Goodbye old faithful: Washington State Ferries retires ‘Hyak’ after 52 years of service

Goodbye old faithful, Washington State Ferries retires `Hyak` after 52 years of service

Washington State Ferries says the vessel was just getting too old, and they didnt have the money in the budget to keep running a vintage vehicle.

SEATTLE -- After 52 years of faithful service, the ferry “Hyak” will have its final sailing Sunday on the Seattle to Bremerton route.

Washington State Ferries says the vessel was just getting too old, and they didn’t have the money in the budget to keep running a vintage vehicle.

"Everything you see on this vessel is the most vintage thing we have in the state ferry fleet," said Ian Sterling with WSF. "It's never been upgraded. And the Hyak is going to be retired early partly because of that reason and partly because it wasn't funded this last legislative session."

Hyak was the first of the state's nicknamed “super ferries," and it was laid down in 1966 in San Diego. Hyak sailed all the way up the coast to work here in Seattle.

The name Hyak is a Chinook word meaning "fast."