Category Archives: Events

Waitemata Woodys hits 4,000,000 views and celebrates with a gallery of over 100 classic wooden boat photos

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If you think being passionate about wooden boats is niche – think again, there are a lot of us out there. Waitemata Woodys has just passed 4 MILLION views and we celebrate with over 100 classic wooden boating photos

Never in a blue moon when I started this site could I have seen it becoming as popular as it has. Along the way the site has morphed to also become an awesome information source for just about anything connected to wooden boating. Some facts:
4,000,000 views
370,000 people have visited the site, most of them come back – some daily, some weekly, some just when they need to know something
2,469 stories
20,000+ photos published
A 50,000+ photo library
It wouldn’t have happened without in the early days a few fireside chats from people way more worldly in the wooden boating community than myself. The list of people that have shared their family photo albums, stories and knowledge with us is huge and  the site just wouldn’t be what it is today without these people.
I’ve made so many friends, and been fortunate to rub shoulders with a lot of you in person.
So where to from here?, I would be a lier if I said I had not considered pulling the pin a few times, its a big ask publishing a wooden boating story 365 days of the year, but for every one dark day when I’m questioning why I do it – I have 100 days where someone tells me that the first thing they do every every morning is check out Waitemata Woodys, or that they print the stories and once a week when they visit grandad they read them to him, because he is nearly blind, or when we uncover the provenance of someones boat, or when we find someones long lost family boat etc etc
Aside from thanking you all for your support and asking you to keep following Waitemata Woodys – I only have one request – please keep sending us your stories & photos – you may be thinking they won’t mean much to us, but at some stage, someone will send in something and SNAP, they match & we have the makings of a great story. Email them to   waitematawoodys@gmail.com
The following link takes you to a Waitemata Woodys story that epitomises all that’s good about the site – you wouldn’t find content like this anywhere else – it’s gold
And in answer to all the emails re when I will be doing another Waitemata Woodys t-shirt run – the answer is before Christmas, so start saving your pennies. I’ll do another post soon re taking orders 🙂
Again many thanks to everyone. I hope you all still enjoy the site as much as I do pulling it all together. Shortly I will be sharing with you some exciting news on how WW will become even more relevant to wooden boat owners, but for now I have pulled together a random selection of 101 woody photos that have appeared on the site – enjoy 🙂
Alan Houghton – founder
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Mavis

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MAVIS

Chris Manning sent in the top photo of Mavis, as built by Ernie Lane in Picton in 1919 & advised she is still alive & living in Havelock.

Greg Noble also sent me the above photos of Mavis on a ‘buck’s’ cruise (love that description of a boys trip), the photos come from Greg’s grandad, Perceval Noble, journal. 

In a previous WW story on the launch Maxie, in the WW comments section – Gavin Pascoe question if Mavis was the motor launch that took part in the early days racing at the Evans Bay Yacht & Motor Boat Club (1919 onwards),  can anyone comment / confirm this?

Check out the below flyer – cool woody events like this are why if you aren’t already, you need to join the Classic Yacht Association. As the Irish say “the craic will be mighty”

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The Gables Hotel, Russell, Bay of Islands + Mystery Launch

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The Gables Russell, BOI

The Gables Hotel, Russell, Bay of Islands + Mystery Launch

Today’s photo of the Russell foreshore,  comes to us from Lawry Williams via the ‘Old North Auckland / Northland fb page.
Anyone able to ID the launch on the beach? The canoe stern should help.
Recently I hosted one of the worlds foremost boating photographers onboard Raindance. We were out shadowing the CYA classic yacht race fleet. At some stage I’m sure Ben’s photos will appear somewhere very public. He was very taken with Waitangi, the most photographed yacht on the day. Ben snapped a photo of Raindance – see below, probably the only photo I won’t remove the photographers tattoo from 🙂
Alan Houghton at Helm of RAINDANCE
Also out on the day was the RNZYS photo boat, who kindly shared with me some photos they took, the one below I like a lot (enhanced a little by mate Chris Miller, the light was poor)
Raindance 1-RNZYS- CM

2018 Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition – The New Zealand Sailing Dinghy

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2018 Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition – The New Zealand Sailing Dinghy

This years Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition, hosted by Tino Rawa Trust, at Karanga Plaza in Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter, was a 3 day celebration of the New Zealand Sailing Dinghy.
The event showcased many of the successful designs that created our world class sailors & formed the backbone of your sailing clubs.
I went along on Friday morning to the opening morning tea 🙂 & rubbed shoulders with some of our wooden boating legends, these morning teas are always a special treat. We were entertained by another of Robert Brookes talks – always beautiful delivered & an entertaining insight into Auckland’s sailing past. If you have not seen Robert’s & the Brooke families latest book ‘Memories – Roads of Destiny’ (WW link below) grab a copy at Boat Books in Westhaven – its a must have / read.
I’ll let the photos tell the story of the show – enjoy.
Brooke Book Link

Alert

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Alert HDML

Alert
Yesterday as part of the story on the HDML – Kuparu, I ran a link to Zaps Zander’s impressive blog on Navy vessels. Zaps has asked for some help from the WW readers, in the above photo we see a large white vessel rafted alongside the ferries, now some people think it is an ML (Alert Q1189) and some say not? The question of the day is – is it Alert? Zaps is pretty sure she would have been in Dunedin around the time of this photo, as the road construction behind is before 1959 when the Auckland Harbour Bridge opened.
Any one able to help out, & if its not Alert, who is it?
The photo also is a sad reminder of the fleet of awesome harbour ferries we lost, just imagine the tourist attraction if they were around these days…………….

Update from John Bullivant – below is a selection of photos of ‘Alert’. The colour photo with the ferries looks to have been  taken from a similar spot as the one you put up. Think they buried them in the early 1970’s, they were mostly cut up when I rescued some Kauri off them for wood turning.

Input from Russell Ward – more photos below, Russell believes she was used by the sea scouts in Dunedin. Later owned by Ernie Davis Mayor of Auckland. Chiseled out of him on some deal and there was a memorable photo of her on a rock in the Gulf at an impossible angle – Russell will try & find it. Russell thinks she has been updated and sold for a pittance in Dunedin and was also heard of up in Auckland (confirmed by Cameron Pollard) on offer for a lot more. Two Isuzu diesels for the zoom zoom.

 

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Input from Linus Flemin – the current skipper of the ML Alert. (Q1189)
The research I have done would also suggest that this is Alert alongside the ferries and at this time belonged to Sir Ernie Davis. Alert was one of the first HDMLs to be sold by the Navy post war 1947. Alec Black of Dunedin was the first owner who converted her for charter work.( I think Ernie purchased her around 1959) We Know she went south again around 1980 for deer recovery in Fiordland owned by Jim Kane, and has been in Bluff and Fiordland for the past 30 years. Anymore history would be greatly appreciated.
Alert is currently receiving much needed love at Kopu Marine. Photo below.
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07-10-2018 Update from owner Linus Fleming – the new photos below, in his eyes confirm that the vessel is Alert.
Alert at baileys 1961
Alert
Interested in reading more on all things Motor Launch, be they serving in the Navy or in civvy hands. (over 250 photo’s and 50+ stories and tech data / links to other ML pages) Check out the link below
 

http://rednaz1958.blogspot.com/2016/03/composite-list-of-hdmls-still-active.html

 
And if you are looking for eye candy – check out the link below to the 2018 Victoria Classic Boat Festival in British Columbia – stunning.
 
DON’T FORGET THE NZ SAILING DINGHY EXHIBITION IS ON THIS WEEKEND – I WENT YESTERDAY, VERY IMPRESSIVE – DETAILS BELOW
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East Wind + A woody weekend

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East Wind
In a recent WW story the Lake Rotoiti location of ‘Honeymoon Bay’ was mentioned, this prompted woody Paul Drake to send in the above photo (dated Feb 2017) of one of his families lake boats – East Wind. She has been in the their ownership for nearly 50 years but little is known about her provenance.
Looking For A Woody Experience This Weekend?
It has become a bit of a tradition that on the weekend following the Auckland on the water boat show the team at the Tino Rawa Trust host a classic boating event at Auckland’s Viaduct (Karanga Plaza, at the waterfront end of Halsey St.). This years theme / focus is the New Zealand sailing dinghy. The event is open to the public on Friday 5th, Saturday 6th & Sunday 7th October | 10am to 4pm and entry is free.
These exhibitions are always a not to be missed gig on the classic woody calendar, so do make an effort to visit and see the cream of our small classic fleet on display. Details below 
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Wooden Boating VIP On The Waitemata

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Wooden Boating VIP On The Waitemata

Today I hosted Ben Mendlowitz on Raindance, Ben is the number one wooden boat photographer in the world & shoots for just about every boating magazine there is & produces the world famous “Calendar of WoodenBoats’ + has authored dozens of books on the subject.
While in New Zealand Ben was keen to photograph some of our classic fleet, so we headed out yesterday to catch the classic division of the RNZYS Winter Series race.
Ben will have some stunning photos, I was just the driver today so only took a few, very average photos – I did however capture 2 rare events:
1. Thelma going a ground off Stanley Point – some very red faces
2. Jason Prew venturing forward of the mast on Rawene – he didn’t look comfortable 🙂
Photos below – enjoy
THE NEW ZEALAND SAILING DINGHY EXHIBITION
In case you missed it – in 2 weeks (Oct 5>7th) is the annual Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition at the Viaduct – this year the theme is ‘The New Zealand Sailing Dinghy’ – I’ll post more on the event during the week – but right now Tony Stevenson is doing a call out to anybody interested in displaying their classic NZ designed and built sailing dinghy, yacht class information or memorabilia.
Please contact Tony Stevenson tonys@nwv.co.nz  or 021 977 456
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Te Whara

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TE WHARA
 
Each year for the last 5 years in February I have attended the Lake Rotoiti Classic and Wooden Boat Parade, each year there are always several boats that ‘ring my bell’, one in particular is – Te Whara, the 32’, 1916 Bailey & Lowe built launch. Te Whara is not your typical lake boat, in my eyes she needs to be on the Waitemata & she could be – she is for sale. Firstly some details.
 
Te Whara was built by Bailey & Lowe at their yard at Sulphur Beach, Northcote in January 1916 for the Drummond brothers of Whangarei. Her first engine was a 10hp and probably a Sterling for which Bailey & Lowe were the agents. In February 1916 she was sailed up to Whangarei where she was based (always kept under cover). Originally flush-decked, Te Whara was taken back to Bailey & Lowe in the 1920’s where the wheelhouse area and companionway to the top deck was altered. She has the first rack-and-pinion steering ever fitted in Auckland. In 1972 she was refitted with the current 6 cylinder 106hp diesel which pushes her to around 10 knots. Owners Bruce Stewart and Andy Coupe purchased this launch (sporting a very rough paint job) in March 2005 for $40,000 and, after sailing her down from Whangarei harbour, spent a month sanding and repainting her at Orams in Auckland. After a short few months interlude in Auckland, Te Whara was launched at Lake Rotoiti in June 2005 and is now moored at Gisborne Pt. When searching for a launch, Bruce and Andy wanted a rear wheelhouse so that the helmsman and fisherman could be together. Of particular appeal was the elegant saloon, which runs from the engine bay to the bow. Te Whara still has the original interior fit out, including the porcelain ‘head’.
 
In 2013 Te Whara was lifted out of the lake and taken for a $25,000 re-paint and re-fit. The original canvas waterproofing on the decks was removed and the decks glassed. All other hull and deck timbers are original and in good condition. Unfortunately, being on a mooring and exposed to the weather takes it’s toll on Te Whara. In addition, Bruce and Andy are getting older and are beginning to find it more difficult to manage, and it is for these reasons that Te Whara is offered for sale for $35,000, or swap for a smaller classic launch.
 
I took the above photos of Te Whara at the 2015 & 2018 Parades. Come on woodys, lets bring her back to the Waitemata or alternatively she is a very cheap floating bach at the lake 🙂
 
Interested parties can contact Andy at.    andy@coupe.co.nz
 
 
 

15-09-2021 UPDATE – photos below sent in by Bill Upfold, whose client Grant Faber has one of Bill’s launches – Te Whara V, named after his grandfather, the original owner of Te Whara. Grant has named all of his boats Te Whara.
The b/w photos show Te Whara with Cape Te Whara (Whangarei Head) in the background. The photos are mounted on Grants saloon bulkhead.

Kotimana

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KOTIMANA
On my last visit to the NZ Traditional Boatbuilding School I got chatting to one of the trustees – Kere Kemp & he casually dropped in that he was building a Dark Harbor 17 1/2’. Thats cool I thought & then I discover its being built in Port Hadlock out on the Olympic peninsula oppposite Seattle, Washington USA.
The yachts name is Kotimana – Maori for scotch thistle in recognition of Kere’s mother – Scottish, and his dad – Maori.
Kere commissioned her in September 2016 at the end of a post-retirement year at the North West School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Port Hadlock.
She was built by the classes of 2017 and 2018, & was launched at Point Hudson Marina, Port Townsend on August 29th. She is heading down under but with a few stops on the way – firstly Kotimana will be on display at the 42nd Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, second weekend of September and will then head via container to the 2019 Australian Wooden Boat Festival in early 2019 before finally making it home to Auckland in mid February 2019.
For those of you scratching your head thinking “what is a Dark Harbour 17-1/2 below is a description excerpted from a pre-launch write up that the NWSWB wrote when announcing the launch.
Dark Harbour 17-1/2

Originally designed for the Manchester Yacht Club in Massachusetts USA and called the Manchester 17, the first boats were built by the Rice Bros in 1908. As the design’s popularity spread it acquired a number of different names including the Bar Harbor 17 and eventually the Dark Harbor 17-1/2. The plans for this yacht are credited to BB Crowninshield and were completed by R. N. Burbank, an employee of the firm at the time.

 
The Dark Harbor 17-1/2 is a pure sailing machine of great beauty, but large enough to offer considerably more comfort through a larger cockpit well and a small cuddy cabin. Low freeboard combined with a wide, self-bailing cockpit well that seats you “down in” the boat puts you very close to the water. The lovely, slender hull lines, long ends, deep draft and large rig provide wonderfully sweet feel in this powerful, fast, wet, responsive and handy boat.

BB Crowninsheild was a US Naval Architect from the late 1800’s / early 1900’s who designed a number of boats including an America’s Cup contender and the largest ever steel hulled sailing boat (just prior to the introduction of the steam engine to sail boats).
Kerry commented that he fell in love with the lines of a Dark Harbor back in 2010 and decided that he would ultimately build one for himself.  Sanity eventually crept in and he commissioned her instead – Kerry was able to do some work on her prior to his move to New Zealand in mid 2017.
I’ll get a sneak preview of her at the Australian Wooden Boat Festival in Feb 2019 so will update this story with more photos.
Kotimana will be a magnificent additional to Auckland’s classic fleet.

The Restoration of Kate

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The Restoration of Kate

I have been recently contacted by Bernard Rhodes in regard to the yacht Kate – I’ll let Bernard tell the story –

“From the 1860s onwards, sailing cutters, schooners and ketches gradually replaced Maori canoes as the principal means of transport around our coasts, till steamers in turn replaced them for passengers, and scows for bulk cargoes.

The Kate is a rare part of our nautical heritage, being one of only 3 of this once common type still in existence as far as we know. (Her near sister Rewa is displayed indoors in the Auckland Maritime museum, and the Undine is still sailing in the Bay od Islands).

When the Waiheke Working Sail Charitable Trust took over the Kate in 2013 she had a recently added cabin with full headroom and an 8” deep false keel. These made her suitable for conversion into a small sail training ship, giving today’s youth an opportunity to experience travel much as it was 150 years ago.

The restoration and re-purposing are now well under way – the work about 60% complete and the funding 50% with the big ticket items such as engine, sails and compliance to come.

We need another $60,000 to get her sailing.

The Kate’s history and an account of our progress can be found on our website, http://www.waihekeworkingsail.org, click on the brochure at the top. Much of her history was lost the last time she sank, but a surprising number of people have contacted us with stories of her, and we welcome any more.

Earlier this year we hauled her out a second time and fitted a lead ballast keel and new rudder, among  many other tasks. The addition of the cabin has raised the centre of gravity, and the boom needs to be above head height for safety, so the 1 tonne external lead keel will compensate, giving her adequate stability and near-original performance.

The accommodation has been designed for 6 trainees, a master and mate. We anticipate running 5-day Youth Development voyages for 13- to 15- year olds, based on the wonderful programme developed by the Spirit of Adventure Trust. With her relatively small size and simplicity, by the end of the voyage the trainees will be handling the ship themselves, under supervision. The sense of achievement and satisfaction they gain from this will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Recently I re-connected with an old friend, marine artist David Barker, as he visited Waiheke on his launch “Feather”.

I talked of the vision of “Kate” as she will be, outward bound under full sail with a bunch of trainees aboard, and he agreed to do a painting encapsulating the dream.

I have long admired his talent for depicting boats and the sea, for giving an almost magical touch to a beautiful seascape, and I’m excited to be able to share this with you.

You are invited to subscribe to a strictly limited edition of 100 numbered, signed prints suitable for framing. $225.00 each.

When all subscriptions are sold, a draw of one number will win the original framed oil painting, generously donated by David.

This fund is to be spent exclusively on the restoration of the ‘Kate’ for youth sail training on Waiheke Island.”

For an informative card with bank details for payment, a ticket for the draw and for delivery of the print, please email your postal address to info@waihekeworkingsail.org.

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Harold Kidd Input – She was built in 1896 by Thompson & Sons as a sailing fishing boat, and owned successively by J.F. Smith, J Moros (1900) then as a launch by Morgan Bros at Helensville from 1913, Bill and Archie Curel from about 1920. They fitted a K2 Kelvin in 1932 and owned her until WW2 at least at Helensville. To say she’s a near sister of REWA and (by implication) UNDINE is pretty far-fetched (to be polite).

13-10-2021 Update – looking very smart, back under sail