PLATYPUS MARINE, THE full-service shipyard, yacht-repair facility and steel-boat manufacturer on Marine Drive in Port Angeles, has two 87-foot Coast Guard patrol boats stowed in the Commander Building.
Both of the vessels came to Port Angeles from California.
Dorado came from Crescent City and Blackfin came from Santa Barbara.
Both patrol boats will be at Platypus for about six weeks, during which time Platypus’ skilled personnel will perform maintenance on the props and shafts as well as sandblast, prime and paint the vessels.
In addition, the fuel tanks and graywater tanks will be emptied, cleaned and inspected, and their respective lines will be power-flushed and replaced as necessary, as will any related valves.
Home on water
Wave Walker was put in the water this week.
I understand the 70-foot catamaran will soon be put upon a transport ship headed to southeast Asia.
Wave Walker is a project Raymond and Cathy Walker have been working on with the aid of Platypus personnel since mid-2012.
I remember when I first spoke with them, they were hopeful of spending a few months at Platypus to accomplish their goal of outfitting the shell of a boat to suit their needs as a home.
A few months has grown into a few years, and they will soon be on their way to Bangkok, Thailand, with their new home.
Other tenants
Platypus launched Talos on Friday morning, which had been in the Commander Building for about three weeks.
She is a 122-foot aluminum yacht.
In addition to having her bottom cleaned and painted, personnel repaired the port rudder tube and inspected the running gear.
Platypus also has the Puget Sound pilot boat Puget Sound on the hard.
I understand both of her Caterpillar engines will be removed and sent to a certified rebuilding contractor in Seattle to be refurbished.
Helping out
Lee Shore Boats, the aluminum boat builder across from Airport Nursery, built a 24-foot landing-craft-style boat for the Tulalip tribe for use in their fisheries research efforts.
Crozier Craft, the aluminum-boat builder on U.S. Highway 101, is building a 30-foot monohull boat that also will support the research efforts of the Tulalip tribe.
Western Flyer
Western Flyer, the wooden boat made famous in John Steinbeck’s book Sea of Cortez, is being restored in Port Townsend and will be available for a tour Saturday, April 23, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Those who take the tour on that day will receive a guided tour around the boat with a full explanation of the boat’s history, restoration process and role in the future of maritime education.
I first saw the Western Flyer in August 2011 with Capt. Charlie Crane, who works with Armstrong Marine.
Some months earlier, Charlie had heard that the Western Flyer was moored somewhere in Washington state.
After an exhaustive search and much sleuthing, the vessel was finally located in the Swinomish Channel moored to a decrepit dock beneath the Twin Bridges on state Highway 20 in Mount Vernon.
Western Flyer was built by the Western Boat Building Co. of Tacoma as a purse seiner in 1937.
She joined the vast fishing fleet in Monterey, Calif., during the glory days of the sardine industry and plied her trade until the spring of 1940.
When Charlie and I were looking her over — at the time, she was named Gemini — I spoke with her former owner, Ole Knudson.
He told me that the boat had been used in Alaska for roughly 30 years as a salmon tender, but time and technology had eaten away at her economic efficiencies.
Knudson owned the boat for a few years until he sold her in December 2010 to Gerry Kehoe, an entrepreneur with business interests in Salinas, Calif., the hub of Steinbeck Country.
Kehoe’s plan at one time was to install Western Flyer into a Salinas building he owns, build a moat around her and have seating on her decks for restaurant patrons.
Harbor happenings
Last Sunday in Port Angeles Harbor, Tesoro Petroleum bunkered Essie C, a 600-foot petroleum products carrier that is flagged in the Marshall Islands.
On Wednesday, Tesoro refueled Silver Hannah, a 600-foot petroleum products carrier that is flagged in the Marshall Islands.
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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.
