Quest II – Sailing Sunday

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QUEST II – Sailing Sunday
photo & details ex Dean Wright

The above photos were taken by Dean in August 2012, at the time Quest II had been moored in Opito Bay for a couple of seasons.
What she is & where she is now is a mystery – anyone able to contribute ?

ps I know I’m stretching the sailing angle but there is some canvas on her 😉

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28 thoughts on “Quest II – Sailing Sunday”

  1. About 1963 a distant cousin of mine owned the Cary built “Quest 2” and was crayfishing out of Whangaroa. He owned a bit of a prickle farm at Totara North which his wife ran while he fished. He came down to Whangarei and stayed with me for a long weekend while the boat was up at Oram’s slipway. A few days later Alan Orams came to me looking for Trevor but he had done a runner.The boat was repossesed and sold at auction. 40 years later i met the missing cousin in the Continental Hotel in Broome W.A. “Quest 2” was quite distinctive with the offset exhaust but still a beautifull little boat..

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  3. My father purchased quest from the nelson owner and delivered her down to chch. He made most of the modifications and addition see on her in the photos – new mast (front), all sails and bowsprit, aft cabin hatch with glass and wood work, total re design of forward cabin and addition of wood burner, new forward cabin hatch… the list goes on!! A long way!!! Great memories – especially doing 10 knots with a stiff breeze over the aft quarter under sail alone! Quest would go anywhere in anything. Best boat to sit at anchor in a 50 knot gale screaming down a valley – mizen sail configured to keep her pointing into the wind all the time while at anchor. Sails made motoring more comfortable, getting rid of the roll! I have more pictures/info if anyone is interested.

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  4. My father purchased quest from the nelson owner and delivered her down to chch. He made most of the modifications and addition see on her in the photos – new mast (front), all sails and bowsprit, aft cabin hatch with glass and wood work, total re design of forward cabin and addition of wood burner, new forward cabin hatch… the list goes on!! A long way!!! Great memories – especially doing 10 knots with a stiff breeze over the aft quarter under sail alone! Quest would go anywhere in anything. Best boat to sit at anchor in a 50 knot gale screaming down a valley – mizen sail configured to keep her pointing into the wind all the time while at anchor. Sails made motoring more comfortable, getting rid of the roll! I have more pictures/info if anyone is interested.

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  5. I just acquired her sister ship, June, in Purau bay. I am told she was built by M&T in 1937. I’ll post more details as I discover them.

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  9. I saw Quest II in Taurikura Bay in Whangarei Harbour on 11 December 2015. I can email a picture if you like Alan & Dean.

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  14. Nah, mate. She’s Miller and Tunnage; through and through. Built 1924 for Jim Ballie at Port Chalmers just after Iona whom she closely resembles. Have a butchers at these pics I took of Roger Carey’s Quest on the slip at Carey’s boatyard Picton shortly before it imploded.

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  15. Looks like she is a sister ship to to the original Quest built by Roger Carey for himself, she is featured in the book “By Boats We Live” written by Roger’s daughter Joan Clark. Quest was for sale in 2009 by Picton Marine Brokers for $110,000.00.
    A.L.

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  16. Harold
    Always looking for good content, particularly on yachts/sailing. One of the challenges with ww is gauging what is very interesting to many compared to something that is interesting to just a few.
    I have learnt a lot & still learning 😉 but I’m still amazed what creates eyeballs & what does not.
    Alan

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  17. Hey, Alan, if you need input for Sailing Sunday, there are half a hundred of us out here who’d love to contribute. Might be a change from endless yabbering about oblong portholes, varnished (or no-longer-varnished) coamings and vapid guesswork about who designed and built what.

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  19. There are some very noble old C and D class yachts scattered around NZ, which although largely forgotten and of low value now, are nevertheless far better yachts than the Vertues SCOD’s and various other English yachts which still command high prices and attract fiercely proud owners in Europe. Perhaps Sunday might be an opportunity to showcase some of them….

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  20. Quest II is a Miller & Tunnage, not sure of her early history but was owned by Danny Phillips in Otago up until late 90’s early 2000’s then came to Nelson where she had some interior work done before being sold to a Port Lyttleton Owner. I think the booms were added in Christchurch??

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  21. I really wouldn’t be keen to criticize the valiant work you do here, but I will say I love the sail boats you put in when you do….

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  22. Nah, it’s gotta be a cedar bucket, Mike. “But best of all, the bucket can be used whenever you choose. It might be while you are at the helm when single-handed, or in the cockpit at night when you would not disturb either the tympanic or olfactory nerves of your shipmate…… and in case of mal de mare is much the most practical arrangement.” L Francis Herreshoff.
    Besides, I’d imagine a canvas bucket would collapse when one sat on it.
    BTW, what’s an anorak?

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  26. Its iron stays’l might ensure that she points a damn sight higher than we can in a snorting Cook Straiter though! Cosy and warm down below and not too far to fall laterally in the wheelhouse…..

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  27. Damn Russell beat me to the punch, why bother calling it sailing sunday, how bout “it has an itty bitty mast with a wee bit of rag and no hope of sailing sunday” 😉

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