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Fowey boatbuilder Marcus Lewis went to this years Thames Traditional Boat Rally and kindly sent me these shots – he knew in advance that I wouldn’t be able to attend myself.

Here’s what he had to say about them:

‘Hi, I thought I would send you some pictures of the Henley rally in case you were short of material this week!

It was super weather, bright sunshine some of the time, with a breeze on the river (bit more on Sunday) and the atmosphere was very relaxed and calm, no-one getting their knickers twisted!

There was a marvellous selection of craft, a large collection of Dunkirk Little Ships - even a motor launch that used to ferry passengers from Fowey to Bodinnick - and a very good commentary from people who clearly know the boats, the owners, and what they can get away with commenting on!

The boat jumble was ok, not over-busy, but there were a few treasures to be found if you were looking.

The illuminated parade was a little under-subscribed, but those that took part really made an effort.

An excellent event that was blessed with fine weather, and the red kites soaring overhead gave something for my partner Sue to watch when she got tired of looking at the boats!

Cheers, Marcus‘

Many thanks Marcus! It looks a very jolly party – I really must go along some time. I only have one concern: what exactly are the rules about how to dress for the occasion?

Tags: dunkirk little ships, marcus lewis, photographs, photos, rally, steam boats, thames traditional boat rally, traditional boats

Witch of Worbarrow

A student at the Boat Building Academy is appealing for information and old photos relating to the Witch of Worbarrow, built in Weymouth in around 1902.

Student Ian Baird is building a replica of the rare Dorset crab and lobster fishing boat as part of his 38-week boat building training.

Now in the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, the original boat was rowed from Weymouth to Worbarrow Bay by Jack and Tom Miller, where it worked the crab and lobster grounds for many years, before becoming a gaff-rigged pleasure boat. In 1979 she was bequeathed to the National Maritime Museum by her late owner, Philip Draper of Arne, near Wareham. She is of historical interest because she is believed to be the only boat of her type still surviving.

Ian says that he wanted to build something that was unusual and local to his home county of Dorset. Recreating Witch of Worbarrow offers just that opportunity, and he wants to know much more about her history and the people who worked in her.

“Apart from her life in Weymouth Bay and Poole Harbour we also know that she spent some time in Southampton Water or the Solent as there are old pictures of her close to the bows of the Queen Mary at Southampton,” he says.

The project has attracted great interest from the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, which is planning to put the new boat on display alongside the original. The museum’s interest is that the original Witch is far too old to put on the water: “We don’t really know how she would have behaved on the water,” says curator of boats Andy Wyke. “Ian’s reconstruction of the boat, which will follow as closely as possible to the original, will help us to learn a great deal about this historic fishing boat.”

Tags: boat building academy, boatbuilding, crab and lobster boat, dorset, information, photos, witch of worbarrow

Speaking of schooners, as we were in a recent post about the type’s origins, my friend Mike Goodwin worked on the building of the schooner Virginia, which completed in 2007, and was lucky enough to be a member of her crew when she won the Gloucester Schooner Race the same year.

Here’s his animated photo-record of her from the beginning the building to the finishing line of the race. The baulks of timber involved are awesome, but then it gets better…

The music comes from artist and composer Michael Shantz.

Tags: boatbuilding, gloucester, mike goodwin, racing schooner, Sailing boat, sailing ship, schooner, schooner virginiaq