Category Archives: Non Waitemata

Mystery 1939 Lane Launch

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MYSTERY 1939 LANE LAUNCH

A recent addition to tme this 27’ Lane, 1939 built launch is powered by a Perkins 40hp diesel engine, and that woodys is all we know, other than current home is Whangarei. 

Can we put a name to her and maybe learn where she has spent the last 80+ years.

(Thanks to Ian McDonald for the heads up)

29-10-2023 Input ex Mark Sorrenson – Looks like Lyrebird. I bought her from Brian Juers in 2004. She was on a swing mooring at that time off McLeods Bay. Brian believed she may have been a Lanes and that she had spent time on the Hokianga Harbour. My late father Graham helped me bring her down the coast to Milford marina. It was a great journey.
We sold her to a couple of gals that lived at Mangawhai Heads. They motored her over the bar and she was on a mooring in the Mangawhai Harbour for a number of years.
She featured on W/W in 2015.
She is very hard chined and would be quite a speedster with a higher powered modern lightweight engine. I had a dream that I would buy her back and repower her, but I’m in the final throws of refurbishing my current boat Manapouri and I will have to wait for the next time she comes up for sale.

Woody Euro Tour

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Siesta – approx. 45′ canoe stern bridge-decker – Stockholm
Vasa – 17th century warship – Vasa Museum – Stockholm
Oslo, Norway
Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Gothenburg
Probably steel

WOODY EURO TOUR

Todays story comes to us from the camera of Rick McCay, owner of the 1920 MT Land built 47’ launch – Luana. Rick has been tripping around the northern hemisphere. Rick didi a similar trip back in 2017, you can view that story at the WW link below. https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/11/02/a-woody-on-tour/

Where known I have tagged the locations – enjoy the photo gallery.

MILADY – A Peek Down Below

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MILADY – A Peek Down Below

Todays woody is the Billy Rogers designed and built launch – Milady. Milady was launched c.1955 , approx 38’ in length she is powered by a Ford 130hp diesel engine. In recent times she underwent an extensive refit, in my eyes a tad too modern in places, but certainly a very well presented craft.

Thanks to Ian McDonald spotting the tme listing we get to have a gander below decks. 

Previous (Aug 2015 WW story here https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/08/31/milady/

NGAIO – Another one

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NGAIO – Another one

Ngaio must be one of the most popular launch names, todays Ngaio popped up on tme (thanks Ian McDonald) 

You have got to love the listing headline – ’38 ft BOAT’, now thats going to generate a lot of eyeballs….. The seller is very honest – not many details but they say “She needs work” – never a truer comment 🙂 but the price reflects that.

We don’t know who designed / built her or when, just that she is 36’ (yes that differs from the headline), and has a Ford 70hp 4 cyl. diesel engine in her.

Location is Matakohe, Northland (home of the famous Kauri Museum)

Can anyone tell us more about this Ngaio.

KAWAU BOATING CLUB NEW CLUBROOMS OPENING DELAYED

So woodys that means the woody gathering this Labour Weekend is postponed until we get confirmation of the new date. If you are in the bay I understand you can poke your nose in the door for a work-in-progress peek 🙂

Marietta

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MARIETTA

Back in March 2023 WW was contacted by Stuart Myers regarding the whereabouts of Marietta. Stuart’s family owned her from the late 1950’s > late 1970’s. At the time we uncovered some of her past, link to that story below. In the comments Nathan Herbert tabled the suggestion that she wasn’t a Collings & Bell build, built by a gent named Casey in 1927. March 2023 WW Story https://waitematawoodys.com/2023/03/17/marietta/

Recently Marietta popped up on tme, thank you Ian McDonald, below is what is recorded there.

Built 1936 by Collings and Bell, 36’ in length with a 9’ beam, powered by a 170hp Hino. Her hull has been splined and glassed.

VERY in need of some TLC but as the architects say – ’she has good bones’

Not too sure about how she is sitting on those blocks, hopefully well supported else where.

WHANGAREI MARITIME FESTIVAL TRIP REPORT

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WHANGAREI MARITIME FESTIVAL TRIP REPORT

A little late posting todays story – its been rather a full on weekend – on Saturday we had our general election, which resulted in a change of government (very happy with that). Then early Sunday morning the All Blacks had a do or die clash with Ireland in the Rugby world Cup which resulted in a well deserved win for the AB’s. 

After the final whistle I was in the car and heading north to Whangarei to check out the Whangarei Maritime Festival. The temptation to stay in Auckland and enjoy a celebratory breakfast was very strong but wow I’m so glad I didn’t – I was rewarded with a most enjoyable day out.

I’ll start by thanking Druce Dunlop for alerting me to the upcoming weekend and also say that the organisers did an great job promoting the event on social member. Anyone contemplating hosting a similar event  could learn a lot from mirroring the WMF. It ticked all the boxes and was rewarded with a huge turnout.

A wonderful collection of mostly wooden craft on display that given the location / layout of the dockside, allowed the public to get up close and experience the vessels.  

Well done to everyone involved – both on and off the water. Enjoy the gallery of images.  As always – click photos to enlarge 😉

Dolly – AK1901

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DOLLY AK1901

A bit of a sober story today, probably brought on by its Election Day in NZ and probably the biggest one in my (voting) life time. Most of the time WW is politics free, so I’ll bite my tongue today.

The photo above of the launch – Dolly comes to us from a fb post, via Ken Ricketts. It shows the early 1900’s 33’ launch – Dolly that was lost at sea in early December 1927. On board were owner/skipper Joseph Henery Maslam and crew Thomas Hook.

I have done some research and the story goes like this –

Maslam left his home town of Whangrei on November 14 with the intention of buying a small fishing launch and returning to Whangarei, the launched purchased was Dolly.

About November 18  he engaged Hook to work for him as a fisherman, on the same day Maslam had the Customs Dept. inspect the launch and confirm the Marine Dept. fishing license number AK1901 was painted on the side of Dolly. The departed Auckland on November 22, heading to Little Barrier to fish, and the intention was to take the catch to Whangarei. The departure date was confirmed in a telegraph that Hook sent this wife on November 22.

On December 3 a fisherman named Matthew Janovich, owner of a launch named  Busy Bee, who sited Dolly that night in Nelson Bay, Kawau Island. At the time in a conversation with one of the men he was told Dolly had been fishing for Hapuka. When Busy Bee left the bay the next morning, Dolly was still there. Janovich is on record stating that there was a strong southerly gale for a couple of days after he had seen Dolly, the weather compelled Janovich to return to Auckland.

Dolly was not sighted again and a hearing in Auckland Magistrates Court found that Dolly was lost at sea on or about December 5.

(Thanks to Sun Newspaper – December 8 1927 and the Northern Advocate = 31 May 1828 for intel)

Question of the day – do we know who designed / built Dolly and when she was launch – she was 33’ x 9’ x 3’ – and possibly powered by twin engines 

Tamahine

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TAMAHINE

Bay of Islands woody – Dean Wright sent in the above photos of Tamahine, photos are ‘photos-of-photos’ so a tad hazy. The original images are held by Reb Aplin, the current owner of – Pearl Diver. Tamahine used for game fishing out of Waihau Bay on NZ’s east coast.

Can we learn more about Tamahine – under all that gear there is a very traditional looking hull.

ANNIE – Maybe One For The Lakes

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ANNIE – Maybe One For The Lakes

Todays 26’ double-ender, woody named Annie probably started life as a lifeboat. Carved into her stem is ’S1’ which may have indicated starboard side #1 lifeboat.

The story goes that she was owned by the Connells Bay Store, Waiheke Island and used as a supply vessel c.1950’s > 1960’s, a large front hatch supports this. No engine but was previously powered by a For 60hp inboard. The shaft and prop are still in place.

Hauled out at Mangawhai several years ago, her restoration may to a halt not far in – could be a nice lake boat project. (Tme heads up thanks to Ian McDonald)

Micheline

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MICHELINE

In the above photos we see the launch Micheline – while both photos appear to be on the same day, they are tagged March 1967 and 1965 – obviously a typo. The photos come to us from the Tauranga City Library collection via Dean Wright.

Given that on Micheline’s stern she has her port as Tauranga, there is something strange going on – in the top photo she has either just come out of the shed or been hauled out. In the second photo she is being positioned onto a transporter. Maybe its as simple as going somewhere land based to have engine/s installed.

Can we ID the location and learn what became of Micheline.

UPDATE – Location is Hutcheson Boat Builders yard/slip by the Tauranga Harbour Bridge – opposite the Bridge Marina.

05-10-2023 INPUT ex Dean Wright – Waimarie II, renamed Kiwi Cruiser, hit Tapeka one night in 2000 and was a total loss. This article says built by O&G in 1967 https://issuu.com/sunmedia/docs/wl1102/23

WW link to Waimarie II story https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/09/12/waimarie-ii/

(Photo below ex Ken Ricketts)

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