If you are reading this then the chances are you are part of something that’s bigger than you imagine. The wooden boat world by nature self depreciatory. It’s an admirable characteristic to understate, to play down, in a world where the unjustified hyperbole often drowns out the the quiet achievers.

"The AWBF is a celebration of our collective heritage. The 2025 theme allows us to explore our connection with the Pacific like never before, bringing visitors face-to-face with historic vessels and remarkable people from across the ocean. We hope to create a festival experience that feels both grand in its spectacle and intimate in its sense of community."

In 1953 the first marine plywood trailable yacht designed for home construction, the Silhouette, emerged in the UK. The idea took off and by 1960 there were over a thousand sailing throughout the world. The concept was adopted by Richard Hartley in New Zealand who designed the Hartley TS16, and her big sisters the TS18 and TS21: a range of trailable multi-chined plywood yachts.

Lars Halvorsen’s five sons and family created what became the largest and most famous Australian boatbuilders of their era, later taking their skills to Hong Kong and China, with exports all over the world. The story is one of hardship and passion, stoicism in the face of great adversity.

Now almost five years later, the School‘s Lead Boatbuilding instructor, Sean Koomen, has been invited back to be a guest instructor at the Wooden Boat Centre in Tasmania, Australia. He will lead students in constructing two wood sailing dinghies during a three-month course beginning November 2024. 

As the work is nearing completion, the AWBF is now welcoming any enquiries regarding her future! She will be launched on February 10th 2024, as part of the Kettering Wooden Boat Rally, and all funds from her sale will go directly to the AWBF.

Well, at the recent AWBF annual General meeting Joy stepped down so that she could spend more time with two of the most important things in her life…Her family and her stunning Neilson Ketch HOLGER DANSKE

With the goal of preserving traditional boat-building techniques and a great understanding of their relevance in contemporary times, his presence at the festival would be certain to captivate and inspire boat enthusiasts, historians, and sustainability advocates alike.

Just in case you are still dreaming of that weekend three weeks ago, the AWBF has put together a three minute video montage covering all the action from in an around the Hobart Waterside.

While we came away with enough content to keep these pages filled for a month or two, this week we choose instead to simply share some images from an unforgettable four days.

In today’s world many of us cry out for ways to express our individuality and character. Many of our manufactured possessions are white and precision made from plastic or metal, it is rare for us to give them a name or character.

The chosen social media platform at SWS is instagram… so here are nine feeds that should be covering the AWBF event if you can’t make it in person. There’s plenty of existing content from their journeys to the festival and hopefully plenty of imagery to come from Hobart

DUYFKEN—Little Dove—was 80 feet long, shoal draft and carvel planked. She had three masts and a total of six working sails. She was fast, sturdy and had a relatively small crew of 20. Her design was a “jacht," which in 16th century Holland meant “hunter” or “pursuer."

Given the difficulties in travel and transport over the last few years, the festival organisers made a cleaver decision for 2023, to highlight Australian designers and builders and with the release of the full program on line, we can now see how they are intending to do this.

Jock liked to remember WESTWARD as the only yacht with a fish well to win a Sydney to Hobart race. Her building virtually marked the start of Muir's Boatyard and her first race and handicap win kicked off Jock Muir's illustrious career as a blue water ocean racer.

In March 1886 the now Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania conducted a race to Port Esperance for 28 footers with a sweepstake prize of 10s. per boat. Entries included F Turner’s SUNBEAM, Mr Calder’s MAGIC, Mr Knight’s TERRA LINNA, Mr Lewis’s MILLY, Mr Cheverton’s MABEL, and Mr Maddock’s MYRINE.

The portraits will become an evolving display at the Festival with each participant invited to find their image amongst the sea of faces and handwrite on their print what wooden boat custodianship means to them.

Got a wooden boat? Why not bring your pride and joy? It will be four years since the last Festival, and the AWBF crew are excited to open the flood gates for registrations.

Wooden boats were and still are a common feature in Tasmania, an island surrounded by water. Sharing the knowledge surrounding the wooden boat craft is a big feature for the Australian Wooden Boat Festival.

In the latest episode of the AWBF Boat Folk series they introduce you to one of Tasmania's oldest wooden boats - proud SV BRITANNIA.