Official Number: D627507  Call Sign: WYQ9302   Length: 328'  Beam: 78' 8''   Draft: 16' 6''     Auto Deck Clearance: 16' Horsepower: 5,000 Speed in Knots: 16 Max Passengers: 1200   Max Vehicles: 124 City Built: Seattle    Year Built/Re-built: 1980 / 1990 Name Translation: Tribe of "shoal people" who lived along the shallow portion of the Yakima River near Ellensburg. A county and town are also named after the tribe. Drawing courtesy of Johan Iversen.

The first storms of October had rolled through when this photo was taken of the Kittitas  in 2003.  Flooding had colored the waters between Mukilteo and Clinton a murkey blue.  Photo by the author.

Second out of the yard at Marine Power and Equipment, the Kittitas arrived with little fanfare.  She would, however, prove to be the most stable of the six, with little of the problems exhibited so spectacularly with her sister, Cathlamet.      In her early career the Kittitas wandered a bit.  First sent to work on Hood Canal, she filled in on various routes, working the San Juan Islands in the summer.  It wasn't long though before she was assigned to the Mukilteo-Clinton route, where she remains to this day, leaving only for maintenance periods.      The next to last Issaquah Class to have her interior refurbished, the ferry was long overdue for an upgrade when the photo was taken at left.  The "rainbow" color of the Kit was yellow--a color that does not age particularly well.      After having her interior completely redone the Kittitas took her place back on the Mukilteo-Clinton run where she continues to work next to her sister  Cathlamet.

The crews on the Clinton-Mukilteo run did their level best to keep the interiors of the Kittitas and Cathlamet clean and the floors polished.  Given what they had to work with, they did a very admirable job.  Nothing, however, could do much to make the horrible design of the cabin look better.  Here you can see the Kittitas's original "rainbow" color--mustard yellow.  Photo by the author.

The first couple of years the Kittitas wandered a bit, but almost at once settled in to working at Mukilteo.  There are a few rare postcards of her working the San Juan Islands, however, that usually command high prices on eBay.  Author's collection.

The darker, more muted tones of the Kittitas's cabin are not only easier to keep clean, but are far more pleasing to the eye.  Mixed in with the deep blues and sea greens, the Kittitas ended up with one of the prettier cabin refurbishments.   Photo courtesy of Khris LaPlante.

Back Kitsap The Current Fleet Home

The darker colors are evident in the main gallery area of the passenger cabin of the Kittitas.  Having spent many hours in the type of seat pictured, the author can attest to their comfort over the ones they replaced.   Photo courtesy of Khris LaPlante.