Hey man. Follow your ferry home!

BC Ferries newest acquisition the Sonia is almost in the home stretch of its journey to its new land of opportunity.

Presently heading towards the Panama Canal the vessel is on schedule towards its anticipated arrival in Victoria of December 18-20. As she pulls in closer to Victoria the first order of the day will be a new name for the vessel, a name which is a closely guarded secret, but won’t have the ever popular “Queen of” at the start. BC Ferries is apparently phasing out the Queen and providing a new theme for the northern based ships.

For the moment, North coast residents can follow the progress of the soon to be ex-Sonia on line as she travels though the Panama Canal, they suggest viewing the link , from 3 pm tomorrow (Monday) for the next two days as the Sonia traverses the continental locks on her way to the Pacific Ocean.

The full saga of the voyage can be found below from the Victoria Times-Colonist.


THE NEW PRIDE OF B. C. FERRIES
$100-million acquisition that will replace the sunken Queen of the North is a ship 'people are going to love'

Judith Lavoie
The Victoria Times-Colonist
Sunday, December 3, 2006

One of the most closely guarded secrets at B.C. Ferries is the short-list of names for the new ship, sailing halfway round the world to its home in Victoria.

Freshly decked out in B.C. Ferries colours, with systems newly serviced and scrutinized, the vessel, now known as the MV Sonia, has travelled from Piraeus, Greece, to the Canary Islands and is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, heading for the Panama Canal.

The Sonia is due to arrive in Victoria between Dec. 18 and 20, depending on weather. Days before it arrives, the big name announcement will be made.

"It has been an internal process," said communications vice-president Mark Stefanson, steadfastly refusing to give hints.

"We are phasing out the Queen [names] and we are looking at a theme for the three [new] northern vessels," he said.

The final decision will be made by B.C. Ferries board of directors.

The Sonia will replace the Queen of the North, which sank in March after hitting a rock near Gil Island. There have been suggestions the name should honour the two passengers who are missing and presumed drowned, or Hartley Bay, the village where rescuers jumped into small boats in the middle of the night to help ferry passengers.

However, more likely themes are wildlife or aboriginal names.

Capt. Trafford Taylor, master mariner and B.C. Ferries executive vice-president in charge of new vessel construction, is waiting impatiently to show off B.C. Ferries' $100-million investment to British Columbians.

"People are going to love this ship for a whole bunch of reasons," said Taylor, who sailed from Piraeus to the Canary Islands on the Sonia.

Taylor also sailed the vessel from Barcelona -- where it was on contract for the run between Barcelona and the island of Ibiza -- to Piraeus.

"I am delighted with this ship. Honest to goodness, I didn't think we would be able to get a ship this modern [for the budget]," he said.

The Sonia will go into a $9-million refit at Victoria Shipyards before going into service on the northern routes in April. It was built in 2004, holds 600 passengers, 101 vehicles and has 70 cabins.

The Queen of the North was built in 1969, carried 650 passengers and 115 vehicles and had 115 cabins.

The Sonia has three decks, allowing people to admire the scenery around the Queen Charlotte Islands, Prince Rupert and Port Hardy and the public areas are open and bright, Taylor said.

The cabins are comfortable and there are four large VIP cabins, which are perfect for honeymooners, he said.

The ship is exceptionally stable, making it ideal for service in Hecate Strait "and the bridge is a delight in terms of visibility," he said.

"I don't know how anyone can criticize this ship, I really don't," Taylor said.

"But, I suppose there are always going to be critics of B.C. Ferries," he said.

In 2005, the Sonia was on the Trinidad-Tobago run, where it was the target of criticism.

The newspaper, Trinidad and Tobago's Newsday, documented safety deficiencies and breakdowns and reported that, while on an Italian run, the Sonia's engine exploded. Also, the keel was laid in 2001 and then left on bedding in the shipyard for a lengthy period, it said.

Taylor said any problems have been addressed and Transport Canada inspectors have already scrutinized the vessel from stem to stern.

Leaving the keel in a Greek shipyard until work resumed was not a problem because of the good weather in Greece, he said.

Shortly after the ship was built, "there was a catastrophic main engine failure," Taylor said.

However, it was caused by a defective engine, which was immediately replaced by the manufacturer, he said.

Kevin Stapleton, B.C. Ferries engineer, said maintenance on the ship has been spotty during the time it has been contracted out, but the shipyard in Piraeus has given her the TLC it needed.

The 26 B.C. Ferries crew members who are sailing the Sonia to its new home have had extensive training on the new equipment, including an exam and mandatory sign-off by the crew member and supervisor.

"We are raising the bar in terms of training," Taylor said. The crew are working hard during the lengthy trip back to Victoria, but it is a great opportunity, he said.

"We're getting T-shirts made saying 'See The World. Join B.C. Ferries.'"

To track the Sonia's progress, go to the B.C. Ferries website at www.bcferries.com.
It will arrive at the Panama Canal about 3 p.m. tomorrow and will then have to wait two days before passing through the locks.

To watch it in the canal click on: http://www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html

jlavoie@tc.canwest.com

© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2006