SV Panopevideo
Halibut Schooners
25 October 2023 · 4 min · 5K views · Port Townsend
What this video covers
Five traditional halibut schooners hauled out at the Port Townsend shipyard in fall 2023 for off-season maintenance, representing a rare concentration of a nearly vanished working fleet.0:30 Roughly 150 of these vessels were built in the greater Seattle area from the 1910s through the 1920s; only about a dozen survive today.0:23 All five remain commercially active, fishing the North Pacific for halibut and black cod using a long-lining technique — an unusual case of century-old industrial vessels still earning their keep.0:38 The schooner Vansi, built in 1913, is among the survivors.0:53 The schooner Thor is not: she was brought to Port Townsend to be broken up after her decks rotted and her power plant needed overhaul, though her primary hull timbers showed no visible rot and the hull stayed intact when she was toppled.1:36 Thor's engine was a 1271 Detroit, not her original.2:37 The boats were built primarily of old-growth Douglas fir, range from roughly 65 to 90 feet, and the larger hulls carry over 100,000 pounds of fish.3:46 Though historical photos show some sail, they were designed from the outset for mechanical propulsion.2:28
More from SV Panope
From SV Panope — see the channel’s boat, crew, and every analysed video.
The Sailing Directory Newsletter
One email with the fleet's best finds — the moments, boats, and stories worth your watch time. Enter your own address to get your own copy.