History
The OK Dinghy: The New Zealand dominance
For nearly 70 years, the OK Dinghy has been one of this country’s most popular international classes. New Zealand sailors hav...
The 1908 Rudder Cup entrants (part 3)
In the last two issues I have described, in the order of their entry, the builders, the engines, and the owners of six of the...
Ngataki: The little boat out and about promoting Auckland’s Wooden Boat Festival
Ngataki might be one of New Zealand’s most famous wooden boats. She’s small, capable, and—some say—of questionable aesthetic....
Beneteau First 30 at 50: how the yacht that launched the First range evolved
Next year, in 2027, the Beneteau First 30 turns 50. Few production yachts can claim that kind of longevity, and even fewer ha...
Nautor Swan marked 60 years by setting course for the future at boot Düsseldorf
Nautor Swan marked its 60th anniversary by looking decisively forward, using the recently concluded boot Düsseldorf as the la...
The Power of Sail: Part 3
The Golden Age of Sail
The Golden Age of Sail (17th to the mid-19th centuries) was an era that saw the full realisation of s...
The 1908 Rudder Cup entrants (part 2)
In the last issue of Boating NZ, I detailed the anticipation and excitement on the Auckland waterfront about the Royal New Ze...
Simrad at 80: eight decades of marine electronics innovation
In 2026, Simrad Marine Electronics marks 80 years since its origins in post war Norway, a milestone that places the brand amo...
The Rudder Cup; a survey of Auckland’s top launches of 1908 (part 1)
Last month I promised that this issue would be devoted to a rattling good yarn about the match race between the launches Eliz...
From Viking seas to southern lakes: clinker boats and the spread of northern craft
From Viking seas to Kiwi lakes, clinker boats endure as seaworthy, beautiful vessels built to last.
Auckland Heritage Festival 2025: A peek at the maritime journeys on show
From tugboats to steam ferries, the Auckland Heritage Festival 2025 celebrates the city’s maritime past with family-friendly ...
The painstaking, decades-long restoration of Auckland’s Toroa steam ferry
Like West Auckland's answer to Noah's ark, the Toroa ferry has been perched by the Lincoln Rd off-ramp for the past 24 years....
The second yacht named Tawera
In my last article I wrote about the strong relationship between the menfolk of the Wilson and the Horton families, the propr...
The Power of Sail – Part 1
Welcome to ‘A very brief history of ...’ researching the history of everyday marine technology, innovation and events Kiwi bo...
The two yachts named Tawera
A very high proportion of commercial vessels, yachts and launches built in
New Zealand from colonisation in the 19th centur...
The fight to save Auckland’s last steam ferry
Auckland’s last steam ferry is turning 100. The Toroa’s team needs help to get her back on the Waitematā.
Ponsonby Cruising Club hosts a rare look into plywood performance and racing history: Spencer’s radi...
From tomorrow (24 July) to 14 August, Ponsonby Cruising Club invites members and visitors to step back into a golden era of K...
The last WW1 boat found, the HMS Nottingham rediscovered
The last missing Royal Navy cruiser of the First World War has been found, her story told in steel, silence, and sonar.
Chatham Islands waka find detailed in new report
A new report has shed light on the potential origins of a partially excavated waka in the Chatham Islands.
256-year-old relic of European contact with NZ rediscovered in RNZ podcast
A 256-year-old anchor described by Heritage New Zealand as "one of the oldest relics of early European contact with New Zeala...
150 years of Lürssen: a shipbuilding legacy gorged in innovation, family and firsts
On 27 June 1875, a 24-year-old boatbuilder named Friedrich Lürssen opened a modest workshop in the German riverside village ...
Moana rising: Matariki, waka and the ancient sea roads of the Pacific
As Matariki rises in the winter sky above Aotearoa, it signals more than the start of the Māori New Year.
Santa Maria: A legacy carved in timber
Some boats are more than the sum of their timber and fastenings.
Jack Guard and his Gipsy: Craft, character and coastal history
Step onboard Gipsy and you’re not just stepping into a boat – you’re stepping into a story.
The Yates family of the Far North and their Bailey & Lowe launches Part II: Tui Silver Bell
Joseph William (Joe) Conrad, who bought the bigger Tui (now Silver Bell) from Gus Yates in 1914, often used his Māori names, ...
Dame Naomi James: A mother who found her strength again when life capsized her
In a world where grit often gets overlooked and quiet resolve forgotten, the story of Dame Naomi James rises from the deep li...
Timeless elegance, Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta
From its salty, rum-soaked beginnings in the 1960s to its current status as a world-renowned event celebrating maritime herit...
The Yates family of the far north and their Bailey & Lowe launches
The Yates family had extensive holdings in the Far North around the turn of the 20th century. Samuel Yates was born in London...
A brief history of: Distress calls
The standard maritime distress signals we use today are universally applied and understood, but that wasn’t always the case.
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Bill Couldrey Part 7: The bright, new, post-war years
The outbreak of peace in 1945 brought fresh opportunities for New Zealanders as, bit by bit, life – and yachting – gradually ...
Shaken & Stirred – Antiques & Classic Boat Show 2023
If you’ve never been to the Antique & Classic Boat Show, I’d urge you to add it to your 2024 diary.