Balboa Island Ferry

The Ark consisted of a giant rowboat with a small engine which Beek used as his first ferry vessel.

In the 1950s Beek built three double-ended wooden boats for his ferry service: the Admiral, the Commodore, and the Captain.

For two weeks in 2008 the ferry service shut down for an extended period, for the first time in 50 years, to rebuild the automobile ramp leading to the boats.

[1] In January 2022 another partial outage for construction caused the ferry to accept only foot traffic, but not vehicles.

[3] The ferry was featured in the 1949 movie The Reckless Moment starring James Mason and Joan Bennett.

The Balboa Island Car Ferry. In the background at right is the ferry terminal on the Balboa Peninsula.
Newport Beach Balboa Island Ferry in 1921