View source for MV Hiyu

{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2023}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=MV Hiyu 03.jpg
|Ship caption= MV ''Hiyu'' as a party boat, 2018
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship name''Hiyu''
|Ship owner=[[WSDOT]]
|Ship operator=[[Washington State Ferries]]
|Ship registry=[[Seattle]], Washington, US
|Ship route=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[The Greenbrier Companies|Gunderson Brothers]], [[Portland, Oregon]]
|Ship original cost=$750,000 (1967)
|Ship yard number=
|Ship way number=
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=
|Ship completed=1967
|Ship christened=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship maiden voyage=
|Ship in service=mid 1967
|Ship out of service=May 17, 2016
|Ship identification=*{{IMO Number|8645301}}
*{{MMSI Number|366772770}}
*[[Maritime call sign|Callsign]]: WX9133<ref name="evergreenfleet">[http://www.evergreenfleet.com/hiyu.html The M/V ''Hiyu''], evergreenfleet.com</ref>
*Official Number: 508159
|Ship fate=
|Ship status=Retired
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class=''Hiyu''-class auto/passenger ferry
|Ship tonnage=
|Ship displacement=
|Ship length={{convert|162|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|63|ft|1|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship height=
|Ship draught=
|Ship draft={{convert|11|ft|3|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth=
|Ship decks=
|Ship deck clearance={{convert|15|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship ramps=
|Ship ice class=
|Ship sail plan=
|Ship power=Total 860 hp from 2 diesel engines
|Ship propulsion=
|Ship speed={{convert|10|kn|km/h|0|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship capacity=*200 passengers
*34 vehicles (max 12 commercial)<ref name="vessel info">[http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/vesselwatch/VesselDetail.aspx?vessel_id=12 Vessel information - M/V Hiyu], WSF, WSDOT</ref>
|Ship crew=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''MV ''Hiyu''''' was a ferry boat operated by [[Washington State Ferries]]. Originally built in 1967 to replace an earlier ferry, it was used on the [[Point Defiance–Tahlequah ferry|Point Defiance–Tahlequah route]] during its early years. Upon its retirement in 2016, it was the smallest ferry in the fleet, with a capacity of 34 cars and 200 passengers, and a length of {{convert|162|ft|m}}.<ref name=evergreenfleet />

==History==

The ''Hiyu'' was originally built in 1967 by Gunderson Brothers in [[Portland, Oregon]] to replace the aging wooden ferry {{MV|Skansonia}} on the [[Point Defiance–Tahlequah ferry]], which had a capacity of 32 cars at the time and a clearance of {{convert|11|ft|m}} on her car deck. The ''Hiyu'' was slightly bigger and faster than her predecessor, but most importantly, she had a higher clearance in her two center lanes, allowing trucks to reach Vashon Island without having to drive to [[Fauntleroy, Seattle|Fauntleroy]].<ref name="Hiyu history" />

The ''Hiyu'' worked the short route between [[Vashon Island]] and [[Port of Tacoma|Tacoma]] until the late-1980s. By then, she could no longer handle the increased traffic on the route and was replaced with the 55-car {{MV|Olympic}}.<ref name="Hiyu history">{{cite web|title=The Mighty ''Hiyu''|url=http://www.evergreenfleet.com/hiyu-history.html|work=EvergreenFleet.com|accessdate=November 29, 2013}}</ref><ref name="MV Olympic">{{cite web|title=The M/V OLYMPIC|url=http://www.evergreenfleet.com/olympic.html|work=EvergreenFleet.com|accessdate=December 4, 2013}}</ref>

Washington State Ferries reassigned her to the [[San Juan Islands]], where she served as the inter-island boat with stops on [[San Juan Island]], [[Orcas Island]], [[Shaw Island]], and [[Lopez Island]]. By the late 1990s, the ''Hiyu''{{'}}s small size became an issue once again on the San Juan inter-island route, and she was replaced by a larger vessel, the {{MV|Nisqually}}.<ref name="Hiyu history" />

She was mothballed for over 10 years at Washington State Ferries' maintenance facility in [[Winslow, Washington|Eagle Harbor]]. During that period, she was mainly used as a WSF training vessel. She was also used for filming some movies and television commercials, including a commercial for the [[Seattle Seahawks]] football team in 1999. Occasionally, she was contracted out for service on the [[Steilacoom-Anderson Island ferry]] route when the {{MV|Christine Anderson}} needed emergency repairs.<ref name="Hiyu history" />

During this time, WSF considered selling this ferry. The [[Washington State Department of Corrections]] was interested in using her for service to their prison on [[McNeil Island]]. There were also plans to sell her to [[Whatcom County]] for them to use at [[Lummi Island]] or for ferry service between [[Blaine, Washington|Blaine]] and [[Point Roberts, Washington|Point Roberts]]. In the end, nothing came of the plans to sell the ''Hiyu''.<ref name="Hiyu history" />

In June 2007, Washington State Ferries put the ''Hiyu'' back in service once again between Point Defiance and Tahlequah when the {{MV|Rhododendron}} encountered rudder problems. At the time, ''Hiyu'' was the only other ferry available to cover for the ''Rhody''.<ref name=evergreenfleet />

On November 20, 2007, the four [[Steel Electric-class ferry|Steel Electric-class ferries]] were removed from service, leaving ''Hiyu'' as the only back-up ferry in the fleet. She continued to serve as a back-up ferry, but couldn't provide enough capacity on any of WSF's routes. She also couldn't be made [[Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990|ADA]]-accessible. In the governor's proposed budget for 2009, the ''Hiyu'' was slated to be permanently assigned to the Point Defiance-Tahlequah route to allow for the ''Rhododendron''{{'}}s retirement. The legislature did not approve this proposal, so the ''Rhododendron'' remained in service until 2012, when the 64-car {{MV|Chetzemoka}} replaced her.<ref name=evergreenfleet />

The Hiyu proved useful in December 2012 when three ferries, the [[MV Walla Walla|''Walla Walla'']], [[MV Sealth|''Sealth'']] and [[MV Klahowya|''Klahowya'']], were taken out of service and the ''Hiyu'' was put on the Vashon-Southworth-Fauntleroy run for six days while repairs were made.

On November 25, 2013, the local TV station [[KING-TV|KING 5]] reported that, since January 2012, WSF had spent $710,000 keeping engineers on the boat almost every day, but that it was only in service for eight days during that time. The head of WSF, David Moseley, said that the expense was minimal, amounting to less than one percent of the total cost of labor for engineers.<ref name="KING 5 investigation">{{cite news|last=Frame|first=Susannah|title=Employees paid to babysit rarely used ferry|url=http://www.king5.com/news/investigators/WSF-MV-Hiyu-ferry-costs-WSDOT-233396161.html|accessdate=December 4, 2013|newspaper=KING 5|date=November 25, 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131201055635/http://www.king5.com/news/investigators/WSF-MV-Hiyu-ferry-costs-WSDOT-233396161.html|archivedate=December 1, 2013}}</ref> At the time, WSF was building two new 144-car [[Olympic-class ferry|Olympic-class ferries]] which entered service in 2014 and 2015. One of them was to allow WSF to have a more adequate backup ferry.<ref name="Olympic class ferries">{{cite web|last=Goldenberg|first=Jay|title=Olympic Class (144-car) Ferries|url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/ferries/144carferries/|work=WSDOT|publisher=Washington State Ferries|accessdate=December 4, 2013}}</ref>

After a year without service, the ''Hiyu'' was put back to work in January 2014 on the San Juan Interisland route to cover for the [[MV Evergreen State|''Evergreen State'']], which had broken down. The ''Hiyu'' was in service during two days until the regular ferry was repaired.<ref name="moseleyhiyualert">[http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/105768E1-30AA-4CC4-9FE2-AF7DD36B3258/96396/MoseleyWeeklyUpdate_012414.pdf David Moseley's Jan 24, 2014 weekly update] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202150423/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/105768E1-30AA-4CC4-9FE2-AF7DD36B3258/96396/MoseleyWeeklyUpdate_012414.pdf |date=February 2, 2014 }}, wsdot.wa.gov</ref> On July 23, 2015, the ''Hiyu'' was put in service for the last time, sailing on the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route, which was otherwise running on a 2-boat schedule due to vessel moves elsewhere in the WSF system, which were made to accommodate emergency repairs to the MV ''Puyallup'' and MV ''Elwha'' while maintaining reasonable service throughout the WSF system.<ref name="Hiyu retired_Kitsap Sun" /> On May 17, 2016, WSDOT announced that the ''Hiyu'' had been officially retired and that it would soon be put up for sale.<ref name="Hiyu retired_Kitsap Sun">{{cite news|last1=Friedrich|first1=Ed|title=Ferry system ready to say bye-bye to Hiyu|url=http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/local/ferry-system-ready-to-say-bye-bye-to-hiyu-3310781b-747a-786a-e053-0100007f64f5--379875771.html|accessdate=June 2, 2016|work=Kitsap Sun|date=May 17, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Hiyu retired press release">{{cite web|last1=Bender|first1=Broch|title=Fleet's smallest &ndash; and cutest &ndash; ferry to be retired and sold|url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2016/05/17_WSF.htm|website=WSDOT|accessdate=June 2, 2016|date=May 17, 2016}}</ref> In October 2016, the state government's surplus operations ran an auction for ''Hiyu'', ending with no sale.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/auction/view?auc=1699398|title=Public Surplus: Login}}</ref> A second auction for the vessel later in the year also failed to find a buyer,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.govdeals.com/index.cfm?fa=Main.Item&itemid=29&acctid=8445|title=1967 150 Ft. CAR/PASSENGER FERRY M/V HIYU - GovDeals.com|website=www.govdeals.com|access-date=December 14, 2016}}</ref> but in February 2017 the state reached an agreement to sell ''Hiyu'' to a private buyer who would use her as a floating entertainment venue on [[Lake Union]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.marinelink.com/news/retired-ferry-lease421757 | title=Retired Ferry Gets a New Lease on Life | publisher=Marine Link | date=February 7, 2017 | accessdate=February 8, 2017}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

{{WSF Ferry Classes}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hiyu, MV}}
[[Category:Washington State Ferries vessels]]
[[Category:1967 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Portland, Oregon]]