Category Archives: 1960’s

Kotanui

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KOTANUI

photos & details ex Nathan Herbert

The two black & white photos show Kotanui just after she slid down the railway slip at the Salthouse yard on launch day. The ‘urban’ wharf photo Nathan thinks is at Whangarei.  The other wharf is at Elizabeth Brooke’s aunts house in Kerikeri with the Julian’s launch Haunui alongside. And one underway, location unknown.

 TIP:   If you search Kotanui in the waitematawoodys search box you will find a lot more info & photos on this wonderful example of a Salthouse built vessel.

Photo of the bow set-up, hallelujah for auto-winches 🙂

Kotanui bow

Mapuna

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MAPUNA  – yes again 🙂  but I was sent today a wonderful collection of old photos by her current owner (Mark McLaughlin) that he received courtesy of the Robert Brooke family collection.

The young lady breaking the champagne over the bow on launching day is Elizabeth Brooke, daughter of the original owner A.R (Bill) Stephenson. A.R Stephenson was the principal of Avondale College at the time. As mention in the post below, Robert Brooke built her at Snow Waters’ yard and then married Bill Stephenson’s daughter after proposing in the forward cabin during construction!

Mark believes Snow Waters’ yard in the photos was located near where the Mitre 10 Mega store at Wairau Park is now. Jack Brooke is the man wearing the tie walking past Mapuna as she is being extracted from the shed. Snow Waters is crouching down next to the cradle, nearest Brooke.

CYA member Neil Chalmers (Gleam) sent me the Nov. 1963 Sea Spray article.

Mapuna

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MAPUNA

Designed by Jack Brooke for A.R. (Bill) Stephenson. Built by Allan (Snow) Waters & Robert Brooke at Snows’ Takapuna yard. Robert later married Bill Stephenson’s daughter,Elizabeth, I understand he proposed in the forward cabin of Mapuna. Fast forward many years & Elizabeth is on the stern in the photo above taken at the 2013 Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition – which celebrates the work of Jack Brooke.

SEE MAPUNA THIS WEEKEND (5TH & 6TH OCT) ON DISPLAY AT THE CLASSIC YACHT & LAUNCH EXHIBITION AT THE VIADUCT – scroll down 2 postings for details

Tiromoana – a peek into her past

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A peek into Tiromoana’s past

photos ex Ken Ricketts

A collection of photos assembled by Ken Ricketts showing Tiromoana in the 1940’s, 50’s & 60’s.

Photos: In Police ‘grey’ – 1943 / With steam ferry in Tamaki River c1960 / On the slip at Okahu Bay c1950 / Okahu Bay c1950 with Henry & Mrs Allen in cockpit / In her modern livery at Coggan jetty c late 1960 / Rickett family aboard xmas 1945

Kotanui

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KOTANUI

While down at Milford CC over the weekend ‘supervising’ the painting prep on Rorqual, the launch Kotanui was being hauled out. A little bit of a tight fit 🙂

I have also posted a photo of her being hauled out at (a long time ago) on the beach at what I think is now ‘Gulf Harbour’. Nathan Herbert will correct me I’m sure, it is after all his photo.
Kotanui is a slightly scaled down version of Trinidad & differs in that she has twin engines/screws.

30-10-2016 Hauled out again – this time at Gulf Harbour (photo ex Ken Ricketts)

20-05-2020 Update ex Glenn Martin – photo below of Kotanui at Milford Marina

Kotanui May2020

Trinidad – 52′ Salthouse Motor Yacht

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Trinidad – 52′ Salthouse Motor Yacht

Launched in 1965, designed by Bob Salthouse, built with 3 skin kauri planking at John Salthouse’s Greenhithe yard. She featured on the cover of the September 1966 edition of ‘Sea Spray’ magazine.
Powered by a 6LX Gardner diesel she cruises comfortably at 8.5>10 knots, with a cruising range of 1000miles. In my mind there are a few things that make a boat a ship, one of them is an ‘engine room’ versus an engine compartment & the second is a ‘workshop’ & the last is a galley that is a separate room – Trinny sports all three of these.
Trinidad is a very spacious vessel with 6’9″ headroom & her wheelhouse enjoys excellent visibility & is one of the most used areas on-board.
Trinidad is a true blue water ship with passages to Australia & a circumnavigation of NZ.
Her owners, Barbara & David Cooke maintain her to a standard that some would say is better than new & she is much admired where ever she drops anchor. AH

Kotanui

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KOTANUI

Story & photos from Nathan Herbert

Named after the original owner’s farm and adjacent island, was designed by Bob Salthouse for J.N (Jack) Hobbs of Hobbs bay Whangaparaoa and built at the Salthouse Greenhithe yard in 1964. She is 44 feet in length and was powered by twin Lister 60hp diesels cruising at 10 knots and pushing her to around 12 knots with mechanical gearboxes, later replaced by twin Fords on hydraulic gearboxes but retaining the original gear levers. She is a motorsailer with main and headsail of almost equal dimensions.

Her design is modelled from Jack’s previous launch the Pacific, which his father had built by Joe Slattery. Layout is practical with galley in the aft dodger area, long settee berths in the saloon coming up to a flat- floored wheelhouse with engines beneath (a bonus of the bridgedeck layout) and master accommodation and head for’d.

Before the Gulf harbour marina was built she would be hauled up at the eastern end of Hobbs Bay on a purpose- built slipway, operated by a winch driven from a Fordson Major tractor. Pacific had the same setup alongside her. Kotanui was the first boat to enter and berth in the new Gulf Harbour marina, followed by the Pacific.

A fixture of the Auckland cruising fleet from her launch until Jack’s death in 1991 at age 84, Bob Salthouse notes that her presence “opened a few eyes” leading to further commissions of fine, large launches.

Kotanui is now berthed on the marina in Milford, with very few alterations (refer 2012 photo ex Alan Houghton)

Scroll down to view 2 home movies of Kotanui 

Classic Launch Old Movie Footage – Pacific

Video

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Some ‘old’ home movie footage, of Pacific, note the varnished cabin top, we like that 🙂
Supplied by Nathan Herbert

Update from Grant Burrell

This movie is taken around 1960 before the wheel house cabin was extended and the stern cabin had canvas sides. The cabin was never varnished but my Grand Father painted an imitation fake painted wood grain, It did look good, worked well on a swing mooring but the dark paint dried the timber when on the marina.