Below. The Awarua alongside at Bluff. You will note the two boats in davits. The aft boat in this picture is either Pakawai or her sister. The for'd boat is a conventional Board of Trade ships lifeboat. Fitting out photographs of Awarua show the workboat in the forward davit but in many of her New Zealand photographs the work boat is aft. I assume this was a better davit for launching given that the Master could see the activity around the davits from the wheelhouse and being further aft there would be more protection from the weather.
The Tug Awarua
About the middle of the 1920's the Bluff Harbour Board decided that the ageing Theresa Ward a screw propelled vessel which had entered service in November 1900 with a powerful steam tug that could do duty as pilot boat, harbour tug and salvage tug in the waters to the North West and North East of Bluff.
[Alister told me there were many workboats around at that the time. Many of the vessels did duty on the rough passage to Oban on Stewart Island as well as tug and pilot work as well. There is much in print about this region in the early days but unfortunately at this juncture it is pushing the boundaries of woodenboat.net.nz a little too far out.]
It was decided to place an order with Lobnitz in Glasgow. It is said that Lobnitz were known more for their engines but there is not doubt that history has proven them to be masters of ship design and construction as well.
Incidentally I found them on the internet and am awaiting a reply to my email asking a couple of long shot questions to go with this story later on.
Described in the builders specifications as one of the most powerful vessels of class in the world, the new twin screwed tug AWARUA steamed over 13,000 miles to her new home from the constructors yard on the Clyde.
The little vessel completed a long and monotonous voyage extending to 73 days, varied only by the bunkering calls made at numerous ports en route.
She left the Clyde on August 23 1932 and ran down to Algiers arriving on September 1. After coaling they sailed next day.
Passing Malta they struck a really bad storm but was then favoured with a fine weather passage to Suez. Aden was reached on the 16th September. They coaled and sailed the same day. The run across the Indian Ocean was in fine weather until they picked up the last of the SW monsoon a few days out of Colombo. Awarua arrived in Columb o on September 28th, coaled and sailed the same day. (I've been on ships like that). Sabang was reached on October 4. Yes they coaled and sailed same day. On the run to Albany in West Australia strong winds were met. Coal started to run low and there was one day's steaming left in the bunkers on arrival.
Bunkers replenished the Awarua had to wait up for two days for weather and then headed our on a course that carried her well south of Tasmania with strong following winds and high confused seas. This weather continued through Foveaux Strait has she passed her new home heading for her custom's port of entry at Port Chalmers further north (Dunedin).
'We are glad to be here," said Captain F Donovan, master of the Awarua. "It has been an uneventful voyage, with some bad weather. The Awarua behaved splendidly during the bad spells and no water was shipped.
Right. In this photograph of the model of Awarua at the Bluff Maritime Museum (see archive index ) it is very hard to make out which boat is which and we have not been able to determine any difference between port and starboard boats to decide which one Alister has. It is likely that they were rotated from time to time and I would imagine too that different Masters would have different preferences about which boat to launch. Must have been hard work for the two boatmen to reach the incoming or outgoing vessel and then manoeuvre alongside the jumping ladder for the pilot to board or disembark. Things did change a lot. The mast aft seems to come and go. Awarua left Scotland with one, There is none in the photo above but she certainly had one there when she was decommissioned.
Left . The sorry end of the sister workboat to Pakawai. As you will read later this boat was sold off by the Harbour Board when the Awarua was decommissioned. The boat was purchased with the intention of putting her to work but this did not happen.
Vandals have smashed her beyond repair. Well beyond repair unless you happen to be a wooden boat nut prepared to put your life on hold and open the drain cock on your bank balance. Our photograph of the wrecked sister boat shows a pretty hefty iron capping on the stem which could have been fitted to prevent the planks being started. Her topsides have been raised one plank probably as a result of the different handling characteristics and seaworthiness of the boat after the Norman air cooled engine was fitted.
A craft is rowed in more harmony with the waves than a vessel under power and makes her way a lot more comfortably. A point often lost on power boat users when in rough conditions who subscribe to the 'let's smash our way through' school of thought.
