Orcas island ferry terminal
- Thread starter jungpeter
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I've anchored across the channel in Blind Bay, (Shaw Island) and dinghied over to the small dock just west of the Orcas ferry terminal for pick-up and drop-off. It's a super quick trip & there's generally always room at the dock for a dinghy. Wouldn't count on getting a boat much bigger on it during peak summer months.
Russell Clifton
Guru
Yes there is a good county dock there. Because there is so much boat traffic in the summer months it can be rough on the outside of the dock so is not a place you want to tie up your big boat for very long. But is OK for a tender on the inside of the dock. It is right next to the ferry landing. If your guests are walking on the ferry you can meet them as they are walking off the boat. If they are driving, there is a park and ride close by. Also, there is a grocery store at the top of the dock.
Yes, we have picked up guests on the dock at Orcas Village a couple of times. It’s not very big, and in years past a local whale watch boat took up a big chunk of the outside.
Once we had to drop the dinghy and go to the inside of the dock to pick up guests, as the outside was already full. The other time we showed up and got on the outside just as another boat came in to do the same thing, and they had to go the dinghy ferry route.
If you need to ferry guests to or from shore with a dinghy, we found it easiest to just keep the boat a hundred yards off and motor around at idle. Anchoring in that immediate vicinity is possible (there’s a mooring field to the east of the ferry terminal), but there is oftentimes a lot of traffic near the dock.
Once we had to drop the dinghy and go to the inside of the dock to pick up guests, as the outside was already full. The other time we showed up and got on the outside just as another boat came in to do the same thing, and they had to go the dinghy ferry route.
If you need to ferry guests to or from shore with a dinghy, we found it easiest to just keep the boat a hundred yards off and motor around at idle. Anchoring in that immediate vicinity is possible (there’s a mooring field to the east of the ferry terminal), but there is oftentimes a lot of traffic near the dock.
Russell Clifton
Guru
The whale watching boat has been gone for a second year now.
JSK55
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You also want to be aware of the tide height. I've dropped people off at lower tides and it'll get fairly shallow, 3-5ft as I remember.
JSK55
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- Dec 2, 2020
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- Wellcraft/Riviera 400 Coastal
Should also clarify, that was bringing the big boat into the dock, not the dinghy.
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