SEEMS OSH / SAFE BOATING REGS DO NOT APPLY TO CLASSIC CRAFT
The top photo comes to us ex a post on the ‘Wanganui Historic Time Line’ fb – we see the stern wheel steamer – MANUWAI on a day excursion on the Wanganui River. The vessel was operated by AC Hatrick & Co. and believe it or not ‘licensed’ to carry 400 people…………..
Fast forward to 2025 and some plonkers are still doing it, see below………..
MANUWAI – A Peek Down Below
Back in April 2015 the 31’ launch – Manuwai made an appearance on WW, (link below to that story).
WW April 2015 https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/04/23/manuwai/
At the time her then owner Paul Kerr-Hislop was looking to confirm some of the intel he had been told about the boat i.e. that Manuwai was built in Porirua in 1960 by a Paul Bradey for the Mexted family of Tawa to a Shipbuilders design. We learnt that she was LOA 30’8” with a beam 10’6”. She has a 1 1/4” kauri planked hull which has a hard chine and flat bottom towards the stern presumably to enable semi-planing. A 140hp 135T Perkins diesel engine gave a cruising speed of 9>10 knots and a top speed of around 13 knots.
Now thanks to Ian McDonald pointing out a recent tme listing we get to have a better gander down below.
What happened to Abalone (ex Manuwai ex Nissan)
Abalone was originally built for the New Zealand Army in 1943 and named Nissan. After WW2, the Tourist and Publicity Department obtained the boat in 1949 and she was placed into service initially on Lake Tarawera and later on Lake Rotomahana and eventually renamed Manuwai.
In the late 1950’s the boat was sold to Ces Jack in Tauranga who undertook a four year rebuild. On relaunching the boat was renamed Abalone and became a deep-sea fishing launch, owned and operated by Ces Jack and later owned by Ian Clunie. She was relocated to Auckland, where during a violent Auckland storm in1983 she smashed on rocks in Hobson Bay. Repair work after the storm was undertaken by Nealy Craft – anyone know who that is or was? She was eventually repaired and placed back to work as a charter boat by Jim Insley.
Abalone was purchased by journalist Warren Berryman and his wife Helen Vause in 1987 and they used the boat for family excursions out around the Hauraki Gulf; as well as occasional fishing and dive charters. Every summer from 1987 until 2004, Abalone went north to the Bay of Islands and then often on to Whangaroa.
Abalone was sold after Berryman’s death in 2004.
Abalone is a fairly distinctive boat so hopefully someone recognises her and can help advise who purchased her in 2004 and where she is today.
Story and photos above ex Greg Philpott.
INPUT ex Mark McLaughlin – About 10 years ago Abalone was on a private pole mooring on the Tamaki River, near the Panmure Bridge. She sank on her mooring. I don’t know if she was restored or scrapped after that but she was under water for quite a while IIRC. Photo below of the location of where she sank – nearest launch to the building.
14-09-2023 UPDATE ex Ray Morey – photos below of Abalone from her re launch 1962. The view of her as original from NZTourist Corp guise is unusual. Note the black top (soot band) on the pipe exhaust.
Sick Of Getting Socks For Fathers Day
This year grab the reins and tell the family what you really want. Today is the un-offical launch of the new waitematawoodys burgee – a long time in the making but I picked the first batch up yesterday. I’ll do a longer story on them later but the quick over view is – 100% canvas, printed 2 sides with the Waitemata Woodys logo using old-school screen printing methods = long lasting. Size is 40cm x 30cm. Sorry about the bad mast photo, no wind yesterday -:) See flyer below – Burgees are $40, caps $38. P&P is $7 – Buy both and WW will pay the P&P. Email orders to waitematawoodys@gmail.com with your address and we will send them off and let you know payment details etc.
MANUWAI – a Wellingtonwoody
photos & details Paul Kerr-Hislop
Todays post is a Wellingtonwoody & her owner Paul Kerr-Hislop understands Manuwai was built in Porirua in 1960 by Paul Bradey for the Mexted family of Tawa to a Shipbuilders design.
LOA is 30’8” & beam 10’6”. She has a 1 1/4” kauri planked hull which has a hard chine and flat bottom towards the stern presumably to enable semi-planing. A 140hp 135T Perkins diesel engine linked to the prop shaft via a vee drive provides a cruising speed of 9-10 knots and a top speed of around 13 knots. The engine compartment is ventilated by a couple of rather beautiful solid copper vents to two cowls on the cabin roof.
The Mexteds kept the boat on Lake Taupo for around twenty years before it was returned to Porirua and the Mana Marina. There it was used for a few more years by the Mexted family before changing hands and moving to Picton. The boats log book mentions a few trips between Picton and Christchurch in the late 1980’s and subsequently, Paul understands the boat was used by the GP in Havelock (south) to do his rounds in Kenepuru and Pelorus Sounds.
Paul purchased Manuwai in Picton in 2009 and moved her to Mana Marina shortly after. The hull is still in pristine condition observed when they stripped back the paint to the bare wood. She is a very sturdy boat – ideal for Wellington and Cook Strait conditions. Manuwai is now in Picton on the “catwalk” jetty and is used in the commute to Pauls Sounds property in Resolution Bay.
Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta
photo ex Heather & John Lidgard
Today is the 175th Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta, for a young country like NZ that is a significant milestone. Out on the water today will be boats of all sizes & ages, from radio controlled pond yachts to the giants of the classic fleet – the A-Class keelers. Now even if you are boat-less today, I encourage you to head down to the harbour & grab a good vantage point.
For classic wooden boat lovers – the key times are:
10.00am for the Tug Boat Race. New inner harbour course this year with the start off Princess Wharf
12.00pm for the A-Class classic fleet start, again off Princes Wharf
Full details on today’s events here http://www.regatta.org.nz/the spectators
Today’s photo from 1946 shows spectators cramming every vantage point they can at Westhaven. The large concrete building looks a ‘little’ more impressive today as the home of the RNZYS. The large launch on the right was Claude Atherton’s Manuwai.
If you do get out, take the camera & send me some photos 🙂
It would be amiss of me if I did not mention some of the people behind today’s regatta – I’ll upset somebody by saying this (but that’s ok) but without the support & effort of this core group of people from the classic boating movement the regatta just would not happen – (in no order) – Bruce Tantrum, John Street, Baden Pascoe, Joyce Talbot, Eric Mahoney & others I’m sure.
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