Category Archives: Launches

Lake Rotoiti – Okawa Bay Holiday Camp 

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Lake Rotoiti – Okawa Bay Holiday Camp 

Today’s photo showcases a classic kiwi boating scene, this time on Lake Rotoiti. Given the appearance of several jet boats and the cars in the background, I would guess the date as the late 1960’s.
Anyone able to pin the date down and also ID the woodys seen middle right side of the photo.
During the CV-19 lock-down I spotted the photo below of KZ-7, New Zealand’s first tilt at uplifting the Americas Cup in Perth. The boat on the trailer was actually a life-size model that toured the country as a part of a fund raising roadshow. I was involved in the marketing of the challenge back then, hell 30+ years ago. The photo prompted me to find a model I had of KZ-7. No kneels on show as it was all very hush hush back then.
As part of the campaign there was an extensive range of branded merchandise the public could buy to support the team, everything from t-shirts to replica solid silver cups. Now you would have thought apparel would have been the #1 seller but no woodys, biggest selling item was branded tea-spoons. Seems there was (might still be?) this worldwide group of people that collected tea-spoons, didn’t matter what was on it – just had to have the newest one to add to their collection.
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Puff

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PUFF

Bay of Islands woody Dean Wright – was another one sorting through the photo collection, looking for something else and uncovered the above photos of Puff, moored up the Kerikeri River.
At first glance you would have to assume the builder / owner had shares in a foundry, there is a lot of bronze on display 🙂
Can anyone tell us more about Puff?
Photo below ex Jason Prew
Puff JP
Yesterday I managed to sneak in a trip to Herald Island to give Raindance a run after two months of CV-19 lock-down. Not a lot of boats out, but I did run into Tim Jackson, who was doing the same thing aboard his launch – Bessie Florence (below).
As chance would have it, Tim had a wee present for me – that is the second time Tim has passed over (in a fishing net) an item in the middle of the harbour. Someone looking on from Birkenhead would be starting to think there was a regular drug deal going down 🙂
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Seriously Cool Steam Boat

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Seriously Cool Steam Boat

The above steam boat, owned by Hamilton engineer, Chris Cooper recently popped up on a fb post of Geoff Lewis’s.
All I know, but I can hear Russell Ward duping as you read this, is that Chris rebuilt the boat from a wreck. It has a tripe-expansion engine, in my ignorance I hope it is coal or wood fired and not diesel – I would love this as a retirement boat on a lake…………..
Hopefully we will find out more about her.
AND WOODYS WE CAN GO BOATING AGAIN – NO PRIZE FOR GUESSING WHAT I WILL BE DOING THIS AFTERNOON
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Duchess

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DUCHESS
Another story ex the CV-19 lock-down. This time Kerry Alexander was having a cleaning out of old photos and came across the above ones of Duchess, the 1920 Bailey & Lowe built launch.
Location of the top two photos is Browns Bay beach and we see Duchess being hauled out. Kerry commented that he recalls that the photos are from the late 1960’s, when you were allowed to launch and haul out from the beach. Can you imagine the fuss if you tried doing that these days.
At the time Duchess was owned by Kerry’s boss, boatbuilder Keith Atikinson, Kerry can not recall how Keith ‘acquired’ her.
The haulage was being done by Alan Reid but the Atikinson yard used to use Ron Hogan and sometimes Winstones.
In the bottom photo Duchess is sitting outside the Atikinson shed at 25 Bute Road, Browns Bay, Auckland – she later moved into the shed.
In the photo below from a WW post back in June 2016 (link below), we see Duchess when owned by Graham (Snow) Steven – the photo was sent in by Graham’s nephew – Geoff Steven, who took the photo.
So woodys – is Geoff Steven’s photo pre or post Kerry’s?
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Kotare

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Frank Wilkins
Frank & grandson Glenn
Glenn takes the helm
1st mate – Glenn
KOTARE 
Back in June 2014 WW was approached with a request for intel on the 28’ kauri planked launch Kotare, a poplar name for boats. At the time Harold Kidd was able to tell us that she was designed by Bill Couldrey in 1960 for Frank Wilkins of Church St., Northcote to build for himself.  Wilkins launched her in October 1961 with a 45hp BMC diesel. Subsequent owners included Phil Prouse in 1997 when she had a BMC Tempest 62hp diesel.
We also learnt that Sharon Prentice also owned Kotare, her brother-in-law Geoff Prentice made the new smaller mast that you now see on her.
Back in 2014 she was based in Kerikeri. Recently she popped up on Lew Redwood’s fb, via a post by Joan Jameson on the ‘NorthShore, NZ Histories & Memories’ fb. Jameson posted the above photos of Kotare and Frank Wilkins during his ownership period.
Photos below from Kerikeri.
Can anyone update us on Kotare’s current location and ownership?
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Tangmere Finds Her Way Home

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TANGMERE FINDS HER WAY HOME

Back in May 2017, WW helped two woodys uncover some of the history on a launch that they were about to start a restoration on. The vessel was the 1949, Shipbuilders built launch Tangmere. 

 

You can read that story and see a great collection of photos from Tangmere’s past at this link. https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/05/23/tangmere-2/
Read the comments section – lots of chat. The boat changed hands several times in the period 2018 > early 2019 and I can now report she is back with its original owners family, the Endean’s  –  we like that 🙂
Today’Cs story is another that comes to us as a result of the lock-down we have all been in for the last 6 weeks. Via Harold Kidd I received a note from Bill Endean advising that his brother Richard had used the lock-down for good purpose and uncovered the above photos of Tangmere. Chatting with Bill he commented that the hull of Tangmere now sits at their farm shed in Warkworth, about to be restored. 
Bill is a past commodore of the RNZYS with a lot of salt in his veins from sailing, so its especially good to welcome another yachtie to the bright-side (launches) 😉 Brother Richard was also Commodore at the RNZYS.
The photo taken inside the cabin shows Bill’s father standing, eating a pie (as are his mother nearest camera and friend Jean Foster), that woodys was fine dinning afloat back then – no salad in sight. Bill is not sure who the fourth person is. Bill suspects the photo was taken by fathers best friend, Owen Foster, an accountant who spent most of his career as right hand man to Sir Robert Kerridge
 
Bill commented that his dad returned from the war to discover his father has decided to sell his yacht “Prize” … it seems he decided to go power boating instead. Endean snr. was very able with his hands and established a furniture manufacturing business, hence the high level of finish. Not very PC these days but note the ash trays fitted to cabinetry. He loved gadgets and “Hi Fi”, reflected in the impressive radiogram fixed to main bulkhead.
 
The Perspex dome harks back to his familiarity with same as a Lancaster bomber pilot during WW2.
The photo taken of her stern looks like anchored at Home Bay, Motutapu or nearby, the 2 boys in the cockpit are Bill and older brother Richard.
 
We will follow this project with interest, Bill has promised to keep WW updated.
 
23-08-2020 Update: Bill Endean sent me the sketch below of this thinking around the restoration – close to the as launched – we like that 🙂
 

Waitanguru

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WAITANGURU

In the top photo we see Waitanguru in the Milford Creek, just off the AW Williams boatyard* in Omana Road, Milford. Waitanguru was a ‘Banshee’ design built by Williams. At the time of the photo the launch was owned by Gerry Dawson, he purchased her off Peter Peterson.
The November 1965 photos come to us from Lew Redwood’s fb and were taken by Dawn Heathwaite.. In the 2nd photo the kids on the jetty are Bill and Ian Heathwaite. Bill Heathwaite has commented that the photos were taken post a successful game fishing trip to Great Barrier Island. Bill’s father is holding the tail of a record breaking yellow-fin tuna he had caught. From recalls it was 135lb on a 30lb line.
The crew are L>R – skipper Gerry Dawson, Roy Heathwaite, Scotty, Alan Odell, Jim and Bruce Woods.
Do we know what became of Waitanguru?
* yard later became Geoff Bagnall’s and is now The Slipway – Milford. Interesting to view the area on the right of the shed that would be developed at the Milford Crusing Club haul-out yard.
CORRECTION : The yard is John Gladdens yard, the Allan Williams original yard was against the road and slip by the bridge. (thanks readers)
DOUBLE CORRECTION: Thanks to Nathan Herbert we learn the the spelling was wrong, the boat is Waitanguru and has featured on WW b4, link below
FYI – the WW section box only works on perfect spelling, so we did not pick this up 😉

Joel > Lady J

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JOEL > Lady J
Another request from Brian Hewitt – this time regarding the 34’ launch – Joel, that in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s he was part owner of.
Joel was built by Shipbuilders and powered by a Ford 80hp diesel with marine conversion. The launch had full 2M headroom through the interior, a full sized household sized ‘head’, a galley which adequately catered for up to 12 and a table that sat them all.
Brian recalls that one of her few weak points was she was hard to manoeuvre in a brisk breeze so berthing took speed and courage but Joel gave the owners much enjoyment.
When sold the new owner built an open bridge and renamed her, but Brian can’t remember the new name.
He has a suspicion she went to Pine Harbour marina. When Brian & co. bought her, she came with a pile mooring at Westhaven, they later progressed to a marina.
Brian would love to know where she is now. Can anyone help out?
Update from Gordon Cooper – I owned JOEL since about 1995 to 2004. She was a beautiful launch, the owner prior to the one I bought her off had rebuilt her interior, raised the floor so the motor was just under and put a fly bridge on her. She was at Gulf Harbour when I bought her, I kept her at West Harbour. 

The boat was a hunny to back into a berth. When I sold her, she went to Sand Spit where she had her hull re-fastened. I do not think she is there now.
In the 2nd photo below, you see her as I bought her.
I changed her name to Lady J
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Chinook

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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.
 
 
 

Kestrel

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KESTREL

The 39’ launch Kestrel was built in Nelson in 1957 by Wally Steer. Original kauri carvel construction but later (1990’s) she received a skin of ply and was fibre-glassed 1990s 😦 Powered by a Ford 120hp diesel, that gets her along at 8 knots.

Mid last year she was 4sale on tme, in Nelson. Do we know anymore about Kestrel and her builder?

Input from Steve Thomas – Kestrel was originally named SUSAN MARGARET, built by Wally Steer around 1957 and first launched from Monaco, Nelson, not far from Wally’s home at Songer Street, Stoke, where the boat was built. I have a photos of her moored in Nelson Harbour, will dig it out and send a copy. She was powered by 2 flat-head V8 petrols we think. The March Construction family in Kaiapoi owned the boat for many years. In the 1980’s the March boys Father died and they trucked the boat from Picton and started a major rebuild at their Kaiapoi base. Myself and my Dad, Don Thomas, found her around 1995 and fell in love. The original 1’1/4 kauri carvel planking was skinned over with diagonal ply and glassed and the new topsides built but not fitted out. The March boys ran out steam on the home straight and let us take over. We then trucked the boat up to Glenhope, near Murchison, where a boat builder friend, Kevin Strong, completed the interior fit-out over a couple of years. We then moved the boat to Nelson, and finished the exterior repaint, electrical and engineering work. The Ford 2725E was a brand new engine. We relaunched the boat in Nelson around 2000 and she looked the same as she is now. Sadly, my father Don passed away in 2013. Nelson boaties Mike and Denise Ballard then purchased her around that time and lived on her for a few years. Kestrel has just been sold to an American couple who intend to keep her in Picton and cruise the Sounds. She’s a fantastic sea boat with heaps of flare in the bow. Will be a great ship for many years to come.