You’ll never see these sights again. They are part of our history. Kororāreka has long been a favoured location for re-fitting vessels, from whaleships to launches to racing yachts, but those days are almost over. Only one slipway remains in Matauwhi Bay today – at the Russell Boating Club. It’s been there since June 1979, the older mooring piles, slipways and cradles having been removed a year or so earlier. As with many changes, we can view the old ways with nostalgia while accepting the need for their demise. Hauling your boat out at high tide, scraping and painting it then slipping it back in again when the tide returns may be an endangered habit but it’s all in a good cause – the protection and enhancement of our marine environment. L to R Photofile #s: 4502, Hanlon C35, 4506.
