The K-class

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

(often referred to as "K-barges" due to their hull type and size) are a group of similarly designed ferries operated by both

BC Ferries British Columbia Ferry Services Inc., operating as BC Ferries (BCF), is a former provincial Crown corporation, now operating as an independently managed, publicly owned Canadian company. BC Ferries provides all major passenger and vehicle ferr ...

and

TransLink Translink (or TransLink) may refer to: * TransLink (British Columbia), the public transport operator in Vancouver, Canada * Translink (Northern Ireland) Translink is the brand name of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (NITHCo), a ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. With the exception of MV ''Kuper'', all of the listed K-class vessels were built for service in British Columbia's Ministry of Highways salt water inter-island ferry fleet which was absorbed by

in 1985.

BC Ferries

MV ''Klitsa''

(formerly MV ''Denman Queen'')
Built: 1972,

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

Length: 47.46 m (155'8")
Power: 600 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 352.58
Car Capacity: 26
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 195
Route: Brentwood Bay–Mill Bay
''Klitsa'' has been in BC Ferries maintenance facility, called Deas Dock, quite often during past years. It currently services the Brentwood Bay – Mill Bay route replacing the MV Mill Bay which went up for sale on February 24, 2011. Her name comes from a mountain near

Sproat Lake Sproat Lake is a lake on central Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was known as Kleecoot, meaning "wide open" by local indigenous people. Roughly cross-shaped with four arms, it is over 25 kilometres in length, and has 90.8 kilome ...

MV ''Kahloke''

Built: 1973,

Length: 54.75 m (179'6")
Power: 640 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 466
Car Capacity: 30
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 200
Route: Denman Island–Hornby Island
''Kahloke'' sometimes aided the Albion Ferries, owned by

when one was out of service. This was not the first ferry named ''Kahloke'' to operate on the BC coast. The 1903 built served as ''Kahloke'' from 1952 to 1964 and was then renamed ''Langdale Queen''. Her name comes from the Chinook Jargon for swan.

MV ''Kwuna''

Built: 1975,

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. The ...

Length: 71.64 m (235'4")
Power: 730 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 347.49
Car Capacity: 26
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 154
Route: Skidegate–Alliford Bay
''Kwuna'' is different from the other K-class vessels. It has loading ramps attached to the vessel, not to land like the others. It docks at concrete boat-launch-like ramps, then lowers the vehicle ramp down to the ground. Her name means 'point' or 'headland' in Haida and refers to a geographic feature nearby. BC Ferry MV Kuper 02

MV ''Kuper''

(formerly MV ''John Atlantic Burr'')
Built: 1985, Bullfrog, Utah
Rebuilt: 2006,

Length: 52.21 m (171'3.5")
Power: 2 x 475 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 648
Car Capacity: 32
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 269
Route:

Chemainus Chemainus is a community within the municipality of North Cowichan in the Chemainus Valley on the east coast of southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Founded as an unincorporated logging town in 1858, Chemainus is now famou ...

–

Thetis Island Thetis Island (population: 379) is an island and unincorporated community off the coast of British Columbia, Canada, lying between Vancouver Island, which is to the west across Stuart Channel, and the west from the north tip of Galiano Island ...

–

Penelakut Island Penelakut Island, formerly known as Kuper Island and renamed in 2010 in honour of the Penelakut First Nation people, is located in the southern Gulf Islands between Vancouver Island and the mainland Pacific coast of British Columbia, Canada. ...

''Kuper'' is the newest of the K-barges and started service in 2006. The former MV ''John Atlantic Burr'' operated on

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

Lake Powell Lake Powell is an artificial reservoir on the Colorado River in Utah and Arizona, United States. It is a major vacation destination visited by approximately two million people every year. It is the second largest artificial reservoir by maximum ...

as of early September 2005. The following winter, the vessel was cut into four sections, transported by truck to

, and reassembled as MV ''Kuper'', with significant modification and enlargement. The ship cost 200,000 and $4.5 million to refit and enlarge, which was considered quite a savings compared to the cost of building a new vessel which was estimated at $20 million. She shares her name with the former name of

TransLink

MV ''Kulleet''

Built: 1972,

Length: 47.46 m (155'8")
Power: 650 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 355.04
Car Capacity: 26
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 150
Route: Albion–Fort Langley (Defunct)

MV ''Klatawa''

Built: 1972,

Length: 47.46 m (155'8")
Power: 650 hp
Service Speed: 10 knots
Gross Tonnage: 347.58
Car Capacity: 26
Passenger & Crew Capacity: 150
Route: Albion–Fort Langley (Defunct) Both ''Kulleet'' and ''Klatawa'' were owned and operated by Metro Vancouver's Transportation Authority,

, and they ran the Albion–Fort Langley route on the Fraser River, between the Maple Ridge suburb of Albion south to McMillan Island in

Fort Langley Fort Langley is a village community in Township of Langley, British Columbia, Canada. It has a population of approximately 3,400 people. It is the home of Fort Langley National Historic Site, a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company ...

. On July 31, 2009, the Albion Ferry was shut down after the opening of the

Golden Ears Bridge The Golden Ears Bridge is a six-lane extradosed bridge in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia. It spans the Fraser River, connecting Langley on the south side with Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge on the north side. The bridge opened to traffic on Ju ...

. The ferry had connected Maple Ridge and Langley via the Fraser River since 1957. ''Kulleet'' and ''Klatawa'' had been put into service in the 1980s. The two Albion ferries were sold for $400,000 – less than half of the original asking price of $1.1 million. TransLink said in a news release on December 30, 2011, that MV ''Kulleet'' and MV ''Klatawa'' have been bought by Tidal Towing, a B.C.-based company. Both ships have since been bought and renamed by Diversified Marine of

Halfmoon Bay Half Moon Bay is a city in San Mateo County, California Half Moon Bay may also refer to: Australia * Halfmoon Bay (Tasmania), a bay in Tasmania, near * Half Moon Bay (Victoria), a bay in Black Rock, Victoria In Canada * Half Moon Bay (Nunavut ...

. ''Klatawa has been renamed to ''Marena Mac'' and ''Kulleet to ''Nelson Mac''. Both ships' names are of native origin, with Klatawa being the verb 'to go' in Chinook Jargon and Kulleet referring to Kulleet Bay, which literally means 'Bay Bay' as Kulleet means 'bay' Island Halkomelem.

References

External links

*
BC Ferries Profiles
{{BC Ferry Classes Ferry classes