SUZI Q > EMILY M – Could Be A Perfect Lake Day Boat

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SUZI Q > EMILY M – Could Be A Perfect Lake Day Boat

The 27’ 1960 built launch – Emily M recently popped up on tme (thanks Ian McDonald). 

Her owner believes she was built by Lanes of Totara North, but we all know how frequently that name is attached to wooden craft 🙂

Forward motion is via a 80hp Ford diesel. Looks like she needs some TLC to the interior but a very salty looking craft that could easily be returned to looking smart again.

In a previous life she was named Suzi Q and worked as a commercial snapper long-liner out of Whangamata in the 1970’s.

Current home is Opua in the Bay of Islands.

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

THE BARGE

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THE BARGE

Some light relief today  – a woody, probably best to just say ‘a visitor from Hawkes Bay’ sent in this photo with the tag ” came in Opito (B.O.I.) this morning :)”                The name on the bow – The Barge, says it all. It truely is a floating apartment. Dont imagine it travels far.

Any Northland woodys able to enlighten us on the vessel.

SANTA MARIA – A Peek Down Below  

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SANTA MARIA – A Peek Down Below  

Todays woody the 42’6” –  Santa Maria ticks a lot of my boxes – built in 1955 by Curnow & Wilton for what’s loosely referred toad ’the Italians’ (Wellington based) for Hapuna and crayfish fishing in the Cook Strait. Post this she worked various roles around much of the rest of the country, and then professionally converted to pleasure use around 20 years ago.

I was aboard her a few years ago and she is a very comfortable woody.The icing on the cake is a 127hp Gardner diesel that has her cruising at a very stately 8 knots.

Keen to learn more about her past. Current home is Kerikeri.

UPDATE ex Brian Kidson – WOW, stunning photo below – 

George Curnow, his partner Maurie Wilton  and their foreman Keith Carnahan all came from Lanes in Picton. Business started in Nelson about 1933 and finished in 1966 after their last fire. They were then absorbed into Nalder and Biddle.

Brian was told that the Santa Maria was involved in a rescue off the east coast of the North Island at some stage. Brian doesn’t know dates and details. Does anybody?

ELUSIVE – A Peek Down Below + 4sale

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ELUSIVE – A Peek Down Below + 4sale

I talk often on WW about some classic woodys being lucky in terms of their owners over the years – the 1963 Claude Smith 30′, E-Class yacht – Elusive (E75) is one such craft, enjoying 33 years of continuous ownership.

Elusive was designed and built by Allen Smith at his boatyard on Riverside Drive in Whangarei , Northland as his own yacht She was a very successful yacht in her first season winning many races, in fact probably every race entered.

• OYC 100 and 150 mile races   • The White Island race    • Balokovic Cup    • 4th in The Noumea race

Her builder once told  her owner, Alan Turner, that she was built with the “surplus” timber in their yard and is mostly full length kauri and has three bilge stringers instead of the usual one. As a result she is very strong and has had 2 pot paint to the topsides for the last 25 years and was repainted circa 5 years ago. 

Her keel was dropped and bolts checked at the same time. The stern tube was replaced with fiber-glass c.10 years ago and a new Blue Water seal is about to be fitted

When required forward motion is via a Ford 15hp diesel engine. She sports an extensive wardrobe of North Sails in good condition – main, No1, No2, Storm jib and spinnaker plus a cockpit tent and sunshade (cockpit is 6′ long). Toilet is near new and holding tank fitted. Electric windlass and chain.

Talking with Alan he commented that with her mainly paint finish she is very economical to maintain.

Elusive is for sale and when I asked Alan what her strong points were he said –   very easy to sail and strong as and doesn’t have any vices. She did the Noumea race in the 1960’s and is great at sea. She is a great little ship for a mature couple wanting an easy ship to manage and maintain. Her marina berth at Half Moon Bay will be available to rent and with a first right of refusal when up for sale.

Alan is happy to answer any questions, in the first instance contact via email. xpdxrd@gmail.com

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

AVIS > LADY AVIS > MATA HARI – A Peek Down Below

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AVIS > LADY AVIS > MATA HARI – A Peek Down Below

Todays woody – Mata Hari has had several name changes – built by James Reid at Mechanics Bay, Auckland and launch in 1910. Her launching name was Avis, and Harold Kiddd has commented on WW before that the change toLady Avis was reasonably new and then to Mata Hari in the last few years.

39’ in length and built of kauri carvel planks, she is powered by a Perkins 90hp Diesel engine that gives her a top speed of 10 knots.

Mata Hari previous appearance on WW can be viewed here https://waitematawoodys.com/2013/05/20/lady-avis-2/

Today thanks to Ian McDonald and a tme listing we get to have a gander below.

The Williams Sisters  – Marihi & Banshee

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< Marihi – Banshee >

The Williams Sisters  – Marihi & Banshee

Relax, I’m not talking women tennis – early in the new year I was contacted by Shaun Oliver advising that he had recently purchased the Allen Williams built launch – Marihi. Shaun has relocated Marihi from Jamesons Bay to her birth place – Milford Creek.

In the above photo we see Marihi ‘holding hands’ with another Allen Williams launch – Banshee. The location is Smelting House Bay at KAWAU ISLAND. The bay is the semi permanent home for Banshee, owned by David and Robyn Lee.

WW is light on intel on Marihi, other than the second photo above that I snapped of her in Bon Accord Harbour, KAWAU ISLAND back in Oct 2022. 

Can we learn more about her.

email jasep@me.com

LADY LUCK – A Peek Down Below + 4sale

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LADY LUCK – A Peek Down Below + 4sale

Todays woody is – Lady Luck, a 36’ Roy Parris launch, built in 1961 from kauri planks.    With a 10’6” beam Lady Luck is very spacious and has 6 berths, and a rarity on a 36’ vessel – separate shower and head. 

Forward motion is via a 6 cyl. Ford 120hp diesel that gets her along at a comfortable cruising speed of 8 knots.                                From her tme listing she appears to be well fitted out in terms of utilities  – instrumentation, auto anchor, frig/freezer, hot (gas) shower, solar charging and more. 

Home port is Thames. Booked for annual haul out and anti-fouling.

Advancing years necessitates her owners locating a new custodian for Lady Luck. Interested parties in the first instance should contact Bruce Fulton 021 857255 –  email b.fulton@xtra.co.nz

WAIONE – Shed Visit

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WAIONE – Shed Visit

Back in late December 2023 we reported on the 28’, Lanes (Picton) built woody – Waione that had been in storage in a shed in Mapu, Nelson for 50+ years – link here to that story https://waitematawoodys.com/2023/12/21/waione-2/

At the time John Burland had promised to track her down, which he did with his friend Patrick. The above photos come to us from that days outing. 

Patrick also included his observations from the visit: 

“Well I went to inspect the Waione a few days ago and she’s securely parked in a shed and you know it’s been well covered, out of the water for a long period I think 30 years and the paint basically has all been stripped off so it’s a bare hull. Construction is kauri and seems to be double skinned, the inner skin is diagonal and the outer planking is end to end or a longitude carvel arrangement, she has a long keel and  a counter stern,  quite a small volume boat. I think built by Lanes in Picton, so she would’ve been designed for the Marlborough Sounds before there was much access via road so would’ve been designed to to operate pretty economically with a small 5 to 10 hp engine, some sail arrangement plus large oars or sweeps as they called them in those days to propel the boat and manoeuvre it should the engine fail or docking or whatever. Some of the first engines didn’t even have a reverse gear so you were up against it a bit for manoeuvrability, but it would’ve been a very easily driven boat being quite narrow and very fuel economic and quite fast for the time. That sort of a classic early 20th century design with tram cab arrangement in the higher part of the cabin and then a curved front to the the cabin not a lot of room inside it but a very sweet little boat and seems to be in reasonably sound condition. And I would say a relatively easy restoration as far as restorations go, a little bit of dry rot on the cabin top and things around some of the work around the hatch at the companion way probably a little bit not keeping with the times made of not solid timber, but overall it’s amazingly original and so I think it would be a very worthwhile and enjoyable project for anyone who who was keen to take something of that nature on. The caulking that would all need to be redone, it’ll all need to be re-caulked and primed and painted and possibly refastened, no doubt and just a good going over really, but there didn’t appear to be any worm in the keel or or anything. The propeller shaft, propeller and rudder are all in place. The oval portholes and the fore cabin were still serviceable and able to be to be restored to their former glory I would say and it’ll be a lovely little craft once it was operating again and quite practical and useful for you in sheltered waters so I would recommend anyone that was interested in that sort of boat and had the desire to keep a little bit of our maritime history going would be well worth a look at.”

Don’t normally link to tme listings but this one deserves to be saved + a $1 starting bid  https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/boats-marine/motorboats/listing/4475286531