Ben Marris, custodian of SAONA for the last 30 years was quietly spoken, self deprecating, and above all generous with his incredible knowledge and experience. I would be untue to say I knew him well. But we corresponded and shared stories around our boating overlaps, which alway made me smile.

One of the main catalysts for starting the company was to sustain and grow the art of wooden boatbuilding by passing on the skills they have accumulated. It’s a shared passion to keep the skills of wooden boat building alive for generations to come. 

Chris Crerar was a great supported of SWS. He wrote some heartfelt articles that told of the highs and lows of owning wooden boats. Many of our readers were absorbed by a deep seated honesty in his writing style

This is the first new boat of this design to be built and launched in Australia for about 50 years. One sprightly eighty year old, Doug Jack, set himself the task in 2020 of building a cold moulded version in his basement.

The maritime gods smiled upon us, with lots of sunshine and winds tailor-made for the wooden boat vessels. A gentle breeze fluttering between 10 -12 knots filled the sails throughout the weekend.

Here are the details of seven upcoming diverse wooden boat festivals… Whether you are in Victoria, NSW, Tasmania, Queensland or Auckland, there’s a celebration to get involved with. The pulse of our special field of interest seems to be beating a little more strongly!

Whether you are custodian of a much loved family dinghy, have just finished building your first kayak, are restoring a traditional Tassie cray boat, or are mad for sailing among other timber boats, this is your weekend to head down to the beautiful D'Entrecasteaux Channel on, or with, your wooden boat.