Dec20
Couta sailing boats in the Australian sun
Couta boats racing in the Australian sun
Dale Appleton sent us these photos of some almost absurdly good looking Couta boats racing in the warmth of the Australian summer off Queenscliff, Victoria.
(By the way, let me assure anyone who may be wondering – up here in deepest, darkest rural Kent we’ve been snowed in good and proper for the first time in years.)
He says that the Coutas are now highly sought after as a pleasure and racing boat, and even as a status symbol to some, and adds that there is a traditional builder making them to order. I think that’s seriously good news. See the class website.
Dale also pointed out that there’s a hidden treasure on the Couta Boat Club’s website, by the way. Readers may remember that Pete Goss’s Spirit of Mystery expedition recently had a nasty experience when their recreated Cornish fishing lugger suffered a knockdown as they approached Australia. One crew member on deck at the time broke his leg and their boat lost its clinker-built dinghy made from off-cuts from the Mystery herself.
Well, in an amazing coincidence it seems that dinghy has turned up on a beach at King Island, part way between mainland Australia and Tasmania, and I gather it is being fixed up by local boatbuilder Jeremy Clowes, who sailed with the Mystery crew after she reached King Island – I gather he has replaced the upper planks and various other bits and pieces using parts donated by local wooden boat enthusiasts. As Dale says, it’s a story to warm any boat builder’s heart. See the story here.
Surrounded by unaccustomed ice, I’ve been reflecting on how grateful I am that people like Dale and many others are so willing to send in their photos and stories. Thanks Dale and the rest – your efforts are greatly appreciated, and I hope you know how much you add to the sum of human happiness in the boating world.
2 Comments »Boatbuilders and restorers, Cruising yachts, Culture: songs, stories, photography and art, Events, Locations, Racing sailing craft, Restoration and repair, Small boats, Suppliers, Traditional carvel, Traditional clinker, Uncategorized, Working boats
jeff cole Dec 20th 2009 at 12:50 pm 1
G’day Gavin, wondered how you were faring. Skating on the estuary yet? When I was a kid the couta boats were still working craft but mostly motorised. Now a new 26 footer can cost A$100,000. I came close to buying one once but the matter of a safe, affordable, accessible mooring was more expensive than buying and fitting out the boat. But the regular sight of a fleet racing on a summers day is a great one, and even as a ‘status symbol’ it’s good that they are being preserved and built again.
Max Dec 20th 2009 at 07:37 pm 2
Gavin, good to see more on Couta boats
thanks
max