Category Archives: Mystery Boat

MYSTERY WOODY ON THE WAITEMATA – Aenone > India

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MYSTERY WOODY ON THE WAITEMATA – Aenone > India

Todays woody photo is slightly familiar but I could fine any previous reference to it on WW.

The photo comes to us from a Frank Hellsten post on the ‘Friends of Vintage,Classic & Traditional Boats’ fb page. Frank restored and colorized the photo, which was taken by a William Leonard Fletcher and resides in the Auckland maritime museum archives. No dates.

Frank commented about the gent wearing a tam o’ shanter hat (a Scottish bonnet worn by men)

I tagged a yacht but she’s really a launch 🙂

Any idea of the boats ID

UPDATE – Nathan Herbert ID her as Aenone, then Roy Jones advised she now named India and resides in Blenheim as a steamboat.

CLASSICBOATSHOW.COM

Lyttelton Marina Mooching – Taieri Lass + Katherine

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Lyttelton Marina Mooching – Taieri Lass + Katherine

Recently Bryce Strong sent in the above photos from Lyttelton Harbour. 

The top woody is unknown to Bryce and WW, can anyone help ID her for us.

The other photos are of the spirit of tradition launch – Katherine, she has made several appearances on WW , link below, click on headline.                   She was sold early in 2023 and relocated south form Auckland. Now we know where exactly

UPDATE ex John Burland – JB has a good eye – it is Taieri Lass https://waitematawoodys.com/2019/09/08/taieri-lass/

Katherine – A Peek Down Below

 

Can We ID This Sinking Woody

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Can We ID This Sinking Woody

Todays story comes to us from Ian McDonald via the Bay of Plenty community website – SUNLIVE’ –Article written by Rosalie Liddle 

“Plans are in place for the removal of a vessel rotting and sinking on its mooring in Tairua Harbour. Sadly, the boat’s owner has recently passed away. Last week a commercial operator alerted Waikato Regional Council to an old wooden vessel sinking on its mooring in Tairua Harbour, says Waikato Regional Council’s regional harbourmaster Chris Bredenbeck. Staff from our Maritime Services team responded, pumping out the water.

The team returned again on Sunday, after becoming aware that the vessel was again taking on water. They pumped the water from the vessel and then towed it to shore on the high tide, where it remains, says Chris. After establishing that the owner has recently passed away, we arranged for the 300 litres of diesel onboard to be safely drained and taken away so it no longer posed a risk to the environment. Chris says while the diesel was being removed from the vessel at low tide, booms were set up around it just in case any contaminants escaped.

Unfortunately, the timber is rotten which prevents the vessel from being lifted off the beach, so it will be dismantled and removed over the coming days,” says Chris.”

So woodys – can we put a name to the vessel

MYSTERY LAUNCH 20-01-2024 + WIN A WW BURGEE

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MYSTERY LAUNCH 20-01-2024

Todays woody photo was sent in by Nathan Herbert, now we know the name of the boat – but today is a wee bit of a quiz to see how sharp some of you are.

Prize is a WW burgee – entry by email only to waitematawoodys@gmail.com  Close off is 6pm today (20-01-2024)

QUESTION IS: Boats name, where was she built and what became of her.

uPDATE – A HINT – It isn’t a North Island built boat

Mystery 1937 Launch

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Mystery 1937 Launch 

Todays photo comes to us from ’Timespanner’ via a Maurice Sharp fb post. The location is the Whau Creek in New Lynn, Auckland and the photo originally appeared in the NZ Herald on 15 Oct 1937.

Its captioned – that the craft was 26’ in length, built by a Mr. L. Knaggs of Sandringham, Auckland to an American design, probably ex Rudder Magazine. Her first owner was a Mr.J. Harvey of New Lynn.

Can we put a name to the craft and possibly uncover what became of her.

Slipped the mooring lines yesterday for a wee trip to McKezies Bay, Rangitoto Island. Swapped photos with the crew on Endeavour, who were out celebrating owner Paul’s 84th birthday – Endeavour was looking very smart.

email jasep@me.com

LATEX – On The Waitemata

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LATEX – On The Waitemata

Todays woody story comes with an interesting back story. The above photo popped up on an overseas fb page I follow – the poster was a gent by the name of – Frank Hellsten, a retired Finish diplomat living in Sweden. Frank commented – “Royal NZ Yacht Squadron motor launch LATE (or LATELY) in good speed off Auckland. My restoration and colonisation of William Leonard Fletcher’s image in the NZ Maritime Museum archive. The phot is not dated.My estimate is that Fletcher shot the photo in the 1930s.”

The craft looked familiar but the the suggested name ex the pennant wass a stranger to WW. A little ferriting around in the WW archives and we learn that the launches name is – LATEX, built in 1924 by the Lane Motor Boat Company. Name later changed to WINSOME II – read more here https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/03/10/11627/

More recent (2021) photo below

MYSTERY LAUNCH QUIZ – Win A WW Cap – Its Kiwitea

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MYSTERY LAUNCH QUIZ – Win A WW Cap – Kiwitea

After the mammoth stories the last two days, probably time for a hopefully straight forward quiz.

All correct answers via email only to waitematawoodys@gmail.com go into the draw for a WW cap.

Quiz closes at 7pm 10-01-2024.

THE QUESTION – name the launch and the location of the photo.

email – jasep@me.com

The Motor-sailer – Silver Spray

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SILVER SPRAY – Motor-sailer

WW was recently contacted by Bella Scott whose father owns the rather impressive motor-sailer – Silver Spray.

WW is very short / light on details – can anyone tell us about Silver Spray

INPUT EX PAUL DRAKE #1 -Built for the McManaway family of Paremata, Wellington, as a commercial fishing boat, and fished out of Paremata for many years. Converted to present configuration at Mana Marina twenty or more years ago. Good to see that she has retained her name.-

INPUT EX PAUL DRAKE #2 –Built by Jack Guard in about 1938. Owned by Wilfred Thomas McManaway and fished as a line boat in Cook Strait. According to his grandson Ian who served on SILVER SPRAY as a teenager and who I talked with today, she was a very stable working platform. Painted green with white boot topping when new. After being sold out of the family and reconfigured much as she is now, she struck rocks in the Marlborough Sounds and sank. She was salvaged and somewhat rebuilt by McManaway Marine (Picton). It is said that she survived her rocky encounter only because of her collision bulkhead, which had been retrofitted by grandson Ian at the behest of the Marine Surveyor, probably in the late 1960’s. Ian McManaway served his time as a shipwright with the Wellington Harbour Board when he finished his time fishing, and later became a Pilot-Launch Master.

Mystery Launch 15-12-2023

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MYSTERY LAUNCH 15-12-2023

I was sent a link from Harold Kidd re a woody that had ‘popped up’ on one of his son’s fb marketplace feeds. 

The boat is located in Wanganui, Manawatu and all we know is she is 28’ in length, no engine, and built by Laines (their spelling) in 1905. As discussed many times on WW, sadly the word Lanes is almost the default for any unknown launch, so she could be built by anyone.    Been on tme for over 10 months and has an asking price of $500, maybe there are a few bronze fittings that could offset that.

It is a very long shot but – anyone out there know anything about the vessel.

ORDER HERE waitematawoodys@gmail.com Click image above for details

Can We Put A Name ToThis Classic Launch – ALARA

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Can We Put A Name ToThis Classic Launch – ALARA

Todays woody recently popped up on tme (thanks Ian McDonald) and other than that she is 28’ long and powered by a 150hp Diesel engine, the other info supplied was a tad light e.g. ‘classic lovely wooden boat with electric winch, toilet, stove.

Home is Birkenhead, Auckland.

Possibly named Alara