An update from the AWBF General Manager
After a long 4-year wait, the Australian Wooden Boat Festival will soon be upon us. Just 7 weeks out from the big day, this might be the last chance I have for some indulgent reflection before things reach full volume. So here goes:
What I find endlessly remarkable about this Festival is that it is held together by the power of a very simple idea – the beauty and promise of wooden boats. To some this is a promise of adventure; to others a promise of camaraderie, history, craftsmanship, or simple relaxation. But whatever it means to each individual, this idea mobilises a huge number of committed people to rally together at the highest pitch of celebration.
From the massive tall ships that line Hobart’s wharfs, to the universe of tightly packed vessels on water and on land; from the families, businesses, artists, entertainers, and volunteers, to the beaming crowds of festival-goers from across the country. All of us, one and all, are lured in by this singular object – the Wooden Boat.
And what a perfect place we are lured to. Tens of thousands of years ago wooden watercraft navigated the shores of Southern Tasmania, and hundreds of years ago, Sullivan’s Cove became one of the world’s great centres of maritime commerce. Hulking wooden vessels would come and go across the watery highway of the River Derwent, connecting the goods and peoples of the world. That impulse for commerce and global connectivity which started with wooden boats has been the main theme of the story of the human race ever since, and Hobart’s waterfront is pivotal to that story.
These wonderful objects tell the history of entire civilisations, and at the same time are steeped with the stories of unique individual lives. In their totality, these countless stories that are told, re-told, and are being created right now – this is the heart of the Festival around which everything else is built.
This Festival is not a precisely curated enterprise built by a dictator at the top, but an immense groundswell of community enthusiasm that swarms into Sullivan’s Cove from all directions. It is our job on the Festival team to help this enthusiasm shine its brightest, to give it space to express, and to use a light touch as we guide it.
This Festival belongs to all of us, and I am genuinely humbled to be entrusted with the helm. See you all on the waterfront!
General Manager, Paul Stephanus
The Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race returns to Tassie waters!
Along with the Australian Wooden Boat Festival, the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race is one of the most notable nautical events in the world. An incredible sailing fleet will set off from the waters of Sydney Harbour this Boxing Day to sail against the clock.
The AWBF and the Sydney to Hobart have had a long relationship, with several wooden boats entered in both. We would like to wish the organisers and the crew our best wishes for a safe journey south.
The following wooden boats are past competitors and will be attending the AWBF 2023, Kingurra, Laurabada, Mistral II, Southern Myth, Westward, Baranne and many more. Be sure to check out the online directory for boat locations during the AWBF.
LAURABADA Image supplied by custodian Ivan Holm
Largest Huon Pine boat ever built joins the fleet for 2023, after a 20 year hiatus
The largest Huon Pine vessel ever built will return to Tasmanian waters after over 20 years cruising on the mainland. The DENNISON STAR was built in 1968 by visionary naval architect Ray Kemp in Woodbridge, Tasmania after initially sketching her design on the back of a cigarette packet.
