Washington Island Observer

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Rock Island opening delayed until after May 27

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  • By Dick Purinton –

According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources website for state parks, “Rock Island will remain closed to all visitors through Thursday, May 27 to allow for repairs to the dock including dredging of the dock area. Reservation holders (for campsites) will be contacted directly and those scheduled to arrive on Wednesday, May 26 or Thursday May 27 will be given the opportunity to shorten their stay, to arrive on Friday, May 28.”

That opening date, too, will also be subject to obtaining the necessary state permit to allow for maintenance on the boathouse pier and dredging in the adjacent slip.

The pier’s surface is presently unsafe for the public. As it stands, a portion of the dock surface is covered with stones that washed up and over the dock during late fall storms, also filling the inside corner. One of several large concrete barriers shifted, and it’s buried beneath the stones. Safe mooring for boaters is therefore also a problem, and landings by the passenger ferry Karfi are unsafe due to the rubble, until dredging and dock work are completed. In the meantime, the state requests no boating activity at the Rock Island landing until construction is completed.

Read the full story and others and see more photos in the current edition of the Observer


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Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding to build new ferry for Washington Island fleet

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Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding and Washington Island Ferry Line have signed an agreement to construct a new, year-round passenger/vehicle ferry for service across Wisconsin’s Death’s Door Passage.

The new ferry will be named Madonna, measuring 124-ft. length, 40-ft. beam and 10-ft. 8 in. draft. It will have capacity for as many as 28 vehicles and 150 passengers. The new ferry will be the largest in the Ferry Line fleet to-date. It is scheduled for delivery in late May 2020.

“We are pleased to build what is our third ferry for Washington Island,” says Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding’s Vice President and General Manager Todd Thayse. “All current ferry vessels were built in Sturgeon Bay – two by Peterson Builders and this will be our third here at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding. Our past work is indicative of the quality and attention to detail the Ferry Line and all of our customers have come to expect from our seasoned workforce. This contract will add to the steady work relied upon by the hundreds of women and men we employ from across the region.”

“This opportunity to build yet another ferry vessel in a Door County shipyard is something we’re extremely proud of,” says Washington Island Ferry Line President Hoyt Purinton. “Built locally, this ferry – like our other vessels – will operate exclusively in Door County waters between Washington Island and the tip of the Door Peninsula.”

(See full story in May 23 issue)

Get ready for the 2019 birding festival

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By Chari Rutledge

All eyes will be on the skies during the 2019 Washington Islands Birding Festival. Mark your calendars for May 16-19.
PHOTO SUBMITTED

Plans are underway for the 2019 Washington Islands Birding Festival to be held May 16-19. The festival is under the auspices of the Washington Island Art and Nature Center, and is also sponsored by the Washington Island Ferry Line and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The festival features guided small group birding on Washington, Plum and Rock Islands. Our Islands are located on the Great Lakes flyway. Data collected on the Island shows that this weekend, in particular, usually promises the largest amount of bird activity. The 2018 festival bore that out with 139 species recorded by the 60 birders attending. The birders also enjoyed dinners and programs that gave them a chance to meet and get to know one another.

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