So you may be sad that you missed out on the chance to buy one of the old Steel Electric ferries. It was reported yesterday that the sale of the four oldest ferries in the fleet had been finalized, and they were going to the scrapyard. But it’s not too late to get your hands on a newer ferry, the M/V Olympic.

The Olympic sailed for Washington State Ferries for 40 years, from the early 1950s to 1993. It was then mothballed, later sold to a private buyer, and now sits in Eagle Harbor where it can watch ruefully as the newer ferries pull in and out of the Bainbridge dock all day. But the construction of a new marina is pushing it out of the harbor, and the owners are looking to get rid of it and send it off to a good home. So they’ve put it on eBay.

For only $200,000 (the BuyItNow price) this fine marine vessel can be yours. It may be retired but it’s still operational and seaworthy, although its Coast Guard inspections have expired. The owners are hoping to sell it to someone who will restore it for use as a “hotel, corporate training retreat or exclusive events center”. It’s not completely unheard of…the former Skansonia has found a second life on Lake Union as a permanently-anchored event center, and you can get married on the car deck for a handsome fee. The same kind of life could be had for the Olympic, either moored somewhere or even afloat, roaming the Sound.

Of course renovations could be costly. The ship has been laid up for 16 years, and though the owners attest that the machinery still works you can bet there would some kind of overhaul needed. And the superstructure has been slowly collecting a coat of rust. The Olympic’s sister ship, the Rhododendron, was put through a similar overhaul around the same time the Olympic was retired, and it ended up going way over budget. But that little ship came out of it in great shape, and it’s still making the run at South Vashon today. Although it sounds like it’s in the shop more than out of of it these days, and might be the first one retired when some new boats come in.

So I hope someone can rescue the Olympic. I remember the first time I saw it tied up in Eagle Harbor a few years ago (above), and wondered why such a useful-looking ferry was sitting there all alone. It deserves a second chance at life. Of course, so did the Kalakala, and look how that turned out.

Hat tip to the Big Blog for pointing this out.

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