The Alaska Marine Highway System is adding a sailing to Bellingham, Washington, on May 23 to provide transportation for a waitlist of passengers. The M/V Matanuska and its crew will make the run to pick up 260 passengers, many with accompanying vehicles.
AMHS experiences an increase in demand for the Bellingham sailings in spring as people traveling to Alaska return home, report to jobs, visit family, or move their households. The May 23rd sailing is expected to fill up quickly as there is no other mainline space available until late July on the Matanuska, and late August on the Kennicott.
When the summer schedule was developed, placeholders were included in each month for a planned resumption of Prince Rupert B.C. service. While AMHS scheduled trips from June through September, the May placeholder was left unscheduled to allow additional time to finish up diplomatic agreements required to visit the international port.
As a result of the schedule change, some passengers in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Kake and Juneau will be rescheduled. The LeConte will cover the Matanuska’s May 23 sailing to Sitka.
AMHS is expecting a strong summer travel season as the economy returns to normal and people begin traveling again. AMHS Marketing experts are forecasting RV traffic will increase significantly this summer. High fuel prices may also increase ridership on the Marine Highway.
For more information, visit www.ferryalaska.com.