All aboard the Tazlina.
The public will be able to get its first look at the Alaska Marine Highway System’s newest ferry this weekend. AMHS announced Wednesday that it’s hosting an open house and tour of the ferry at the Auke Bay Ferry Terminal on Sunday from 3-5 p.m., according to a press release. The vessel will be open to the public and will remain docked throughout the event.
The 280-foot-long Alaska Class ferry was christened in Ketchikan on Aug. 11 and is scheduled to begin passenger service on May 7. It will operate as a day boat in Lynn Canal between Juneau, Haines and Skagway.
It’s named after the Tazlina Glacier located 43 miles north of Valdez, and was named by Melea Voran, who won a vessel-naming essay contest as a seventh grader in the Port Alsworth Tanalian School.
The vessel was designed by Elliott Bay Design Group of Seattle, Washington and constructed at Vigor Shipyard in Ketchikan. The Tazlina is the first AMHS ferry built in Alaska, along with its sister ship the M/V Hubbard.
• This is a Juneau Empire report.
