TRADITION
photos ex Ken Ricketts ex boatbuilders website
I don’t know much about Tradition, as nice smart looking launch. I understand that she is owned by a couple that divide their time between Tauranga & Wellington. She supposedly originally came from Picton. Has had a refurbishment at Hutcheson Boatbuilders in Tauranga.
Anyone able to supply more details?
Rosie Lees & Summertime
Where it all started
Final Push / Prep
Launch Day
SUMMERTIME
photos ex Lees Family
How today being Christmas Eve I really wanted a nice, feel good post today – when the details & photos of this one started to hit my email inbox, it went straight to a file tagged 24/12/14 🙂
If you follow ww you will know that Greg Lees is a very talented boat builder & runs one of the best classic friendly boat yards in NZ, what most of you would not have known is that Rosie his 20 year old daughter is also very talented. Todays post is proof of just how talented.
In October 2013 Rosie started building a Pelin Ventura, named ‘Summertime’ – now the build timeline got a little stretched out with things like work (Blenheim) getting in the way. However a 6 week period between Sept & Nov 2014 provided the ideal window to finish ‘Summertime’ off & she was splashed in early December 2014. You can see from the above photos that the boat looked beautiful and I’m told went better than expected i.e. 45mph with ease & Rosie was thrilled. Now this lady does not muck around, Saturday night Summertime was wrapped in shrink wrap and Sunday morning Greg and co. towed it down to Wellington in time for the ferry to Blenheim. Seems Rosie has a Regatta to attend. By the standard of the artistry, both the boat & Rosie the builder, should scoop a few awards.
Now this is quite an achievement for a 20 year old, seems to me that the Lees gene pool is mighty strong 🙂
05/03/2015 – Rosie & Summertime In the news (Marlborough Express)
AVALON
photos & details ex Harold Kidd
The above 3 photos of Avalon are from the Tudor Collins Bay of Islands game fishing collection*.
Avalon 36′ x 8’6″ x 3’6′ was built by Collings & Bell in December 1927 for Peter Williams of Russell for use as a game fishing boat in the Bay of Islands. She was one of Collings’ typical concave-convex square bilge designs like Alma G, Manaaki, Lorna Doone and Zane Grey also built for the Zane Grey game fishing circus. She had a 85-100hp Redwing engine and was designed for 16 knots. She was often chartered by Zane Grey who took her to Bermagui, NSW in 1936 for game fishing (sharks) there, she came back to NZ after the expedition. Some few years ago she was exported to the US to the Zane Grey Museum, somehow avoiding the then Antiquities Act.
*the images in the collection were bought at a flea-market by Sharon Knight who has made them available via Harold for all of ww followers to relish.
Photo below from classicgameboatsnz
More photos from the Tudor Collins collection – this time taken during the 1930’s visit of the Duke of Glouster. Mailed in by Ken Ricketts
RAEMA
Raema a 1940 Collings & Bell bridgedecker, has just changed hands & is now berthed at Port Motueka. She is 34′ LOA, 9’2″ Beam, 4’3″ Draft & powered by a 120hp 6cyl. Ford diesel.
On board there is a plaque saying ‘Raema RNZYS’ & she is rumored to have been once own by a past rnzys commodore.
Her owner would love to know more details on her past & see some early photos if they exist.
Harold Kidd Update
RAEMA was built in late 1923, not 1940. Her first owner was Gordon Bartleet, who had REHIA built by Colin Wild in 1939. I can find no contemporary reference to her builder, but Collings & Bell is almost certainly correct because she had a 4 cylinder Doman engine for which they were agents.
In March 1924 Bartleet sold her to Moller who was then Commodore of the Takapuna Boating Club and bought her back from him in September 1928. In October 1930 Percy McGill of Rotorua bought her, keeping her until the winter of 1933 when Horsley bought her. She then appears on the Kaipara in 1938-9 owned by Bo Bogle and then R. Smith (unless that’s another RAEMA). Then nothing in Auckland. She does not appear in the RNZYS records up to the mid 1960’s (which is where I’ve got to in transcribing them).
PS The only photograph I know of is at the Matakohe Museum and numbered PAHI 88. It shows her at the 1938 Pahi Regatta.
Lake Taupo Boating – A Look Back In Time
Now this is a really interesting website (very basic) that records the history around boats tjat have been based at Lake Taupo. There is also some great stories on the boats & the history of the Lake. The site is very basic in terms of its layout but have a poke around & you will be pleasantly surprized. We have no idea who is behind the site, Nathan discovered it in a random boat search.
Enjoy.
Links below
Boat Photos http://www.promotionalart.com/History_Taupo_Boats/Boat%20Main%20%20Page.htm
Stories http://www.promotionalart.com/History_Taupo_Boats/Stories_.htm
Waipu Boats
photo & details ex Colin McKenzie ex New Zealand Herald Jan 1953.
A flotilla of launches & the scow Rahiri seen here at the Waipu Landing at the start of the celebrations to mark the arrival of the Nova Scotian settlers there 100 years previously.
From the left:
#1 Bridge decker on left (was owned by Mac Kelly, Beachlands) Colin has forgotten the name of the launch.
#2 Highland Lass (Jim Somner, Waipu)
#3 Bluebird, (John Munroe, Papakura)
#4 Spindrift, (Gordon McKenzie, Clevedon – Gordon was Colin’s father & Commodore of the Clevedon Cruising Club)
#5 Rahiri (Jock McKinnon, skipper). The remains of Rahiri are now to be seen in the sands/beach at Blackpool, Waiheke Island.
SENTOSA
photos & ‘details’ from Pam Cundy
The photos above are of the 28′ double-ender Sentosa, that was recently hauled out at the Whangateau slip getting some DIY repairs & a lick of paint. Her owner, Bill Freeth would love to find out more about her background. Bill has had her for approx. 6 years & understands that she was kept at Panmure for 10-12 years. Bill bought her from Waitakaruru (Thames) way. Talking to an old Kaipara Harbour Master he thinks she may have been one of two built on the Kaipara.
She has just been re-powered with a Sole 44hp (a Spanish marinised Mitsubishi motor), previously she had a huge American landing craft motor in her. There is some speculation her original name was Golden …….. something – Golden Spray ??
Any of the woodys out there able to shed some more light on Sentosa’s past?
MOERANGI
Moerangi is a 1901 Logan Bros 55’ 9” trawler style classic launch that spent most of her life as a fishing boat and ferry before undergoing 2 separate restorations the last in Whangarei costing I understand over $300,000.
Being royalty i.e. a genuine Logan, she has a wonderfully documented pedigree of ownership and escapades detailing her life over the last 113 years, which makes my life very easy when doing a ww post. Click the (blue) links below to view/read. Built in the Logan style triple skin heart kauri she has been restored by the expert shipwrights of The Wood Shed in Whangarei who obtained suitable heart kauri and replaced in the traditional manner all that was required, its interesting reading & you can see where the $300k went.
Powered by a 1950 Gardner 5L3 reconditioned in 1986 she has traveled approx 500 hours since and cruises 7-8kts at 750 rpm using approx 8 liters per hour. Accommodation is in 2 double staterooms forward with ensuite and aft plus 2 single berths. The wheelhouse has a large saloon and dining area, aft galley with 2 burner stove grill & oven, 3 way electric fridge, pressure H&C water, 1 heads and a separate full size shower. Electronics VHF, autopilot, GPS radar, depth-sounder & TV/DVD.
Moerangi is for sale (sales brochure below) & this really is one of those situations where someone can ‘profit’ at the expense of someone else e.g. all the money has been spent & the work done to sympathetically modernize this unique classic motor launch while retaining her graceful lines. Her next owner gets to enjoy the vessel without all the hard work & I’m sure at a discount to what was actually invested in her restoration.
Older photos
Akaroa Mail article 15/1/1988 click to enlarge
October 2014 ‘The Wood Shed’ shipwright work summary / report link Shipwright report October 2014 (2 pages)
Boating NZ Oct 2007 feature link Boating NZ Oct 2007 Article (5 pages)
Ownership history link Some Ownership history
MALIBU
photo ex Ken Ricketts
The above photo c.1951 is of the launch Malibu & shows Maurice Paykel on board.
Can anyone tells us more about Malibu?
Russell was recently mud plugging and gunk holing over on the West Coast – Kaipara, skippering the steam boat Romany when he came across the nice bridgdecker above, tied up at Helensville. Russell noted that the styling of the windows was very ‘individual’.
Russell was told by a local that it was built in 1948 & was also told her (the launches) name, but forgot it 😦 .
An unusual boat in an equally unusual location – someone most be able to ID her ?
As always – click photos to enlarge 😉
18-10-2015 Update from Cherry Bishop
This boat was built by my father Francis Bishop and a boat builder friend who’s name may have been Gladden. It was built from one of the last kauri logs to have been milled in the North island and yes 1948 is the year it was built. He dearly loved the boat and named it after my Mother “Zoe”. During my childhood we often took her out on the Kaipara fishing and netting for flounder and stayed overnight,sometimes for up to several weeks at a time depending on the demands of home and work. We often attended the Kaipara cruising club regattas and other events.We also sometimes moored at the lagoon at the end of the South Head Peninsula and I have fond memories of falling asleep in the bow of the boat listening to ship to shore radio and the sound of lapping waves and peacocks meowing ashore.As children we all fished and swam “with the sharks”.
Since my Father was born in 1910 he was familiar with boats sailing the Kaipara harbour and I once found a series of drawings he had done as a child of “boats” which were very detailed. I think he was really a frustrated boat designer. He left school age twelve during the depression as labour was needed on the farm and he was a farmer all his life. Boats were his hobby and a great love.He died in 1999 aged 89.
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