CYA Launch Group Road Trip
While the CYA yachties were having their 1st race of the season on Sunday, the launch group hit the road & headed north to Whangateau for a shed visit to check on the progress of ‘Laughing Lady’ at the Whangateau Traditional Boat yard. Good planning ensured we were there at high-tide, so we got to see all the old girls afloat. Regular readers of ww will have seen photos of the yard from my previous posts but today was special to share Pam & George’s magic space with a bunch of serious wooden boat nuts.
James Dreyer gave a brief talk on the the history of LL & how the restoration was coming along. Probably the best question of the day & best answer was – “Are you taking her back to the USA” – “No, she is here to stay, the Waitemata & greater Hauraki Gulf is her new home”.
Post the shed visit we headed up the hill to Carolyn & Shane Anderson’s (MV Waimiga) stunning property for a a tasting of locals wines & their own estate olive oil. A BBQ followed & then a coastal walk.
There are plans to make this trip a regular on the launch calendar.
A big thank you to Pam & George from Whangateau Traditional Boats + Carolyn & Shane. And James Dreyer for letting us all crawl over Laughing Lady 🙂
Enjoy the photos – click any to enlarge – I took so many, this is just a random selection, I’ll post more over time.
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A bit wet out so here’s a little more of Bernie’s writeings to keep you entertained.
…When Claude died his son Howard took over, extended the shed and being an engineer by trade built steel yachts a small tug and the charter launch Kewpie Two. Others have carried on with the work since Howard left for Australia but the Greenwood boats of both father and son go on. The article below was as my brother Gordon saw it about 1964-5
Gordon was a commercial fishing from Ti Point for many years.
There was a rack of chisels and assorted G Clamps on the wall, while above hung three hand saws. In a corner at the far end of the shed crowded a jumble of old and brand new paint cans with a motley of brushes drowning in tins of diesel. None of this gear was valuable according to Claude. He reckoned any one could walk in through the walls of the shed and take the lot if they wanted to.
Above the door of the little office, spanning a good three feet, the tail of a marlin had been nailed, a trophy of a holiday taken long ago. Termites and rats had eaten a good portion of it but it still looked impressive. Most of Claude’s boats were built from half models and one or two of these peeped from dusty shelves or were nailed to the wall.
Close handy, a large galvanized pipe used for steaming planks and ribs entered the wall from the outside where the fire box lay. At the moment most of the shed was taken up by a newly planked 30ft launch surrounded by scaffolds, with ladders, props and shores set to catch the unwary head.
Outside, the wind blown sand, covered old bulks of timber and cast off junk from the many boats that used the slip, but Claude was a good natured bloke so the area surrounding the shed always seemed to contain an aura of peace and quiet. The Greenwood’s slip filled a need for Leigh fisherman and others.
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Four thousand three hundred folk appreciate what you and your family are doing and see you as a man of good cheer! you ought not be too concerned James. Great to see Judy and Barry ( mum and dad) on the day also.
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The boatyard and George and I enjoyed your very pleasant company on Sunday.
I’m afraid we did not get around you all to welcome you on the day so we extend an invite for you to come by at another time also. Obviously this is a place of work but we do like to be pleasantly interrupted.
I wonder how many read the exert from some writeings (from a local gentleman), that we placed with the photos, from years past when Claude built boats here.
…At the northwest end of Whangateau harbour among mangroves, not far from the main road, stands a boat shed and slipway. It was built by a small tidal creek. A local boat builder, Claude Greenwood refurbished it during the nineteen fifties with the help from a working bee of local fisherman and others.( Boat building was carried out long before this on the spit, as a winch and rails were on site long before the building of the boat shed ) He and his sons, Howard and Leon, built a number of boats there between 18 and 35 feet, mostly strip planked, also some old ‘dungers’ as he called them, were repaired and given a new lease of life at this Whangateau slip…
…Outside the wind blown sand, covered old bulks of timber and cast off junk from the many boats that used the slip, but Claude was a good natured bloke so the area surrounding the shed always seemed to contain an aura of peace and quiet….
Bernie Lovegroves
George and I endevour to not change the essence of the yard and simply remain in harmony with what was started here.
Thanks Shane and Carolyn for showing us around. The peninsula is in wonderfull hands with you both there. The five hundred year old trees are in superb condition and the thousands of trees planted are pleasantly seen from afar. A wonderfull out look over a supreme harbour.
Such a very special treat for us all haveing the Laughing Lady here in NZ. We have seen many folk through looking her over already. She has brought a neat fun loveing family with her here to the yard. It was great to see Micheal with three gorgeous bubbly little girls, four counting mum, scrambling over their boat for the first time, in great excitement. We look forward to seeing Katey soonish. James is a realy good production manager with a very good and sympathetic understanding of the job at hand.
See you on the water,
George and Pam
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Damn, sorry we missed it. Had a conflict with the needs and aspirations of #3 son approaching his first University exams. We went and visited Pam and George a few weeks ago at high tide and were bowled over by Whangateau at its very best. BTW the November Boating NZ has an article I have done on the yard, Pam, George, WENNA and her past people.
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Fantastic day. Thanks Alan for planning a great event, Pam and George for letting the mob descend on paradise and Shane and Carolyn for hosting us at the “barn”. Really nice to meet everyone and feel so welcome at my first cya event. My favorite question was “does Katy have any sisters?”. I am a bit slow and only got the joke later in the day.
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