Category Archives: 1940’s

Woodys On Holiday @ Waiheke Island

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Woodys On Holiday @ Waiheke Island

 Good morning Woodys – the 1st ‘live’ post in 2 weeks & I have to say I have enjoyed the break from the daily task of creating a WW story. Sometimes with everything else that happens in life its been a challenge, I’ll keep on with the daily stories but just a heads up, the frequency may change……… but business as usual for now.

I was amazed at the viewing audience over the Xmas / NY period, there were some huge days – the “Gunk-Holing Up The Weti River’ story had over 6,000 views in 24hrs, not bad for a ‘re-run’.

Despite the weather forecast & a broken freezer we got away on Raindance for 8 Days, came back a little early due to the weather bomb, & so glad that we did. 

For the 8 days we just mooched around Waiheke Island & had stunning launch weather + the water temp was amazing, warmest I can recall in a long time. 

I spotted quite a few woodys around the bays, if I missed getting a photo of you, either the light was all wrong or I was doing something else – so sorry in advance.

Last ones of Raindance were taken by Richard Darke from aboard his launch ’Seafarer’, many thanks Richard, I do not get many of Raindance, normally she is the camera platform.

A word of warning, last weeks storm has deposited some very ugly logs around the inner harbour, so keep a look out. It amazes we no-one (Akl Council etc) gathers them up, they will find there way back into the water & be an even bigger hazard. The one below was on Cheltenham Beach, Devonport.

If you have any photos from the holidays – email them in to waitematawoodys@gmail.com

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While ashore at Oneroa I picked up a flyer for The Island Grocer store, very clever piece of creative 😉

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New Zealand Classic Wooden Boat Register – 200+ Photos

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New Zealand Classic Wooden Boat Register – 200+ Photos

Stoked to be able to share with you the 2018 edition of the CYA Classic Register. Big ups to the CYA team behind it, pulling everything together is a massive undertaking, I’ve been there & done that, having been involved with the first 4 issues – 2018 is a winner, so make a cup of coffee or pour something a little stronger & sit back & enjoy over 200 photos. Click link below

to view https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/fullscreen/59612422/cya-classic-register-2018-yum

Lucky CYA members will be getting a free hard copy version in the post very soon. Almost worth joining to get a copy 😉 Membership details here  http://classicyacht.org.nz/joinus/

Nukutere – Part 2

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Construction & Launching

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1940’s War Service & Up To About 1950’s

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1960’s > 1981

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NUKUTERE – Part 2

Back in September (11th 2017) I wrote a story on WW about the launch Nukutere, as a result of that story Bernie Warmington made the comments below on the WW Comments section

“Hi, the lovely Nukutere was built by Arthur Sang for our grandad Foster Warmington of Wellington, from 1939-41.  She remained in the family until 1981.  Grandad sketched up some design drawings from reading boating magazines and Arthur made up a model.  (Grandad then shaved the model to make the bows finer, Arthur didn’t find out until she was partly built!).  Moored mostly at Port Nicholson and then later at Seaview, and in the Sounds she was moored at Nana and Grandad’s house in Double Cove.  She saw naval service as Frank mentioned, her registration was Z74.  My Dad Gavin and Uncle John went on night patrols when 14 and 15 until the navy banned them due to age.  Not sure what Nana thought of all this… We have a small book based on Dad’s memories of the Nukutere and her adventures, happy to share these, photos etc with the current owners and others interested.”

I asked Bernie to send me the above mentioned photos, which appear above. What a collection – I have broken them into 3 parts.

  1. Construction & Launching (stunning photo of the kauri log)
  2. 1940’s War Service & Up To About 1950’s
  3. 1960’s > 1981

THE NUKUTERE STORY – Below is a link (in blue) to a photo-essay book, titled The Nukutere Story, that Gavin Warmington authored for his family. The story & photos were passed over (told) to his children – Julie, Bernie & Matty in late 2007 > early 2008.

The family edited the story & published it in March 2016. WW is in debt to the Warmington family for sharing the book with all us woodys.

Enjoy the read, it puts all the above photos & more in context.

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Link to the WW post #1 showing Nukutere today.  https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/09/11/nukutere/

 

 

 

 

CYA Patio Bay Weekend – 2017 – 50+ Photos

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CYA Patio Bay Weekend – 2017

The photos show that 2017 was another cracker Patio Bay year, but what photos don’t get across is what a great group of woodys were there. The numbers were down a little on previous years but those that made the trip will remember it as one of the best. Plenty of room to walk around & mingle without standing on someones dinner plate.

Several Riviera owners, did they bit to re-confirm that they all have big egos & small brains – motoring thru the race finish line at 25+ knots & creating wakes you could surf on. A little exciting if you are sitting in an 8’ dinghy taking photos & wondering if the Riviera is on autopilot & the skippers playing with his small willy 😦

One of the Patio Bay race traditions is the winning skipper of the A Division has to fill the trophy barrel with rum for the following years party. Last year Prize was the winner & based on dock chatter, a sample was drawn off for analyse at the Mount Gay distillery –  purity & alcohol content results to follow 😉

(remember to click on photos to enlarge)

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Sea Craft Run-About

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Sea Craft Run-About 

Nelson boat builder / restorer Peter Murton contacted me to say that he had just been given the above 1947 Sea Craft.  She measures 17’ x 4’, with a 7’4” beam, current power is from a small twin cylinder diesel. She is twin skinned cedar with ribs and copper riveted out side horizontal diagonal inside. 

Prior to Peter acquiring her,  she was based on Rotorua.

Peter plans to restore her but is looking for some more photos of this model Sea Craft, mainly the cabins and interior layout. Peter has completed numerous ‘smaller’ craft restoration, a lot of which have featured on WW, enter Peter Murton in the WW search box to view them 🙂

So woodys – anyone able to help Peter out?

Input from Paul Drake – The photo below shows this boat (or a sister) at Taupo – between 1953 and 1963 (our pram dinghy, shown outside our boatshed, was built in 1953, and the boatsheds were removed in 1963).

Other vessels shown are WATER NYMPH and WAIHAHA, now at Rotoiti, LADY PAT, now at Mana Marina, Wellington, MOANA, now at Auckland, and ARCADIA, still at Taupo.

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W1 & W1 Junior Meet Up

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W1 c.1942

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W1 & W1 Junior Meet Up

The restoration of the Hubert Scott-Paine designed ex RNZAF, WWII, craft W1 has been well documented on WW, as has been the building of a junior version by master model maker John Bullivant, enter W1 in the WW search box to read > view their stories.

Earlier this year Ken Ricketts played match-maker & intro’ed Francis Uren, the owner  of W1 & John B. The venue was Bayswater Marina where Francis keeps W1. Details & photos ex Ken.

The story started 49 years ago, when John B, had by chance an opportunity to have a look aboard W1. John & a mate, were out & about on the Tamaki River, exploring & they came across W1 & the boys decided to have a good look inside her. John B was fascinated with what he saw & W1 made such a lasting impression that 44 years later, when he started to build a model of W1, he could recall every detail. The build took 5 years, but as can see in the photos, the attention to detail & build quality is amazing.

When Francis Uren, saw W1 Junior for the first time he was blown away,  the intricate detail in build, propulsion & equipment, which is even complete, with the sound of 2 diesel engines being started, when John fired her up, & with water flowing out the exhaust pipes each side, when the engines, (2 special marine tiny electric motors, see photo below), are running.

The meet up resulted in two very happy woodys, who both had huge mutual respect for the each others work.

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Out At Kopu

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OUT AT KOPU

Above are a couple of ex work boats hauled out at Kopu – Deodar & Patricia Jane. The photos were sent in by Baden Pascoe from a recent trip to the Coromandel.

Deodar we all know & has been featured on WW before but what do we know about Patricia Jane? she is a rather large old girl – Baden commented that she looks like a converted South Island fishing boat.

Great story tomorrow on a rather stunning yacht that has been brought back to life & now calls Lake Hood (just east of Ashburton, South Island) home.

27-05-2019  Input from Julie Moore. – Julie advises that her 80 yr old father, Kevin Probyn used to own the Patricia Jane. He had been looking for his old boat for some time,  wondering what had become of it. And they discovered the photo on WW. He purchased it in1970, from Picton where it was built. It’s a 50ft kauri ship & had a Gardner 8L3 engine. Kevin had it based in New Plymouth as a trawler and owned it for about 3 or 4 years, when he sold it to an outfit in Hawkes Bay.

 

Eunice K

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EUNICE K
I was recently contacted by Karen Bennett concerning the launch – Eunice K, pictured above in 1980, that her father, Mike McDonald, owned on the 1980’s. Karen & her family lived in Thames & used to cruise around the Coromandel area.
Karen was prompted to contact WW by an old friend John Managh, John had also owned Eunice K, previous to Karen’s family buying her, this was in the  late 1970’s early 1980’s. The McDonalds went on to own the launch Taree, photo below during their ownership in 1987.
Do we know what happened to Eunice K & is she still on the water?

25-10-2017 Update

Received an email from Henk Van Wijk to say that he was pleasantly surprised to read the WW story on Eunice K & he was able to advise that approx.. 8 years ago he found her in a pretty sad state of disrepair and as the family were looking for a project, they purchased Eunice K & renamed her Pathfinder in 2009.

Hank had always been curious about her history & when he compared the photos posted on Woodys of her in the 1980 to what she looks like today, he commented that she obviously has had a few changes done to her.

Hank would love to learn more about her early years, they know that she was built by Collings and Bell in 1948 and was previously owned by Rod Barker and was based at Pine Harbour, Auckland.

Pathfinder has spent most of her time in the lower Hauraki Gulf, and in summer up in the Bay of Islands. Hank commented that she is loved and well used by his family. The photos below show her when they found her and what she looks like today.

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Update 28-05-2021 ex Dean Wright – photo below of Pathfinder , berthed at Tutukaka.

Link to Taree on ww here  https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/05/01/taree-a-peek-down-below/
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Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition 2017 – The NZ Clinker Boat – 50+ Photos

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Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition 2017 – The NZ Clinker Boat

Over the weekend the Tino Rawa Trust hosted the 10th Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition at Karanga Plaza on Auckland waterfront Wynyard Quarter. If you missed the event, you really did miss something special. The feature this year was the New Zealand Clinker Boat.

I went to the opening commemorative (Tony Stevenson, likes flash words) morning tea on Friday, if you were looking for a wooden boat builder or a fountain of knowledge on wooden boats, you would have been stunned at the guest list, it was the who’s who of NZ classic wooden boat movement. If you weren’t there you must have done something really bad in a past life to not be invited 😉

Above is a selection of the boats on display, taken on Friday when the crowds were light. Enjoy 🙂

Talking to Tony Stevenson, Jason Prew & Baden Pascoe last night & this years event was hands down the most successful in terms of attendee numbers, Saturday being huge. Well done guys. 

 

Wairuru – Auckland to Suva, 1947

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Waruru Cover

Wairuru – Auckland to Suva, 1947

I was recently contacted by Steph Mellors who advised she had a short diary written aboard the 1937, Charles Bailey & Sons built motorsailer Wairuru, during a passage from Auckland to Apia, Samoa in  June 1947.

On the cover (see above) is written in pencil Capt. Robt. Patterson, given the content of the diary, Steph does not think he wrote it. (I agree)

The NZ Maritime Index, records that Wairuru, owned by A G Bertram was sold in 1947 to O. F. Nelson & Co. Ltd., Apia, Western Samoa – who renamed her – Gaualofa. The records also sadly record that she was wrecked on 22 November 1953, on the South coast of Savai’i Island, near Sala’ihua.

Steph is unsure how she acquired the diary, thinks “probably rescued it from someone’s wastepaper basket in a fit of – it could be of interest to someone”.

Thankfully she saved it & now over 70 years later we get to share it. Enjoy the read, I did.

Any guesses as to who the author was?

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I couldn’t do a WW post without a boat photo – my clinker dinghy Peg at Patio Bay. Which is a good excuse to remind you that today is the last day of the Classic Launch & Yacht – Clinker Boats Exhibition – details below – AND ITS FREE TO GET IN.

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Clinker Event Ad