GOLDEN LOTUS – Sailing Sunday

Todays woody story is a long stretch on the WW content tape measure – in fact her only two claims to fame are:

1. She spent a lot of her time in and around the Waitemata Harbour 

2. She appeared on the cover of the September 1962 issue of Sea Spray magazine

Ken Ricketts spotted the article in a pile of Sea Spray back copies and sent it in – and commented – 

“I first saw the GOLDEN LOTUS in the early 1960’s, shortly after she arrived here after a very long protracted 6 month journey, sailing from Hong Kong to Auckland via Mangonui, & we saw her everywhere, all the time, all over the Gulf, with her beautiful glistening  perfectly maintained varnish all over, for a number of years, however have not seen or heard of her many years now.” 

Ken also commented that GOLDEN LOTUS was moored in the Tamaki River for a period, in  her early days according to John Bulivant, presumably still powered by her 2cyl. Lister air cooled diesel engine.

The Sea Spray article is a good read, enjoy and hopefully someone can update us on what became of the GOLDEN LOTUS.

INPUT EX JOHN BULLIVANT –

There is a book on the complete journey of the Golden lotus, from the building to her arrival in NZ, written by Brian Clifford and Neil Illingworth Called ‘The journey of the Golden Lotus’ (printed in 1962). If you can find a copy (as I did a couple of years ago) it’s an excellent read. A great feat of navigation, using only old charts, an old sextant and a watch to sail all the way to NZ from Hong Kong.

I was working on Norfolk island in the late 70s, and 2 of her later kiwi owners lived there, one being Alan Harnish (second owner I believe) and Rick Irvine who owned the Castaway Hotel and local hardware. Rick mentioned Alan was the one who added the cabin extension to her and removed the masts (which destroyed the look) and set her up for diving. He later sold her to Rick who used her for similar pursuits and who had sold her again prior to moving to Norfolk Island.

Not sure what happened to her after that, but there was a junk which looked like her (but with more ugly additions) being used for parties/charter and based in Westhaven about 12 or more years ago, and was advertised on Trade me for sale at one time as having been imported. It was a shame that after surviving the trip from Hong Kong, that she ended up being converted to a power junk. Always looked beautiful with her varnished hull and maroon sails, sailing down the Tamaki River in the 60s before she was modified.

22-03-2026 INPUT ex MARK MCLAUGHLIN – Further to the “where is she now” questions about the Golden Lotus on today’s post, here are some pics that turned up recently on the Panmure and Whangateau Facebook pages that shows her hauled up in a paddock in Waiuku.

25-03-2026 UPDATE EX GRAHAM CLIFFORD via SHAUN CONNOLLY

The Voyage of the Golden Lotus was indeed an absorbing account of a remarkable voyage of adventure and discovery.  It was deservedly a Reeds Publishers’ best seller of 1962/63, pre-selling thousands of copies at 22 shillings and 6 pence each.   However, in 2018 I decided to re-publish it with an additional 30,000 words plus new and larger photos which had previously not been seen in print.  It became simply ‘Voyage of the Golden Lotus’  a “modern, revised edition by original crew member, Graham Clifford.”  It contains the same narrative as my brother’s original story and was prepared in collaboration with him.  It is a handsome, 300 page account printed on Muncken Cream paper with images in black and white and in colour.

So that’s the good news.  The bad news is, the first edition has sold out.  If I had enough advance orders (no deposits, pay later) I could easily produce a second printing.  It is published by    tidelinetales@xtra.co.nz

Here are some facts about Golden Lotus as I understand them.    After serving with four individual owners the boat was sold in 1997 to a resident of Waiuku.  It was transported overland from Half Moon Bay marina and set up on a cradle on the new owner’s lawn beside his house.  I believe it to be still there.  It pains me to            reflect that such a lovely hull so soundly constructed by skilled Chinese shipwrights using only unpowered tools has been out of water for nearly thirty years.  What could this boat of many adventures have done to deserve such an appalling fate?

About 2020 I wrote to the Maritime Museum of New Zealand outlining the basics of the Golden Lotus adventures of 1962 and suggesting there might be someone known to them who might be interested in obtaining Golden Lotus with a view to restoration.  Perhaps the museum board itself might acknowledge that the voyage  was remarkable for the times and very much associated with Auckland itself.  It was and is a unique part of New Zealand maritime history.  I have had no reply.

The observation that Golden Lotus was de-masted and became a powered junk is news to me.   Yes, she suffered awful abuse after we sold her when subsequent owners built a horrible and ugly closed doghouse over the spacious cockpit.  Another owner demolished this and replaced it with a similar structure equally abhorrent.  I despair.  What Golden Lotus really deserves is a re-build back to the lovely lines she carried for 18,000 kms over three oceans and seven seas to New Zealand.  A renovation which restores her dignity.  She was built very close to the sea and facing it so she could become used to her new environment; she has not seen the sea for nearly thirty years. 

Golden Lotus has a teak hull up to one plank above the waterline and all decking.  Yacal hardwood from Borneo is used elsewhere.  She has a fine entry and sweeps gracefully up to a raised transom.   She proved her strength and abilities in two massive ocean storms in the South China Sea and in mid-Tasman, mid winter. In the latter she was knocked down but came upright with no damage.  These adventures and much much more are detailed in an entertaining narrative in the revised edition of the book. 

Golden Lotus was one of the last wooden ships built at Hong Kong.