The above photo shows the 38’ big game launch – Aquarius. Along side the wharf at Russell the Bay of Islands. The photo is dated 1961 and comes to us via Lew Redwoods fb.
Aquarius was built / launched in 1955 by Supreme Craft. She first appeared on WW back in 2018 as a SOS story and over the next 3 years we followed her resume and restoration – links to those stories below + 2018 photos of her leaving Waiheke Island and relaunched in 2021.
Back in Feb 2018 WW was contacted by Ted Bosch concerning the vessel – Crescent , Ted was just about to commence building a 1:20 scale model of Crescent. Back in 1998 Ted had help restore her and the model was going to be ‘as remembered’ as no plans existed. At the time the WW story generated a lot of chat in the comments section and we uncovered a lot of intel on her past.
While some thought the double-ender had Miller & Tunnage lineage, turned out she was actually ‘designed’ and built by three M&T employees, no doubt there was a mix of DNA going on.
These days Crescent calls Tauranga home and is being very well cared for – if her owner or anyone local knows the boat can they send in a photo/s.
Ted recently advised that the model was complete and sent in the above photos – quite impressive.
INPUT ex Nigel Drake – “Photo below of Crescent taken in March when she buzzed me will l was attempting to catch a snapper for dinner just outside the Tauranga harbour entrance. She is well looked after by her owner and lives in the Tauranga Marina.”
Recently on the subscription only weblog – Off Center Harbor there was an amazing short film titled ‘Conversations with The Lobster Lady’. The lady is Virginia Oliver and when the film was made in 2019 Virginia was aged 100, and woodys today Virginia is103 and still working the pots.
Angus Rogers came across the film on YouTube so we all get to view it – you’ll enjoy it – she is a hoot 🙂
Todays very impressive photo comes from the Tauranga Museum archives via Dean Wright and show the launching of the launch – Sapphire, also centre stage is Lady Lynn. Photo dated Dec 1969
Lady Lynn – 48’ built by Oliver & Gilpin – later named changed to Lady Sophia and currently Tide Song. Read and view more about her here https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/09/06/lady-lynn-lady-sophia-tide-song/
Sapphire – Don’t know anything about Sapphire but In May 2016 Dean Wright snapped the 1st photo below of Sapphire in a berth at Whangaroa Marina. And again in Jan 2017 she popped up again in a gallery of photos that Dean sent in from the Far North, 2nd photo below.
Only last week the 32’ Kairanga popped up on tme, and already appears to have sold, or maybe the owner realised it was too cheap and pulled the listing. In my eyes Kairanga is a real looker and always kept in top condition.
Kairanga’s past is a little cloudy in terms of builder and year – but its been commented on WW before that she is possibly a Baileys and built c.1912.
At one stage in her life she was a work-boat servicing lighthouses and marine construction in the Hauraki Gulf. The work-boat link is supported by the fact that she is built like a brick outhouse eg triple skin kauri – 2 diagonal planks and one horizontal
Forward motion these days is via a Ford 90hp diesel.
Current home is the far north – would be nice to see her back on the Waitemata. Photo below dated 2018.
Photo below ex K Ricketts
27-09-2024 INPUT ex CHRIS KOOGER – The photos and the listing on trade me was when we owned the good ship Kairanga. We had her for 30 years. Loved the boat and was hard to let it go but she is now loved by James and Ann-Marie. I bought the boat I 1992 from Derek Tanner and she was in a very sad state. We hauled her out and trailered her to Bucklands beach where she got a major makeover with the help from Harry Mieyer a boat builder who taught me a lot about boat building and repairs. I was told by Derek that she is a Bailey built boat, 32 foot. Double diagonal and planked for and aft. About 40 mm thick. Super solid boat that handles the rough seas with no problems. She weighs about 7.5 tons.
It had a BMC engine in it when we got it but that was no good and we put the Ford 90hp engine in it. Changed the gearbox 3 times and fitted a hydraulic gearbox in it which was great. New Shaft and driveshaft fitted at the same time. I built the cockpit cover in the later years of our ownership.
While out in her we met a chap who said that his family owned her in the sixties and another time out we met a fellow who bought her in 1956. Fantastic boat that I always felt safe in. My children and many friends have had great times with her and I think about her a lot. Great memories. Great to see that she is still being loved and getting the regular attention that any boat needs.
Todays woody – King Fisher if you believe her tme listing (thanks Ian McDonald) states she is a Shipbuilders design and built in 1998. Someone more worldly than me can advise if that possible.
What I can confirm is that King Fsher is 36’ in length with a beam of 11’5” and draws 3’3”. Built from kauri with f/glass to the waterline.
Forward motion is via twin 160 hp. Chev 4stroke V8 diesels, the engines are said to be ex military.
Some very tidy interior wood work, but the listing mentions she requires some TLC. Currently located in Helenville.
Recently WW was contacted by Alistair McRae in regard to the vessel – Taranaki, Alistair commented that he spent a big part of his early holiday life on her. At this stage the boat was named Taranaki but Alistair believes it had been renamed (possibly named Theologus).Taranaki was owned by his uncle, Les Henry and was used by Les to tow barges at his sand company on the Waikato River. In the mid 1950’s Les steamed Taranaki out of the Waikato River (West Coast), up and around the top of the North Island and down to Whangarei.
Alistair recalls that she was approx. 37’> 38’ in length and had a four cylinder Fordson engine and had a canoe stern and built like the proverbial brick outhouse. Sadly Alistair has no details on who designed / built Taranaki or when she was launched. Alistair recollects possibly sighting Taranaki moored at Orakei probably 20 or more years ago. Where she may have resided for some years.
What Alistair does have is the actual log of the above mentioned trip from the Waikato River to Whangarei. The crew left the ‘Elbow’ on the Waikato River (where Les’s sand business was and now Winstone) at 0500hrs Friday 5th March 1955. They got to the Waikato Heads 1-1/2hrs later and waited for a day to get through the bar , quite a trip – the full story below – the reproduction is a tad scrappy and I has issues with converting / uploading but in my eyes that just adds to the story 🙂 It appears as a downloadable PDF file and as a booklet – click on the book to view and you can enlarge the pages.
So woodys can anyone enlighten us on Tarananki’s early days.
I know an owner can do what ever they like to a boat, it is theirs – BUT it would be nice if owners came from the angle of refinement versus modernisation.
One of the photos ex Tauranga Library archives via Dean Wright, was the top two photos of Tuatea, the 1954 Lane Motor Boat Co built, 39’6” launch. This photo is dated February 1961 and show the game boat looking superb. The third photo is dated 1984 and the location the Bay of Islands, we see a fly bridge added to her. In a previous story a sage woody described her then paint job as ‘calf sh_t brown’.
The in the last photo we see her as she is today – trying to impersonate a 1980’s Riviera………
(yesterdays WW cap winner was K Rickets – who ID’ed the launch as Marline in SE Bay (Opo), Mayor Island, most likely shot from inside the Game Fishing Club)
07-04-2025 UPDATE ex DEAN WRIGHT
The photo below of TUATEA has been colorised by Dean Dean Wright . The original was captioned – ‘Launch Tuatea 3rd Feb 1961’ and came from the Tauranga City Library Collection, Gifford-Cross Donation 1992, Photographer: Bay of Plenty Times.
AND WHY WOOD YOU – Photo below sent in by a serious woody boater – a tin can trying to …….. actually I do not know what they are trying to do 🙂
Earlier in the week I had a what I would call a WW windfall – Bay of Islands based woody – Dean Wright shared 80+ black and white photos from NZ’s boating past.
Some have appeared on WW before but the majority are new to my eyes.
Todays photo immediately caught my eye – everything captured is just a delight and records a special moment in time. I’ll stop now before I start sounding like K Ricketts 😉 The photo is currently my laptop screensaver image 🙂
The possible date of the photo is January 1961, and comes to us from the Tauranga Library archives.
So woodys – a very long shot but can we ID the launch and possibly the location. I’ll give the last of the winter corduroy WW caps to the first person that can name both, I’ll need more than a guess, so – tell me in a little detail why you think your answer/s are correct. ALL ANSWERS VIA EMAIL ONLY TOwaitematawoodys@gmail.com
GLENMORE Back in November 2022 we featured several of Picton boat builder Bill Orchard’s boats . One of these was the ex charter boat – the 1958 Glenmore. We learnt from Mark McLaughlin that Glenmore was one of the Pelorus Sound mail boats throughout the 1980’s to mid 1990’s, operated by Ken and Dianne Gullery. She was sold to an Australian owner and moored at Pittwater up Sydney’s north coast. She did the Tasman Sea crossing under her own steam from Picton, which is no mean feat for that type of boat. Mark also sent in the link to her 4sale post.
In the photos below of Glenmore we see her in her orange hull livery during the mail boat years and a the photo of Glenmore on her mooring at Pittwater. Fast forward to today and the 44’ Glenmore is for sale – from the photos above – appears to be a bargain at sub $100k. Forward motion is via a Detroit GM671, 240hp Would be nice to bring her home 🙂
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