Category Archives: 36′>38′

Chinook

Posted on by
3

20200110_071625

20191126_072508

CHINOOK

Today’s woody is named Chinook and owned by Woodrow Bould (great name). Woodrow has been told that she may have been built by Parson/s? She is approx. 37’6” in length and carvel built from kauri.

Woodrow has owned Chinook for just over 5 years, having purchased her from a gent in Whangamata, who didn’t have a lot of detail about her history.

Onboard Woodrow found a bunch of old game fishing log books, an old advertisement for her sale back in the 1990’s, loads of interesting manuals etc, but nothing that gave him any solid information about the designer. When surveyed, the surveyor spoke of her being over-build, with twice as many ribs than she needs.
The forward motion comes from a Ford Dover 135hp diesel engine with a Lee’s marine conversion. 
Woodrow is keen to learn more about the history of the boat e.g. who designed her, where she was built, any interesting owners she may have had, etc. He commented that they used to own a Pied Piper named – Jim Beam, and it seemed that every famous sailor in New Zealand had raced on her at some stage or another. So he has come from a situation where he knew everything to now owning a boat where he knows next to nothing.
Chinook is a pretty boat i.e. one that gets noticed, so I’m sure we can help him out.
Harold Kidd Input – Jack Parsons 1957 at Tauranga.
 
 
 

Maureen II + Off Center Harbor Wet Sunday Treat

Posted on by
7

Repaint_Completed Jan 2013

MAUREEN II
 

One of the many woodys that contacted WW for a copy of Chris McMullen’s docking tips was Mike Empson, owner of – Maureen II, a Matangi, built c1967-68 by Brin Wilson. Maureen II is 100% kauri, 36′ long and weighs approx. 9 tonnes.

Mike has been in touch with people connected to the Brin Wilson yard and been told she may have been built for someone connected to Ross Reid Contractors – that woodys is all Mike and wife Ann know about her, so would love to uncover more information on the vessel.

 
Mike has commented that he believes these boats were originally built with timber masts and timber lifeline stanchions, but Maureen II has had retro-fitted aluminium mast & boom, plus stainless lifeline stanchions. It has roller-boom reefing and a roller furling headsail.
 
Power is via a Ford 4-cyl E592 industrial stationary engine, marinised when new, by Lees Marine, fresh-water cooled. These engines were also used on the UK 4-cyl Ford Trader trucks, in the mid to late 1950’s and also on Fordson Major tractors.
Transmission is through a Parsons Marine-o-matic HG4 Mk 2 hydraulic transmission and she has a 1.75” bronze prop-shaft which is 11’6″ long. She is set up with dual station steering, which comprises a truck steering box with a long under-floor shaft, connected by chains to the two steering stations; one inside and the other in the cockpit.
WOODY WET SUNDAY TREAT 
 

As you know I’m a big fan of the website – Off Center Harbor, the site is probably best known for jaw dropping boat tours and in-depth how-to series, but the OCH lads also know how to slow down and soak up the scenery. Given the craziness of the last 5 weeks I have found myself trolling the OCH online library more than ever, looking to a cure to my boat less blues. I have some favourites that I would be embarrassed to say how many times I have viewed 🙂

Last week one that popped up again was the OCH lads doing an early morning mooch around the fleet at anchor at last summers Eggemoggin Reach Regatta in Maine. The stunning classic woodys are basking in a golden glow at dawn after the previous days racing and partying. It reminds me very much of Saturday morning at our own Mahurangi Reggata.
Chatting with Steve Stone from OCH, I mentioned the comparison as Steve was at the Mahurangi Regatta in 2019 and Steve kindly offered to supply a link to the ERR video – view it here  CLICK HERE 
 
Screen Shot 2020-05-03 at 6.42.50 AM
Early in the lock-down the OCH guys put together a special deal for waitemata woodys to help us out while we are boat less. Well the good news it is still on offer – so if you haven’t already joined up, do it today – link here 8-week membership with full access to the entire website for just $5 NZD. They’re also including an optional upgrade to an annual membership at the end of the 8 weeks at 50% off.
Woodys, signing up to OCH will be the 2nd best woody thing you have done – after discovering WW 🙂

Woodys On Tour – Halls Boat Yard, New York

Posted on by
Reply

Woodys On Tour – Halls Boat Yard, New York

A few years ago, woodys Jim and Karin Lott were ‘parked up’ with the masts on deck in their kauri ketch – Victoria, on the Hudson River. More specifically in the middle of New York State in a city called Albany. The Lott’s waited there for three weeks for the Erie Canal to open. Jim commented that Albany definitely does not feature on anyone’s ‘place to go’ list. They were not alone as Wellington old salt Richard Watt and his wife Enid anchored alongside them in their launch (photo below of both boats), as well as dozens of other impatient US and Canadian sailors.

To while away the time they hired a car and headed to Lake George to look at woodies at Halls Boatyard, one of the many inland homes of wooden boats in New York. Jim commented  that floating boat garages are common in North America and they spent several hours admiring a sea of varnished ash, cedar, spruce and mahogany. There was a slipway and boatyard all under cover inside the shed complex. The yard specialises in rebuilding and restoring classic motor-launches but a few yachts were getting the same TLC.

After the long wait, the canal stayed closed so they had to forgo the Great Lakes and continued up the Hudson. Eventually they locked into Lake Champlain and down the Richelieu River to the St Lawrence near Montreal in Canada.

01 Kiwis up the creek

Kerikeri Wharf

Posted on by
3

Scan_20171225 - Copy (3)

Scan_20171225 (2) - Copy

KERIKERI WHARF

 

Todays photos come to us from Nathan Herbert and show a small flotilla of woodys that regularly cruised together – the boats being – Kudu, Lynmar, Kotanui, Haunui, and Valhalla. On this cruise Rakanoa was present also but had not made the trip up the river for provisions, she decided to ’stay out’ at anchor.

 
Nathan commented that Kotanui was always the ‘pilot’ boat for the Kerikeri river being as his grandfather – Jack Hobbs had been up so many times over the years in Pacific, now owned by Nathan.
 
Dulcie Dennes (Valhalla) told Nathan that on this particular trip, the men were sent up to Kerikeri township to get groceries, and forgot them altogether, instead spending the whole time at the pub. They had to hitch a ride on an orchard truck back down to the Stone Store basin, a few sheets to the wind…  I understand not all the men were guilty – Jack and Harry Julian had stayed at the boats to keep an eye on them.
 
Yesterdays Best Caption Competition
The comments section on WW only ever goes a maximum of 15 (the last 15) comments, so I have reproduced them below. Given Flora’s on / off relationship with the boys in blue – her winner is Matthew Drake.  
Screen Shot 2020-04-17 at 5.26.38 PM
Click to view / enlarge the below 🙂 Thanks for all the entries
 

Antique & Wooden Boat Festival – Contact Less Home Delivery of 70 photos

Posted on by
1

20181010_162637

Antique & Wooden Boat Festival – Contact Less Home Delivery of 70 photos 🙂
 
Today woodys you get to go to a antique & wooden boat festival without leaving your couch.
In 2019 Alan Sexton visited the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St Michaels, Maryland and has shared his photo collection from the trip.
Enjoy.
 
You can see / read more on the museum here.  http://cbmm.org

 
Interesting input below from a woody in regard to the BOI woody that was intercepted by the boys in blue rowing the 100 yards to check on his boat.
 
“Security is listed as an essential service. There seems to be no restrictions on who can undertake the service, and the ‘premises’ being provided with security services do not have to be part of an essential activity.

Question is – can a boat be considered to be a premise?

Checking the mooring strop, flapping halyards, bilge pumps etc is part of normal boat security, particularly when grumpy weather is forecast or has just been.”

Manunui

Posted on by
1

Screen Shot 2020-03-28 at 12.05.11 PM

Screen Shot 2020-03-28 at 12.05.28 PM

Screen Shot 2020-03-28 at 12.05.48 PM

MANUNUI

Todays’ story on Manunui comes to us from the ‘desk’ of Paul Drake – as always, well written so I’ll pass over to Paul.

 “Arriving at Taupo for our annual holiday one January in the late 1950’s, my brothers and I were intrigued to see a very unusual looking new commercial boat on the scene.   Before we knew her name, we kids called her ‘The Ugly Boat’.  She turned out to have a proper name – MANUNUI – after the saw milling town just out of Taumarunui.   It was there that she was built by the manager of said sawmill, Basil Maude.

Basil’s hobby was building boats, but he rarely got more than about three-quarters of the way through before losing interest.  MANUNUI was the exception.  He wished to see how big a boat he could build out of plywood.  He had the plywood made at his mill from selected timber.   Her bottom had two sheets of ply each twenty feet long , six feet wide, and one and a quarter inches thick. She measured 36 feet by 12 feet.

She had to be chunky and strong because Basil had two Allison Kittyhawk 12-cylinder aeroplane engines which he wanted to fit.   He designed and built the double gearbox himself.  It measured eight feet by three feet by two feet deep.   At the last minute the plan changed and the two gallons per minute Allisons were wisely ditched in favour of Ford V8s. But the gear box remained – larger than the two engines.   This most fascinating gearbox was mounted forward of the engines with the propeller shafts running back under the engines.   Chains were involved, and each propeller was operated independently of the other in the normal way.  MANUNUI was the first diesel powered launch on the lake (so it is said) and also the first commercial plywood boat to operate on the lake.

In the good old days when fishermen would club together and charter a launch for five day expeditions to Taupo’s Western Bay, MANUNUI was a very successful and busy charter launch under her very capable skipper Ron Houghton.

The original canvas arrangement over the aft end was eventually replaced with the rather functional effort shown in the second photo. In about 1970 a whole new cabin appeared.   Shortly afterwards MANUNUI was sold to New Plymouth.   I wonder if she survives?   Somehow I doubt it.

Much of this information is contained in ’Boats of Taupo’ by Charles Cox.

 

Lady Shirley

Posted on by
9

IMG_4935

IMG_4936

LADY SHIRLEY (Catherine S)

The above b/w photos show the then police launch Lady Shirley, the ’ship’ in the background is the Rangitata. The photo is dated 1940-49 and most likely taken by D. Marsh. The 36’ bridge-decker, Lady Shirley was built by C. Bailey & Son in 1938.
The first photo below I took at the 2020 CYA Classic Yacht Regatta. In the second photo she is her moored  in Opito Bay, BOI – summer 2019/20.
You can read / view more at the WW links below
IMG_4486 copy
Lady Shirley BOI Jan2019
02-04-2020 Update ex Greg Lees – Greg recently acquired this very cool ‘ship-in-a-bottle’ model of Rangitira
IMG_1691
Nigel Drake sent me the funny below – pretty well sums things up in our house.
image0
ISOLATION – Such stunning weather and no boating 😦
For a long time I have been ‘collecting’ old boat hooks, you can pick one up for $20>30. Normally the hook end is bronze and in good condition, a good polish and they look like new – to buy the head at Fosters would cost around $150. So today I started to give a few a make-cover. I have to say, what ever the old boys used to ‘varnish’ them with, is bloody hard to get off, lots of 80 grit did the trick.
I suspect this will be the last project before I get transferred to domestic duties e.g. working on the house 🙂

Wooden Boats @ Whangarei Town Basin

Posted on by
6

IMG_4671

IMG_4670

IMG_4681

IMG_4667

IMG_4688

IMG_4689

Wooden Boats @ Whangarei Town Basin

Two weeks ago David Cooke and myself pointed the car north and did a day trip to Whangarei to view a few candidates for listing with the Wooden Boat Bureau. We were blessed with a stunning day, which made the quay side area at the Town Basin very pleasing to the eye. As we mooched around I snapped the above photos. With the boats shed owners taste in decorating you cant miss them 😉
A nice mix of sail and power, with a lot of live aboards.
I was pleased to see James Mobberley’s old classic – Falcon on a pile mooring, one day she will come back to her home – the Waitemata 🙂
WBB0003_Banner-980x160

Alana – Where Is She

Posted on by
7

89872448_902009716921151_9218908934474039296_n

Alana.transom

Alana ready for liftout

Alana liftout

Alana.launch day

Alana.launched

90018422_305286440454683_3712816386339241984_n

ALANA – Where Is She
 
Recently I was contacted by Al Laslett regarding the launch – Alana, that his grandfather, Alan Laslett, owned in the 1950’s. Subsequent correspondence with Al’s mother, Anne Palmer (nee Laslett), has uncovered the above photos and intel on the vessel below.
 
Alana  was built in the 1950’s in the backyard at, Anne believes 54 Tarawera Tce., St Heliers or on a property nearby. Anne it not sure of the exact date she was launched, but believes it was before mid 1958. Anne believes that Alana was kauri planked and her mother once told her it was approx. 36’ > 40’ in length.
 
Anne’s father, Alan, was quarry manager for McCallum Bros. on Pakihi Island from approx. 1958 until his sudden death in May 1960 (heart attack). He had separated from his wife, and was waiting for the divorce to come through when he died.  Because he was still legally married, the launch passed to his wife Elsie and the family do not know what happened to her after that – presumably sold. The family has tried several times to find where she is now, but to no avail.  The only reference they know is a single mention in a Radio Hauraki news bulletin in the 1980’s about a cabin fire on a launch called Alana on the Waitemata Harbour.
The unusual cabin design was because Anne’s father was a very tall man and specifically built a cabin where he could not hit his head. She was rigged for deep sea fishing, but Alan never got the chance to do that. Alan died just before his 50th birthday, at the time Anne was only 19 months old and her sister was 6 weeks old. Sadly Anne has no memories of my father or the launch, only the old photos above.    
In the photo at the wharf at Pakihi Island, Alan is the tall, balding man at the back, is full name was Alan Edgar Laslett. He used to drive taxis in Auckland just before he and Anne’s mother went to Pakihi Island. 
 
So woodys – big call out today – Anne and her son Al, would love to find the Alana and if possible see her in person – I’ll give a WW t-shirt to the woody that provides the best intel.
30-03-2020 Update / Input from Anne Palmer

Anne was sent the photo below from her cousin David who lives in Australia. David commented that the boat was nearing completion in the backyard of Alan & Elsie’s property at Tarawera Terrace, St. Heliers, taken in December 1955.
David H and Alan's boat St Heliers Dec 1955
WBB0003_Banner-980x160
 

 

Annalisa

Posted on by
3

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 8.53.09 PM

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 8.54.15 PM

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 8.54.57 PM

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 8.54.40 PM

ANNALISA
Annalisa was launched in 1960 and is a 36’ Roy Parris built launch.
Powered by a Ford 120hp Lees diesel engine. Current home is Mangonui, Northland and that woodys is all we know about this woody.
Can anyone tell us more about Annalisa’s past?
(thanks to Ian MacDonald for the tme heads up)
WBB0003_Banner-980x160