CLASSIC GAME LAUNCH ALMA G AT URUPUKAPUKA ISLAND
The 1922 Collings & Bell built classic wooden game boat – ALAM G has made numerous appearances on WW , today thanks to a Ross Griffin post on the B.O.I. Historic Photos fb we get to share some stunning camera work from the photographer Tudor Collins. The images are ’stored’ at the Kawakawa Museum.
Most of the photos are in and around Urupukapuka Island and the islands game fishing lodge.
Can anyone ID the people in the close up photos.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – REHUTAI 428
Last week WW was contacted by Mitchell Hutchings regarding the classic 43’ Sam Ford built (1926) wooden launch – REHUTAI, his note is reproduced below. Mitchell also supplied the photos we see above of REHUTAI under construction and on a cruise. Sam Ford built REHUTAI for C C Ross of Wellington and when launched she was powered by a 50/75 hp Stearns engine.
“The photos were taken by my Uncle, Peter Parsonson, a Milford resident and past Commodore of the Devonport Yacht Club. His wife, Eva, is shown in some of the onboard photos. Also Bob and Bertie Davidson are named, probably the owners? They look like a happy crew. “
In Sept 2023 REHUTAI was in Wellington (painted yellow) and we learnt from Nathan Herbert that she had has several name changes over the years eg ARAWA, NOMAD, IRIHAPETI. Converted to her current configuration by Allan Williams in Milford, Auckland. Link below https://waitematawoodys.com/2023/09/05/mystery-wellington-launch-2/
Nathan Herbert pointed WW in the direction of the Air Force Museum of New Zealand (Photograph Collection) where there are two stunning WWII photos on file (last two above) of REHUTAI W428, during her time with the Air Force Marine Section, based at RNZAF Station Hobsonville. At the time she was ‘on-loan’ from Stan Parker.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – AVALON RESTORATION UPDATE # 3
Todays photo gallery of AVALON the 24’ 1954 Sam Ford built woody was sent in by John Dawson and is a follow up to our last update in November 2025 – WW link here https://waitematawoodys.com/2025/11/17/classic-wooden-launch-avalon-restoration-update-2/
Owner Tobias Forsyth has been making good progress and I love his approach to semi finishing areas while the overall project continues – I’m sure it helps with the motivation.
AVALON is a member of a very small classic wooden boating club – one family owner since new.
Lots of background on AVALON in this 2021 WW story https://waitematawoodys.com/2021/11/29/resurrection-of-avalon/
Photo below from pre launch day.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH KERERU ARRIVES IN AUCKLAND
Back in October 2025, Ian McDonald tipped us off that KERERU — a 35’ woody built in 1911 by Chas Bailey Jnr. — was on the market down in Picton.
At the time, we uncovered a rich slice of her history (link below), but by December there was still no sign of a sale. She was then powered by a Ford 80hp diesel and, by all accounts, was a tidy example of a Bailey built launch. https://waitematawoodys.com/2025/10/20/1911-classic-wooden-launch-kereru-a-peek-down-below/
Fast forward to this week, and Ian — never far from the action — spotted KERERU hauled out at Half Moon Bay Marina. A bit of quiet dockside sleuthing revealed she had made the journey north by road from Wellington.
A close look at the latest photo suggests she’s in need of a little TLC — nothing unusual for a 115 year old classic wooden launch.
The big question now is: what’s brought KERERU to the Waitemata. That’s a long trip for a simple spruce-up, so with a bit of luck we may be seeing another salty looking canoe-stern woody joining the local fleet. Can we learn more.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH YASAWA NEEDS A NEW HOME
Last week WW was contacted by Julie Eccles advising that she was selling her late husband (Ken) classic wooden bridge-decker 33’ launch – YASAWA. YASAWA has appeared on WW several times over the years, starting back in January 2014, link below. At the time we learnt from Harold Kidd that she was built by Charlie Filmer. WW Jan 2014 https://waitematawoodys.com/2014/01/10/yasawa/
More recently John Burland photographed her moored at Motueke Marina – last photo above. In this photo she looks very smart. Below is an excerpt from the Nov 2025 edition of the Motueka Yacht and Cruising Club newsletter.
YASAWA – Yasawa was built in 1952 when bridge-deckers were a very popular style of launch.
The term ‘bridge-decker’ refers to boats with a higher level deck to the fore of the boat that sits over the engine bay. The first bridge-deckers were built in the1920s in the USA and reflect a transition from stern steered sailing vessels to motorised launches.
Yasawa is carvel kauri construction and is 32.8 feet (10 metres) long. Its first owner and builder was Charlie Filmer who lived in Penrose, Auckland. The boat’s history is well recorded in a popular classic wooden boat site called ‘Waitemata Woodys’. For many years it was well known for its varnished topsides, since painted over. Originally the boat was called ‘Doraleen’ and changed to its current name in 1957. The boat’s first engine was a petrol V8 marinised Ford Mercury. It is currently powered by a D-Series 6 cylinder Ford diesel, which was reconditioned with Phil Fry’s help about 5 years ago.
Interested parties to initially make contact with Julie Eccles via email julieeccleskina@gmail.com
A ROAD TRIP TO WARKWORTH + CEMENT WORKS BOAT YARD
I had a good reason last week to head north and so took the chance to mooch around the woodys berthed or hauled out in the upper reaches of the Mahurangi / Warkworth River.
The excuse for the trip was to delivery a model of the coastal cruiser VANESSA to the vessel before she heads south to her new Wellinton owner.
VANESSA was out for a serious service before the delivery crew headed away down south.
Sad to see such a salty looking woody leaving our area but we tend to win more than we lose eg more coming north ✔️
In varying stages of repair were – NEPTUNE, LADY JANE AND WAIONE. The yard was very busy but I started to itch as I got close to most of the other craft hauled out.
I also popped down to the river and spotted – RIPPLE,JANE GIFFORD, ANAM CARA (L33), and NOW .
CLASSIC YACHT – MAWHITI
Today’s woody is the yacht MAWHITI, she was designed by E. Mantell Silk and built by William Moore, M. Beck and Arthur Penty in a shed across the road from the Clyde Quay Marina, Wellington. The photo and details comes to us via the Wellington classic yacht trust fb.
Launched November 1898 she was built as a 2.5 rater and LOA = 35’ and a 8’6” beam. She wouldn’t fit through the door of the hired shed in which she was built. The landlord refused to remove the doors, so an overnight raid with saws and plenty of tackle saw the wall cut away, the vessel put on the street, and the wall put back before anyone was the wiser. In the photo you can see the vertical cut adjacent to the window in the building behind.
MAWHITI was beautifully finished down to an interior of “red pine” (rimu?) panelling, with areas painted pale green and white with gold trim. Her cabin roof was lined in lincrusta and the skylight was glazed with muranese (also known as Florentine) glass.
She was described by an Evening Post columnist as “the finest specimen of amateur boatbuilding that has come under our notice”
She was sold in 1906 and taken to Sydney, Australia by her new owner – Berkeley Clark. Last heard of in the 1970’s.
WOODEN WORKBOATS ON THE HOKIANGA
Todays photo is a flash back to rural life in the early 1920’s when launches collected cream from wayside settlements around the harbour and transported the cargo to in this case a dairy factory ar Rawene.
In addition to the cream loads the boats provided transport for both farm and domestic supplies. The craft were the equivalent of todays Toyota HiLux ute.
Have to love the hatch / all weather shelter on the launch closest to the wharf. I think they were referred to as ‘blue collar flybridges’.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH REHIA GETS SOME UNPLANNED TLC
Post an oops (non skipper related) at the recent Auckland wooden boat festival, REHIA needed an appointment at the Jason Prew beauty salon at the Slipway Milford yard.
This 1938 woody is a showpiece of Colin Wild’s design and build team and a big nod to her owners who present her in magnificent condition.
20-04-2026 UPDATE – 3ed and final coat ✔️
KAWAU ISLAND — Idyllic Classic Times Afloat
Todays very cool photo comes to us from a recent Lew Redwood fb post and is tagged – ‘Yachts & Launches at Kawau Island 1900-1916, Hocken.
Can we ID the canoe stern launch on the righthand side, middle/top of the photo.
Its a very salty clinker dinghy, what’s the significance of the ‘4 KAWAU’ on the stern – was here a fleet back then.
😃 given the dates even K Ricketts can’t claim he was there when the photo was taken 😉
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