcome as well.
Email dgsellars@hotmail.com or phone him at 360-808-3202.