Why Kitsap Transit’s ferry fleet was sailing around Puget Sound Sunday
Kitsap Transit’s ferry fleet sails toward Seattle on Sunday, August 6, 2023.
On Sunday afternoon, Puget Sound residents, recreational boaters and Marine Traffic vessel watchers noticed something obviously out of the ordinary – all of Kitsap Transit’s vessels traveling together in one large formation. Many of you understandably reached out to us on social media to ask: What’s up with that?
We’re here to answer your question! For the first time ever, we gathered all of our vessels together for several hours to capture high-quality photo and video footage of Kitsap Transit’s entire ferry fleet. The project’s goal was to document KT’s ferry fleet and produce new materials for our future communications needs.
Since the fast ferry program began in 2017, Kitsap Transit has slowly built out a fleet of 10 ferries that is, we believe, one of the most unique in the country:
The Carlisle II is a piece of history – an official floating museum and a passenger vessel continuously operated for more than 100 years.
The Waterman is the first hybrid-electric ferry to operate commercial service in the Puget Sound.
The Finest took part in the largest maritime rescue in history, helping to rescue people trapped in Lower Manhattan on 9/11.
The Rich Passage 1’s experimental design paved the way for the ultra-low-wake passenger-only ferries that connect Bremerton and Seattle in under 30 minutes.
Our bow-loading vessels were custom-built to fit Washington State Ferries’ bow-loading docks at Southworth while retaining a top speed close to 40 knots.
The Admiral Pete and the Solano have served two bay areas – San Francisco and Seattle – for decades, helping connect communities across the country.
Organizing the shoot took a substantial amount of time, effort and teamwork. To minimize service impacts to riders, the shoot had to take place on a Sunday. Kitsap Transit canceled afternoon ferry service between Port Orchard and Bremerton (which runs from 12 PM to 4:45 PM on Sundays), but did not otherwise disrupt service.
Due to the complexities of the shoot – including drone operation, weather, communication and more – we looked to professionals for help. The experts at Rapt Visuals and Shifted Cinema assisted Kitsap Transit with the planning process and captured incredible visuals.
Our ferry crews were instrumental in the success of the project. They coordinated the formation through constant radio communication with the video crew, Seattle vessel traffic, Washington State Ferries and recreational boats in the area.
From left to right: Kitsap Transit ferries Finest, Lady Swift, Commander and Rich Passage 1.
Eight of our 10 ferries departed Bremerton in the early afternoon. After a few shots of the local ferries, we traversed Rich Passage slowly to capture aerial footage of the Rich Passage 1 vessels. The entire fleet gathered north of Blake Island to get into a large flying-V formation, led by the Carlisle II. This formation traveled through Elliot Bay – where we were spotted by some enterprising locals – and back around to Blake Island before returning to Bremerton.
A big thanks to Rapt Visuals and Shifted Cinema for their incredible drone work and planning prowess, and to our ferry crews for their professionalism, safety and efficiency. We’re excited to share the results with you in future Kitsap Transit communications!