BC Ferries Vesuvius Queen

The Vesuvius Queen was a single unclassed vessel owned and operated by BC Ferries. It was built in 1950 in Victoria, BC.

As a small ferry designed for short runs, it had minimal passenger facilities. There were four lanes on the main deck for vehicles, with a small superstructure spanning the deck lanes containing the bridge.

Vesuvius Queen was very similar in construction to another second-hand vessel acquired by BC Ferries, Saltspring Queen. In their later days, the two vessels were interchangeable with each other, operating as refit replacements for the other.

Vesuvius Queen

Vesuvius Queen
Built	1950, Victoria
Home base	Vesuvius Bay
Route(s) served	6

Vesuvius Queen was the only vessel in the Vesuvius Queen class.

Vesuvius Queen was originally built as Lloyd Jones in 1950 for service on Lake Okanagan between Kelowna and Westbank. After a floating bridge was constructed in 1958, the ferry service was redundant, and the vessel became surplus. It was purchased by BC Ferries in 1962, who transported it by truck in multiple pieces and reassembled it as the original Bowen Queen. Bowen Queen was put into service on its namesake route 8 (Horseshoe Bay - Snug Cove) from 1962 until 1965, when it was replaced by the new and larger Bowen Queen.

In 1965, the original Bowen Queen was renamed to Vesuvius Queen and moved to route 6 (Crofton - Vesuvius Bay), replacing George S. Pearson. It continued operating on this route full-time until 1992, when Howe Sound Queen began operating on route 6. After this time, Vesuvius Queen primarily became a backup vessel, replacing Howe Sound Queen during refits. It also occasionally saw service operating for Translink on the Albion Ferry, replacing Kulleet and Klatawa when they were in refit.

Vesuvius Queen was sold in early 1998 to R & G Importadora & Exportadora of Dominican Republic

Engines	Max speed	Length	Displacement	Vehicle capacity	Passenger capacity
Two Vivian diesel 480 hp	10 knots	45 m	277 tonnes	36 autos	180