April 10 Report
The MV Driftwood has just come out of dry dock after a 2-week stay at Allied Shipyards in North Vancouver. Transport Canada requires that all passenger vessels come out of the water every 4 years for inspection. The shipyard removes the rudder and stock, the propeller and tail shaft and all of the through-hull valves for service and inspection. The shaft is checked on a lathe for true, the bearings are serviced and everything is cleaned and lubricated. The hull itself gets a thorough examination by a shipwright to replace traditional oakum caulking between the planks. They service and replace protective gumwood cover boards and apply a special anti-fouling paint to the entire underwater hull to prevent growth of algae and barnacles.
Wooden vessels of this size are an increasingly rare sight on the coast and the Driftwood attracted a fair bit of attention while in dry dock. Thankfully back in 1944 she was well built to Canadian Navy standards at Star Shipyards in New Westminster. The hull is sound and tight and is an impressive sight from below. The hull above the waterline was scraped, filled, sanded and painted – a huge job that’s really only feasible during a haul out.
Photo gallery of the Driftwood in dry dock
With only 5 weeks until she sets sail for Haida Gwaii and another season at QCL, we’re sprucing up the interior and getting her all set up to host our guests on the fishing grounds. Captain Ryan, Trevor, Sparky and crew are looking forward to welcoming you aboard!
2 comments
Doug Fielding
January 18, 2024 at 4:47 pm
My father used to own this in the ’60s. It was called the Haro, sister ship I think of the Haro Straits. I have a couple of stories. One was to do with an eagle that hitched a ride on a tow of logs to Vancouver. It would fly up to the galley door for meals.
Duane Foerter
January 18, 2024 at 5:44 pm
Thanks for the note Doug! She was built as a tug in 1941 in California for the US Army. After retirement from the army she was eventually renamed the Haro and served as a working tug in the Vancouver area for many years. She was eventually purchased by QCL founder Bob Murphy, who converted her for hospitality use in the 1980’s under the name Driftwood. When he opened the Queen Charlotte Lodge in 1991, the Driftwood began her next life as a key element of the lodge hospitality program.
After the 2011 season it was decided to sell the original MV Driftwood and replace her with another wooden ship, called MV Songhee, which was built in 1944 in New Westminster for the RCAF. After extensive renovations the Songhee (renamed Driftwood) sailed to Naden Harbour for the 2012 season to continue its significant role in the QCL hospitality and fishing programs.
You’ll be happy to know that the original Driftwood (renamed Songhee) is now a popular fixture at the Harbour Quay in Port Alberni, operating as the Swept Away Inn.