The amazing story of how Whitstable oystering smack Emeline turned up on the Costa del Sol and returned to her home area to be restored, repaired and generally saved is here.
Thanks for reminding me about it Save Standard Quay!
Tag: emeline
Whitstable smack Emeline repainted and looking wonderful
The Whitstable smack afloat, Emeline has just been repainted and I was lucky enough to take some photos for publication, with kind permission of the owners and the yard.
I guess two of the main points of interest here are her hard bilges, which enable her to sit up on sand and mud, unlike other smacks from further up the coast, and that wonderful finish, which is the talk of those local boaters who have seen it. Part of the secret, I gather, is using paint conditioners – but from what people tell me about how they’ve tried the same thing without success, I’d guess there’s more to know about achieving this kind of result than what kind of additives to mix with the paint.
The story of how this traditionally built wooden boat of 1904 was discovered near Malaga in 1992 and brought back to Kent for be restoration is fascinating, and can be read at the simplywhitstable.com website.
Smack and Barge racing off Whitstable – Neil Baker’s photos
From the top: three photos of the 2004 Whitstable Smack and Barge Race,
the rest are from 2008. Smacks Gamecock and Emeline appear in
several photos, as do the barges Greta and Repertor
Neil Baker takes many photos for use in promoting Whitstable, and he has kindly sent us a bundle of excellent shots from the town’s Smack and Barge Race for our entertainment.
To see more please go to his site http://www.inct5.co.uk/. Here are 25 from this year’s Whitstable Smack and Barge Race held on the 2nd August, and here are a further 17 from the 2004 event.
Many thanks Neil! Any time you have more photos of old-style boating and maritime subjects to share, please get in touch.
One thing that intrigues me is that Gamecock is well reefed down, while most of the rest of the boats have most if not all of their sails up. Does anyone know why? Was she light on ballast, perhaps to reduce stresses?
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