Esperanza II
The above photo of the Chris Craft, pictured above in the Bay of Islands, come to us via Len Redwood’s fb.There is a great story at the link below as to how the boat came to be in NZ.
https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/04/08/esperanza-ii/
Make you check out WW tomorrow, we have a feature on New Zealand’s best Lidgard woody and she is looking for a new custodian 😉
RSVP TO waitematawoodys@gmail.com – numbers are limited
Woodys Riverhead Tavern – Winter Cruise
Yesterday was one of those days where the weather forecasters got it wrong -big time. Took the dog for an early morning waterfront walk between the showers and the ferries on the harbour were sounding their fog horns – fast forward 2 hours and the suns out, water glassy flat and we are going boating. Quick side trip to collect our quests – Margo & Jamie (MV Lady Crossley) from Westhaven and we are off.
A great turn out for mid-winter, saw 60+ woodys gathering at the historic waterside Riverhead Tavern for lunch – special thanks to those that came by car and helped with berthing the boats at the wharf. As always – click on photos to enlarge 😉
Nice to meet some new faces and if there was an award for most travelled attendee, woody Bruce Rowe on board – Ngarimu would be the winner. Bruce and his ‘decky’ mate – travelled from Thames to attend. The boys left Thames on Friday, stayed at bottom end of Waiheke, then off Stanly Point / Bayswater on Saturday night and will be heading home today. Talking to Bruce, Saturday night sounded heaven – tucked up in their warm bunks, rain on the cabin top, listening to the Auckland Blues rugby game, then the NZ v India cricket test – not a lot of sleep was had 🙂
We were also graced with the company of John and Diana Olsen on their steam boat – Dancer, The Olsen’s towed Dancer from Cambridge and launched her at the old Salthouse yard to make the trip up the creek.
Check out the Woodys Classic Weekends Event Calendar at the link below, for upcoming outings – our next one is an overnight BBQ cruise up the Clevedon River on the weekend of 14 > 15th August – a heads up – numbers will be restricted due to berthing / anchoring limits -so RSVP early.
https://waitematawoodys.com/2021/06/15/woodys-classic-boating-calendar/
The poster below greeted us at the door to the tavern – has a nice ring to it…………. maybe someone is sending me a message 🙂
SNOOZER
The 1947, 33’, Sam Ford built bridge-decker – Snoozer has just popped up on tme (thank you Ian McDonald),. We do not know much about her other that she is kauri carvel planked and powered by a 85hp Isuzu diesel that has her cruising at 8 knots. Whangarei is her home town. Might be wrong, but I would suspect a name change at some time.
Can anyone enlighten us on Snoozer’s past life ?
06-05-2025. UPDATE– for sale again , current owner credits her designer/ builder as Sam Ford 1947. And says previously named JUANITA – Would be nice to confirm.
Input from Bruce Pullan – bellow is a picture of Awa Manu, it looks like Snoozer.
Yesterdays Quiz Winner To Name The Launch Alongside The Wharf – was K. Sutherland, who was the first to correctly ID the boat as Lady Helen – WW cap on its way 🙂
The proof – ex Tudor Collins photo
Northland 1949 Boating Holiday
Something different today a 4 minute black and white movie featuring mainly Russell in the Bay of Islands and some of the A Class fleets underway and racing. A cool flashback to that era. Their are two movies on the link – the boating one starts at 6 minutes, fast forward – Enjoy 🙂 (movie ex Archives NZ Weekly Review #390 – 1949)
WIN A WW CAP
I’ll give a WW cap to the first woody than can correctly ID the launch alongside the Russell Wharf. Entries via email only to the address below and to make it fair NO entries before 8.30am. waitematawoodys@gmail.com
MARINUS – In the 1950>60 Period
Back in December 2020 we featured a great insight into the launch Marinus and how she was ‘rescued’ from Great Barrier Island and became the mule for an avant-garde refit.
At the time Harold Kidd commented that Marinus was owned for many years by Keith Lackey of Wellington. She was built by Barr-Brown, Owen and Stewart and launched in 1947. Her first engines were twin 6 cyl Gray petrol. According to Lloyds she was designed by A.M. Deeming.
Now thanks to Mark Erskine, who came across the above photos on the www, we get to sre her in the 1950’s > 1960’s period. Mark commented that bearing in mind her launching after W.W II, “for commercial work in Cook Strait” it’s hard to know if these photos show Marinus as she was built / launched, because her design looks to to be more a large, spacious pleasure craft, rather than a commercial / work boat of some description.
View the previous WW story here https://waitematawoodys.com/2020/12/12/marinus-where-is-she/
RSVP TODAY – Boat name & approc # attending waitematawoodys@gmail.com
CLEONE
Back in 2015 Cleone made an appearance on WW and Harold Kidd provided the following on her – Arnold (Bill) Couldrey designed CLEONE for Bert Follas in 1948 and had her built by Jim Young a little later, probably launched in 1950. She originally had a petrol engine, later replaced with a Ford diesel. Follas owned her until about 1963 when M. Alison of Waitangi Rd, Onehunga bought her. John Grainger owned her from 1975 to 1987. I have a bunch of pics during his ownership. John Stubbs bought her in 1989. His story was that CLEONE was the first boat Jim Young built when he came out of his apprenticeship because she was the size of his shed.
On a recent visit to Hobsonville Marina )West Park) I spotted Cleone hauled out for some TLC . The varnished coamings have gone but she is still a very smart woody. In the last few years Cleone has joined the woody fleet on several of our Riverhead Tavern lunch cruises – hopefully she will be there again next Sunday – 20th. That was a poor way to get a plug in for the event 🙂
30-10-2022 UPDATE – recently contacted by Andrew Plume with the following note – “A friend has just told me about your web site and thought it would be fun to let you know that after John Stubbs passed away last year, I was fortunate enough to receive a beautiful scale model of Cleone which John built and I painstakingly transported back to my home in Australia. The passage was highly successful, and Cleone now sits in all her glory as a centrepiece in my home office.John & Jean Stubbs loved Cleone and would be very happy she continues to give so much to so many – on and off the water.”
RSVP – Boat name & approx. # of people to waitematawoodys@gmail.com
AURORA
Today’s woody – Aurora resides on a mooring in the Tamaki River. I took the photo early last month (May 2021).
Can anyone enlighten us on her? If my life depended on it, I would suggest she was a Lidgard, those saloon windows are very Lidgard in shape.
Input ex Harold Kidd – AURORA was built in 1947 by the Lane Motor Boat Co for Sydney B Philpott with a 65hp Perkins. In 1953 C. Yockney bought her. In 1958 AJC & A Taylor and CH Stewart bought her and owned her until at least 1973.
UPDATE – 1963 Photo below , whilst owned by the Taylor family, photo ex Allen/Coggan/Andrews family collection via Ken Ricketts
How Did This One Sell
Now if you believe the tme listing for this Picton boat – it sold, which really surprises me – she would have to win the award for the worst present vessel for sale :-)The listing states that its believed that she was built by Ernie Lane in Picton c.1940’s. 30’ in length and carvel kauri built.Powered by a Perkins 152 Diesel engine. (Tme heads up ex Ian McDonald)
Do we know her name?
Lipton Cup – 100th Anniversary – Photo Gallery
Following on from yesterdays teaser and results oops – I’m a launch person wont know an L Mullet boat from an H Mullet boat – no one died, its a new day, we move on.The winner of the actual Lipton Cup, hosted by the Ponsonby Cruising Club – L division (22’) was Orion, 2nd went to Limited Edition, with Tamerau 3rd.The H division winner was Corona. As of Sunday night there were no results posted on the PCC website – so at some stage soon 🙂 go there for details.
There are lots of tales around how the PCC obtained the magnificent trophy, which was crafted by the same jewellers as the Americas Cup – you can read more about the history of the cup here https://www.pcc.org.nz/history
I was land based, using a long lens so some are a little fuzzy, but you get the vibe of the day. Sorry if your boats missing – drop me an email and I’ll check the photos, took lots, but some had other boats in the background etc. As always click on photos to enlarge.
Good to see Geoff Bagnall floating around on his launch, must have escaped Gisborne for the weekend 😉
Photos below ex Don MacLeod
HAUNUI RESTORATION UPDATE #2
Last week myself and Jamie Hudson (Lady Crossley) pointed the car south for a pre-arranged visit to the yard where Paul Tingey is performing his magic on the 1948 Colin Wild built woody – Haunui.It was just over 5 months since I was last there and the project is moving along a great clip – check out the WW link below to view the first visit and to read the scope of the job.
Haunui is a very lucky woody – not every boat gets a second life to the extent that Haunui is getting.
https://waitematawoodys.com/2020/11/13/haunui-restoration/
UPCOMING WOODYS CLASSIC EVENTS ADVICE
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