The waters await, but some boat launches are already open
A day after Gov. Jay Inslee announced that public boat ramps and other recreational sites will open next week, Everett’s Jack and Marilyn Courrier were launching their 17-foot Boston Whaler.
By putting their craft in at the Port of Everett’s 10th Street Boat Launch Tuesday, they weren’t jumping the gun or defying any coronavirus-related order. The port’s public boat ramp — an entryway to Port Gardner, the Snohomish River and beyond — has been partly open throughout the pandemic.
Lisa Lefeber, the port’s CEO and executive director, said during a virtual meeting Tuesday that some boat launch lanes at the 10th Street facility were kept open for life safety, essential commercial uses, tribal access and transportation to Hat Island. About half of the facility’s 13 lanes have been closed in recent weeks.
Enacted in March and later extended to May 4, Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order banned all gatherings and temporarily shuttered businesses that were deemed non-essential. On Monday, Inslee said boat ramps, trailheads, golf courses and other public lands can open May 5, with social distancing in place. He is also allowing fishing and hunting seasons to go ahead.
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