Todays report comes to us from the camera of Bay of Islands photographer – Dean Wright. Dean snapped this gallery of craft over the xmas period in and around the bay.
Some familiar faces here and a few newbies – Dean commented that “Just when you think you’ve seen it all, along comes a Maritimo with a XOS six person island pool float. Every wooden boat should have one or two… Yee gods what next” – photo below Enjoy the stunning photos – As always – click on photos to enlarge😉
What you buy when you can’t quite afford a beachfront bach at Omaha
The video below showing LADY ADELAIDE leaving Bon Accord Harbour, Kawau Island gives you a look at some of the weather closer to Auckland. Sent in by Andrew Sunde.
Bay of Islands Summer Mooching + Anniversary Weekend Cruising
Todays gallery of classic wooden craft comes to us from the camera of Dean Wright, taken while he was cruising the bay on his woody – Arethusa.
From top to bottom the craft are:
• Ranoni – Army Bay
• Enterprise – Opunga Cove
• Arohanui – steaming past Cable Bay, Urupukapuka
• Arethusa – Whangamumu
• The Logan yacht – Iorangi – Whangamumu
• Alofa – Whangamumu
• Valhalla – Whangamumu
• Rampage – Whangmumu – an early 2000’s Robertson Boats sedan launch ( lengthened and repainted)
• Mary of York – Ben Tomb’s leeboarder
2024 MAHURANGI REGATTA – Classic Launch Parade & Sunday Gathering At KAWAU ISLAND
The countdown is on for one of the worlds best and biggest classic wooden boating events, the Mahurangi Regatta, organised by the Mahurangi Cruising Club.
Sadly due to the freakish weather the 2023 regatta was cancelled, but plans are in place to make 2024 on-the-water and ashore at Scotts Landing bigger and better.
The Classic Wooden Launch Parade is one of the highlights of the weekends activities – followed later in the day by a serious ‘old school’ boaty BBQ ashore at Scott’s – including a massive marquee for the 20 piece dance band.
On the Sunday, most woody launch skippers head to KAWAU ISLAND and the plan is to gather later in the day for a few sun-downers at the newly refurbished Kawau Boating Club.
The 1929 Chas Bailey & Son built motor launch – Shenandoah has made several appearances on WW and we have seen her – as launched, in her war fatigues, restored and sadly neglected – way too many mentions on WW to list the links, just type her name in the WW search box to view.
Today thanks to Bruce Papworth we get a look at Shenandoah at sea and her crew war crew ashore – in the 2nd photo we get a rare sighting of the photographer – Tudor Collins, that is him second from right. He would have been on board Shenandoah in his role as photographer. Bruce P commented that he believed Hick Goodfellow was the captain. In the third photo, showing the Whangarei Town Basin there is a great collection of craft that had been commandeered by the NZ Navy for war service – that I can identify- we have:
Q03 – Shenandoah, Q08 – Lady Margaret, Q01 – Wirihana, Q02 – Maristella, Q12 – Lady Shirley and Z38 – Ranoni. In the last photo we have L>R Lady Margaret, Maristella and Wirihana. For more background on these craft, click on this link https://waitematawoodys.com/2019/11/23/whangarei-town-basin-1943/
BOI woody and pro photographer Dean Wright sent in the above photos of Miss Brett, Arcturus and Ranoni loitering in the bay on Christmas Day.
Meanwhile closer to home island life is a little bit more ‘family’ focused – the paddle board xmas present was a hit, I’ll say it before Jason Prew does – its a 1/3 the size of Raindance 🙂 If you’re on Waiheke, check out the new establishment named HEKE, very relaxed dining, great food and for Waiheke, well priced. Just down the road from Stonyridge.
The 1911 35’ classic launch Ranoni (Z38) has just popped up on trademe (thanks Ian McDonald) – you have to wonder about how serious some people are in selling their classic woody – other than telling us she is powered by a Ford Sabre 82hp engine you won’t learn anymore about the craft.
colour photo ex Dean Wright b/w photo ex Andrew Pollard (opening day of the 1948 Whangarei Deep Sea Anglers Club) details ex Harold Kidd
Ranoni hails from the Far North so I personally know little about her but Harold Kidd told me she was built by Charlie Gouk at Beaumont Street in the winter of 1911 for the Rushbrook brothers. In 1948 she was owned by O. Mann.
Anyone able to spread some more light on her?
Harold Kidd Update
RANONI was built by Charlie Gouk in August 1911 for the Rushbrook brothers of Onehunga for use on the Waitemata and cruising our east coast.There have been erroneous reports that she was built by Harvey & Lang who were next door to Gouk in Beaumont St. Her first engine was a 20hp Herald. She was 35’x35’x8’6″x2’6″. The Rushbrooks cruised with her very extensively, up North and to the Bay of Plenty. She became well known in Whangarei and was eventually bought by J. Main of Whangarei in early April 1920. He replaced her engine with a 25-30hp Buffalo in 1924. In 1941 was taken into NAPS with the number Z38. Her owner was then Alex Matthews and skipper Vere Harrison. She spent most of 1942-4 stationed at Great Barrier. Postwar she remained in Whangarei. In 1948 she was owned by O. Mann and her callsign was ZLAY 7.
PS During NAPS service she seems to have had a Ford V8.
15/11/2014 – Update on RANONIex Ken Ricketts
Ranoni was bought Aug/Sept 2014 by Graham Rigden of Opua, subsequent to her being damaged on her moorings at Opua by another vessel which had dragged or broken its moorings.
She was substantially damaged at the rear end side & stern areas & was taking water. She was regarded as a write off (insurance company?)
Graham a boatbuilder, who works at Opua & you can see in the photos Ken took she is already well on the road to recovery.
She is powered by a 4 cyl Ford Sabre Diesel.
Graham has provided a substantial dossier on her history (click blue link below to read)
Seems in the ‘old’ days the opening of a jetty was an event to celebrate. Here we see Aumoe anchored off the new Waldron jetty in Parua Bay on the northern side of Whangarei Harbour in 1948. Other boats – RONGOTAI along side the jetty MOERANGI in the middle, and i think BLUE FIN. Probably RANONI outside AUMOE (info ex Ian Mason)
The other photo of Aumoe is I suspect taken from Devonport c.1936
Harold Kidd Update:
RONGOTAI was built by Cox & Filmer in 1940 for Les Waldron but went straight into NAPS with Les as skipper. The Waldron family owned her well into recent times. I went up to view her in her shed at Whangarei c1980 with John Gladden but didn’t buy her. She was originally fitted with twin kerosene-burning engines. MOERANGI was built by Logan Bros in 1906 and was owned in 1948 by Hughie Cox-Smith. She is still on Lake Taupo I think. BLUE FIN was owned by S J Guest in 1948 and was probably brand new and built by Lanes(?).
I really like this image sent to me by Andrew Pollard the current guardian of Aumoe. Its such a great photo & if you look closely you will notice that the crews are a really mixed bag of men, young boys & women, I doubt you would get that in the 2013 event. The photo is of the opening day of the 1948 Whangarei Deep Sea Anglers Club. I wonder what the catch was like.
A understand that at the time of the photo Aumoe was owned by the Wilkinson family of Whangarei.
Harold Kidd Update
VALENCIA was then owned by E S Ralls. I’m not sure who built her and where. There were several Valencias around the coast as it was the name of a very popular song of the time. It would be good to get feedback on her (I suspect a c1928 name change). RANONI is easier, she was built by Charlie Gouk at Beaumont Street in the winter of 1911 for the Rushbrook brothers. In 1948 she was owned by O. Mann. The lovely AUMOE of course was built by Tom Le Huquet for F M P Brookfield of Brookfield Engineering in February 1913 and initially fitted with an Advance 30hp 4 stroke sleeve valve engine built by Brookfield Engineering which was still in use when replaced by A J Wilkinson of Whangarei when he bought her in the late 30s.