The News, Culture and Practice of Sailing woodenboats
in Australia, New Zealand & The South Pacific.
SWS is a not-for-profit enterprise, created for and by the traditional maritime community. If you read and enjoy it, consider supporting us financially.
Click Here to Donate
A Postscript to the TEDDY Story - The VEGA
A young Alan Orams bought the plans from Collins, and built the Althirza on the beach at One Tree Point, near Whangarei, starting in 1946. All with hand tools. And all of the timber used was native New Zealand: kauri for the planking, kowhai and tanekaha ribs, totara cabin sides, matai decking and cabin top, and matai plywood for the bulkheads. Orams’ tight budget necessitated concrete for ballast. “She was my dream yacht. I built her to take me around the world.”