KOTARE
Over the Xmas / NY (2020) period Barbara and David Cooke were cruising aboard their launch – Trinidad and anchored near the ex work boat Kotare and as you do, introduced themselves to her owner, Laurence Ryan.
The photo gallery is a mix of photos from Barbara Cooke and her owners.
The story below was sent to Barbara by Laurence and is reproduced unedited.
“Kotare was designed and built by John Miller who was a boat builder who worked for Miller and Tunnage in Dunedin. However, I am told he is not one of the Millers, as such. She was built in 1940. Solid oregon plank construction, hull and decks. 15 m OA, 13.8 m on the waterline, 2 m draft, 31 tonnes fully laden. Beam 3.66 m. She was built as a trawler and fished out of Dunedin and possibly Lyttleton. She fished at the Chathams and features in the book “Shipwrecks of New Zealand”. She was in a convoy of some six fishing boats making the trip to the Chathams in extremely bad weather. Two of the vessels were lost with all hands – Kotare made it!
She was first converted into a pleasure boat in 1987 by the owner, John Liddell, from whom I bought her. The conversion was undertaken by Careys in Picton. A further variation was completed in 2000 where the final configuration occured. John Liddell had her in SSM and she spent most of her new life in the Marlborough Sounds doing some fishing charters. John took her to the Chathams, Stewart Island, Fiordland and she circumnavigated NZ twice.
She is powered by a Detroit GM 6/71 2 stroke diesel, 225 hp de-rated to 195 hp, Alison 3:1 gearbox. The whole engine was rebuilt in 2006.
I purchased her in September 2016 and we sailed her up the east coast from Mana that Labour weekend, 72 hours non-stop!”
Below is a photo of Kotare, before the alterations – trolling off the Otago coast.
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Update on Kotare. She is now back home in the South Island, based in Picton. We are very proud owners of this beautiful piece of (working) history and thank Laurence for the care and attention he afforded her during her extended “holiday” in the gulf.
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Kotare definitely fished out of Lyttelton, she was moored alongside my father’s boat for many years. She was then set up for trawling and her owner/skipper was an old short, tough and very weathered Scandinavian with a strong accent. She was one of the best kept fishing vessels in Lyttelton at the time. He operated her on his own, and only stopped when he became too old. I recall her being there when I was a boy in the late 1950’s and I am sure she was still there up until about 1970. Evan Walker
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