Everything’s shipshape

PREANA, Australia’s oldest operating steam yacht, is entering a new phase of its long and illustrious life.

About 20 years ago, Hobart hotelier, refrigeration engineer, entrepreneur and boat lover Jim Butterworth came across the derelict hull of the once elegant steam launch Preana, hauled up in the mud in Hobart’s Prince of Wales Bay.

Had Preana been built of any timber other than Huon pine it would have been a total wreck long before then. Even so, it was in a sorry state.

Hauled up on the mud, half out water, the hull was a sunbleached, weed-fringed wreck, encrusted with barnacles, the oily tide ebbing and flowing within the hull.

Its garboards had been torn off and the yacht’s original steam engine had long been dismantled and shipped off to Japan. A local boat builder was about to break it up to salvage the valuable timbers.

But for Jim Butterworth’s enterprise, the days were finally numbered for this beautifully crafted, Edwardian steam yacht designed and built in 1896 by Battery Point shipwright Robert Inches for William Gibson, a wealthy Tasmanian flour miller and parliamentarian.

“She was a mess,” Jim told the Mercury’s yachting writer Peter Campbell this week. “But as soon as I laid eyes on her I thought ‘What a beauty, I have to save this boat’.”

And that is exactly what he did.

The restoration of the magnificent steam yacht Preana brought back to life yet another fine example of the remarkable skills of Hobart boat designers and builders and the Tasmanian timbers they used back in the 1800s.

Today, the beautifully crafted 16.7-metre vessel (55-footer) is berthed in Hobart’s Constitution Dock, covered by canvas to protect the beautifully varnished deckhouse and fittings, a rarity as the only steam launch of its size still in survey in Australia.

In recent years, Preana has emerged regally to take pride of place at the Australian Wooden Boat Festival, the bright work sparkling in Hobart’s summer sunshine.

However, Preana will be back on the Derwent within the next few weeks, with Jim Butterworth planning “high tea” afternoon sails around the estuary.

Guests will replicate the regal days of Preana’s early life more than a century ago when the original owner’s friends sat on velvet lounges, sipping fine wines and champagne, and dining off monogrammed china.

However, after more than two decades of extraordinary dedication to the restoration and continued maintenance of Preana, 83-year-old Jim has put the elegant vessel up for sale.

Ideally, he would like to see Preana remain in Tasmania, bought by someone in the state with the same dedication as he has shown.

“She is still in survey and commercially could take Tasmanians and visitors on elegant cruises on our beautiful River Derwent, enjoying the nostalgia of this port city and its harbour,” Jim said.

“Perhaps the State Government could buy Preana and gift her to the Tasmanian Maritime Museum, or perhaps Crown Prince Fredrik of Denmark might give her to Princess Mary when she becomes queen,” Jim added hopefully.

“We have had inquiries from potential overseas buyers, but I would really like Preana to stay on the Derwent.”

While he has been the driving force in bringing back Preana from a derelict in Prince of Wales Bay, a lot of Jim’s friends have also generously given their time and expertise because they also believed in the boat and shared the dream.

Noted maritime historian and journalist Bruce Stannard describes Preana as one of the finest and most important vessels in Australia. It is on the Register of Historic Vessels.

Preana is an appropriate name for this long and slender craft because it is the Aboriginal word for spear. It was built with a Huon pine planked hull, blue-gum keel and Tasmanian oak ribs with an overall length of 16.7 metres, beam of 3.1 metres and a draft of 1.3 metres.

In place of the 60horsepower, triple expansion steam engine that originally powered the 12-ton Preana at an effortless 12 knots, it is now driven by a 40-horsepower US Navy steam engine, donated by another boat lover.

The original Australian red cedar saloon, long gone, has been rebuilt with red cedar cut from logs donated by a retired New South Wales timber merchant.

Six brass portholes on either side complete the magnificent restoration of the deck house.

Jim Butterworth has completed the restoration with specially made china and glassware, replicating that made for the original owner.

Preana is indeed a vessel of regal distinction, worthy of being retained in Hobart as Australia’s oldest operating steam yacht.

For more details, contact Jeff Rowe on 0414 236 337. APPLICATIONS are now open for people wishing to display their wooden boats ashore at next year’s Australian Wooden Boat Festival.

The festival’s general manager, Paul Cullen, said that traditionally “boats afloat’’ are over-subscribed at each event, but there was plenty of room for owners who wished to display their boat ashore, on a trailer or cradle.

“We have the whole waterfront to fill, so there’s plenty of room,” Mr Cullen said. “For smaller boats, we encourage owners to consider this option. It actually allows people to get much closer and appreciate the beauty of these boats up front.

“A small boat in the water can be hard to see in among all the bigger boats in the marinas.”

The 13th Australian Wooden Boat Festival will be held across Hobart’s waterfront from February 8-11.

Mr Cullen said there were hundreds of wooden boats from all over Australia and beyond with fascinating histories, unique designs, or superb examples of restoration, craftsmanship or simply excellent finishes that intrigue the visiting public

“Some of our most popular vessels have been ‘boats ashore”, he said.

“The Australian Wooden Boat Festival is the ideal place for these justifiably proud owners to show off their boat.

“The festival is one of Australia’s most popular, and one of the world’s largest, maritime events, with more than 220,000 people attending over the four days.”

Anyone interested in registering for the “boats ashore’’ category can do so at www.australianwooden boatfestival.com.au

Owners of model boats wishing to participate in the festival can also now register their interest.