Small Craft Dunnunda -- A Tasmanian Boat Tour

Traditional boats around the world -- part of a series

by John Weiss

In February 2005 Ellen and I had the opportunity to take a long-planned trip to Australia and the Australian Wooden Boat Festival in Hobart, Tasmania. Boats on display ranged from a wide variety of rowing dinghies and one-design sailboats to the 55' steam launch Preana (built in 1896), the 66' trading ketch May Queen (built in 1867; retired in 1973), and the 197' barque James Craig (built in 1874; still sailing). One-design sailboat racing is VERY popular in Tasmania, and home-built wooden boats are very competitive. Other boating adventures in "Tassie" include the Wooden Boat Centre - Tasmania (WBC) on the shore of the Huon River in Franklin; the Living Boat Trust, a community boating and boatbuilding organization; and the Low Head Pilot Station in the northern Tasmanian city of Launceston. Below is a sampling of the Australian small craft we saw on our tour. For more info and pictures, see The Ash Breeze, Vol. 26 No. 2, Summer 2005.

The Piners Punt -- an indigenous Tasmanian boat

According to Adrian Dean, boat builder and instructor at the Wooden Boat Centre, the Piners Punt is one of 2 truly indigenous Tasmanian boats (the other is a particular Aborigine dugout canoe).

Above and left: Traditional Piners Punt dating from the 1930s. This boat was on display in the Maritime Museum Tasmania.

Above and below: A modern rendition built at the Wooden Boat Centre - Tasmania.

Another modern rendition, built by members of the Wooden Boat Guild Tasmania.

Dinghies - the Past

The Maritime Museum Tasmania featured a wide variety of dinghies, most of which were originally built as yacht tenders and recreational boats for the well-to-do.

Henley (above, and below left) was built in Melbourne in 1880, and used as a tender for the steam launch Preana. She also won many rowing races from the 1920s to as late as 1995.

Right: Dinghy built by Reg Fazackerley (18961983), one of Tasmania's best known boatbuilders

Dinghies - the Present

A wide variety of amateur and professionally built rowing and sailing dinghies was apparent at the Australian Wooden Boat Festival. Hobart is probably the center of Australia's modern wooden boat culture.

The two dinghies below were offered by Ned Trewartha, a professional boatbuilder and alumnus of the course at the Wooden Boat Centre, also currently an instructor at the WBC.

Iain Oughtred design Eliza rowing dinghy

Piccolo sailing dinghy