Harbor Fixture Departing Soon

The M/V Kodiak King tied up in Saint Herman Harbor in Kodiak. After decades of service, it will soon be departing. Jacob Resneck/KMXT photo

Jacob Resneck/KMXT

Kodiak’s harbor will soon be losing a familiar fixture. The Kodiak King, a tug that’s served the local fleet for some four decades is being transferred to Southeast. KMXT’s Jacob Resneck reports.

— Kodiak king pkg 2:41 "Captain Charlie … one day. I’m Jacob Resneck."

— amb – simple layout

Captain Charlie Mahle skippered the Kodiak King from 1992 until last November. Now he’s piloting the tug Brian T which will be taking over the Kodiak King’s duties at St. Herman’s Harbor. He shows Kodiak King’s wheelhouse which has been retrofitted over the years.

He and the King’s new skipper, Scott Williams reflects on this tug’s long service.

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Captain Williams will be taking 76-foot tug down to Seward for about a month before it’s reassigned, likely to a harbor in the Southeast.

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— amb – watch your step

The 106-ton tug has been upgraded over the years. Below deck, Mahle shows the vessel’s three 1,000-horsepower Caterpillar marine engines. He says Kodiak King still has a lot of life in her.

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The Kodiak King is being replaced by the Brian T which is slightly larger and has more towing power. Its departure date hasn’t been set. And while both men are sentimental over her transfer out of Kodiak, they say there’s no guarantee she won’t return one day.

I’m Jacob Resneck

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