There’s a Barracuda on the loose on the Port Angeles waterfront.
Platypus Marine, the full-service shipyard, yacht-repair facility and steel-boat manufacturer on Marine Drive, on Friday hauled out Barracuda, one of two 87-foot patrol boats attached to Coast Guard Group/Air Station Humboldt Bay near Eureka, Calif.
She will be out of service 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 vessel.
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.
I understand that every four years, all 87-foot patrol boats in the Coast Guard’s fleet — the Adelie, Wahoo and Swordfish in Port Angeles and Osprey in Port Townsend among them — are taken out of service to deal with similar maintenance items to ensure that the vessels remain in an optimal condition of readiness at all times.
Interesting factoid: Humboldt Bay’s Barracuda, launched in 1998, was the first commissioned of the 87-foot Marine Protector class of patrol boats that now total 74 throughout the Coast Guard fleet.
More at Platypus
Platypus last week also hauled out a SWATH vessel from the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command at Keyport.
SWATH is an acronym for Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull.
Like a catamaran, a SWATH has two hulls connected by a cross-deck well above the waterline.
But the similarity ends there.
In cross-section, the hulls are cylindrical — like submerged torpedoes — to bore through the water with minimum resistance.
Connecting the hulls to the cross-deck is a pair of narrow vertical struts that produce a small waterplane area, minimizing the heave and pitch forces that result from waves acting on the hull.
By positioning the buoyant volume of the hull beneath the surface, the SWATH delivers an inherently smooth ride and superior efficiency.
I understand technicians will be servicing the stabilizers, replacing valves as needed and applying anti-fouling paint from the waterline down.
In keeping, I’m happy to report an item that came across the PDN’s news services out of Washington, D.C.:
Platypus Marine Inc.won a federal contract extension valued up to $38,970 from the Keyport Naval Sea Systems Command for dry-dock repair services.
Shrimper out of water
Among civilian vessels, Platypus has June Rose sitting on the hard.
She is a 68-foot wooden shrimper that was built by Desco Marine in St. Augustine, Fla., in 1979.
June Rose has been hoisted to be surveyed for planking and caulking needs.
Alaska-bound soon
I spoke with Chad Crozier of Crozier Craft, the aluminum-boat manufacturer on U.S. Highway 101 west of Port Angeles.
He and his crew recently completed building a 26-foot mono hull with a T-top that will soon be put aboard an Alaska Marine Lines barge and shipped to Alaska, where the owner will use her as a charter boat at Prince of Wales Island in the southeast part of the 49th state.
Boating confidence
Boating season is just around the proverbial corner, and the Port Angeles Yacht Club is offering a special boating course, “Confidence in Boating,” to be taught by the women of the Coast Guard Auxiliary on
April 18 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The location is the Port Angeles Yacht Club at 1305 Marine Drive.
This course is designed for women who are generally interested in boating, who may be married to a boater and want to know more than just how to provide lunch or who go out as passengers on other people’s boats.
The instructors will be women from flotillas of the Coast Guard Auxiliary who have the enthusiasm and experience with boating.
Through discussion and hands-on training, women will be shown how to use the radio to call for help, stop the boat, turn the vessel around and what to do if someone falls overboard.
The course fee is $40, which includes lunch, refreshments and all course material.
To register, send an email to signup@payc.org or call 360-797-1624 if you have any questions.
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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. Email dgsellars@hotmail.com or phone him at 360-808-3202.
