In a Queenstown first, Lake Whakatipu will be graced with the presence of about 30 classic and historic boats on Saturday.
The Southern Lakes Classic & Historic Boat Event, designed to show off boating craft from yesteryear, is being organised by former local joinery business owners Karelan and Greg Doran.
Following three years’ labour, Greg put his second wooden boat, Elise, on the water a few months ago.
It’s a six-metre-long replica of a 1930s American-designed barrel back boat powered by a 350 Chevrolet motor.
‘‘We’ve been to a number of boating events around the South Island, and people expressed a desire to have something further south,’’ Greg says.
Most boats registered for the show come from out of town — including four past winners of the Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade — though Greg’s still encouraging more local boaties to enter.
The highlight of the April 15 event will be a mass cruise in Queenstown Bay to coincide with the scheduled noon departure of the TSS Earnslaw.
Leading the floating parade will be craft representing the history of boating on the lake, including the recently-restored classic wooden launch, The Lions, which, like the Earnslaw, entered the lake in 1912.
The whole fleet will then reassemble at Kelvin Grove at about 1pm.
Doran says a wide range of old boats will be in the water including wooden boats, Albatross powerboats and early-’60s Hamilton jetboats with fibre glass hulls and, normally, wooden decks.
Another recently-arrived classic is a 1960 Chris-Craft replica wooden jetboat, Rose.
Local Geoff Andrew bought it off a Christchurch man who’d owned it for 28 years.
The show’s being supported by the Wakatipu Community Maritime Preservation Society, which restored the historic Frankton marina boatshed and ticketing office.
Committee member Jeff Williams says he’s sure next week’s show will be the first of many ‘‘because there is a huge number of these boats turning up in the Southern Lakes’’.
