Hy-Line Cruises

Hyannis Harbor Tours, Inc.
Hy-Line Cruises
Private
Industry
  • Ferries
  • Fishing charters
  • Sightseeing tours
Founded 1962 (1962)
Founders
  • Richard Scudder
  • Robert Scudder
  • E. Raymond Taylor
Headquarters Hyannis, Massachusetts
Key people
  • Frederic Scudder, II (President)
  • Philip Scudder (Vice President)
  • Richard Scudder, Jr. (Vice President)
Number of employees
 100 (year-round),
350 (summer)
Website hylinecruises.com
M/V Great Point in Hyannis

Hy-Line Cruises (colloquially referred to as Hy-Line, and legally Hyannis Harbor Tours Inc.) is a family owned and operated Massachusetts ferry and cruise company.[1] The company currently operates the second largest passenger ferry service between mainland Cape Cod and the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket (after the Steamship Authority).[2] The company also operates sightseeing cruises and fishing charters. The company's main office is located at 22 Channel Point Road in Hyannis.

History

Hy-Line Cruises began operations in 1962 as Hyannis Harbor Tours run by Richard Scudder and his brother Robert. Originally, the company focused on sightseeing harbor tours, which it still does today. The company adding deep sea fishing charters in 1966, and started running seasonal passenger ferry services in 1970, first to Martha's Vineyard, and then to Nantucket in 1972 when Hyannis Harbor Tours bought out The Nantucket Boat Company which at that time was doing business as Hi-line. Hyannis Harbor Tours took this trade name and changed it to Hy-Line.[3]

In 1995, Hy-Line Cruises started the first high-speed catamaran service to Nantucket; its original vessel was shortly replaced by a larger one in 1997, which in turn was replaced in 2003 by the Grey Lady.[4] Hy-Line introduced high-speed service to Martha's Vineyard in 2005, using its 1997-built ferry Lady Martha.[5] Another high-speed catamaran, Grey Lady IV, was delivered in 2016 to replace Hy-Line's monohull vessel, the Great Point on the Nantucket route.[6][7]

Current operations

Island ferry service

Hy-Line Cruises operates high-speed catamaran ferry service between Hyannis and Nantucket (year-round) and Hyannis and Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard (seasonally). The journey time is approximately one hour. The company also operates inter-island trips between Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

All of Hy-Line Cruises ferry services are passenger only (although bicycles are carried for a small fee) due to the legal monopoly held on vehicle ferry service that is held by the Steamship Authority.[8]

Sightseeing cruises

Hy-Line Cruises also operates seasonal sightseeing cruises in and around Hyannis Harbor, and the Cape Cod Canal, (the latter sailing from the Wareham village of Onset).

Fishing

Out of Hyannis, Hy-Line operates seasonal half-day deep sea fishing trips in Nantucket Sound. The fishing boats, Sea Queen 2, and Sea Swan, go out daily in the Spring and Summer to fish in Nantucket Sound. They offer bottom fishing trips for scup, black sea bass, and fluke (summer flounder).

See also

References

  1. ↑ Hyannis Area Chamber of Commerce Hy-Line Cruises
  2. ↑ MassDOT Office of Transportation Planning (October 2012). Passenger Ferry Transportation in Massachusetts (PDF). Retrieved March 16, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Hy-Line Cruises - About Us web page". Hy-Line Cruises. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Scudder family stays the course". Cape Cod Times. June 29, 2003. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Hy-Line suspends Vineyard fast ferry service for season". Cape Cod Today. October 13, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Hy-Line to Go High-Speed Only on Routes to Nantucket". CapeCod.com. 24 June 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "Gladding-Hearn delivers new Nantucket ferry to Hy-Line Cruises". Workboat. September 15, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  8. ↑ "About the Steamship Authority". The Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority. Retrieved March 16, 2013.

Coordinates: 41°38′53.2″N 70°16′45.2″W / 41.648111°N 70.279222°W / 41.648111; -70.279222

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