PS Canally (Australia)

[Roderick Smith]

This paddlesteamer is 100 years old in 2007, having been built at Koondrook/Barham.
In various threads, I have described the boat, progress as at 2004, and the plans (subsequently cancelled) for a grand paddleboat fleet from Morgan (SA) to Koondrook (Vic.) / Barham (NSW) over June-July.
PS Ruby's centenary was celebrated at Wentworth Junction Rally over Sat.7-Sun.8.7.
A week later, I was at the restoration site for PS Canally (~4 km upriver of Robinvale, Vic. / Euston, NSW).
The hull has been complete for some time; now all of the deck supports are in place.
There is only a small team working on this boat.  I met five.  A professional shipwright was arriving later in the morning.
Canally is a community project.
According to research, its construction date was in Nov.1907, and the main celebration will be conducted at Euston Club in Nov.2007.  At the least, the decked hull will be propelled to the club using tinnies; at the best, it will be self propelled with a temporary diesel.  Although I missed having my boat at cancelled and recent celebrations, I am planning to be on the water for the celebration.
The plans for the progressive work are very authentic.
The boiler will be placed with the firebox to the stern, and the funnel rising through the rear of the wheelhouse.
The upper deck will have four cabins on each side rear of the wheelhouse, the authentic Murray-Darling look.

I was planning to add this to the entry on PS Canally in the APAM List thread, but I have discovered the problem of navigating into the middle of any thread which runs to more than six pages: the entry menu goes 1, 2, 3...10, 11, 12, but after entering at 3 or 10, further moves must be one by one.

The enclosed photo shows all of the supports for the deck.
They are metal, with stepped ends to carry a wooden gunwale.
At the forepeak and stern, a single support runs across both hull edges, with small cantilevers.
Amidships, the supports do not run across the engineroom.  Each is cantilevered a long way from the hull edge, but is supported on a row of columns slightly inboard.

To the rear is MV Kookaburra, stranded by low water during a transfer from Swan Hill to Wentworth for a new operator.  It is a day boat, set up for lunch and dinner cruises.  It had just missed a short-duration rise a few weeks earlier; another rise would arrive within a week.  The low water doesn't show in this photo, as the site is only a few km above Euston Weir, and the pool level extends for 60 km.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[ljhall]

Hi Roderick,

The Canally is mentioned as being a 'community project', with the Euston Club Ltd. listed as a major sponsor, but do you know which group or organisation actually owns the Vessel.

Thanks,

[Roderick Smith]

I have just had a phone call from the restoration leader, and forgot to ask Leith's question.
He was outlining the plans for the centenary celebration.
The event will be held over Sat.8 & Sun.9.12, fairly low key.
The boat will not be propelled to Euston Club.  It will stay on site, and all events will be on site.
The group is trying to have descendants of all four owning families present.
The aim is for a relaxed barbecue and talk fest, with memorabilia and photos to trigger anecdotes.  On Saturday, there will be a ceremonial moment with a bottle of champagne.
The water is down; it is too hard for big boats to cruise in from Colignan or from Swan Hill.  However, any small boat trailed in will be welcome: steam launches, miniature replicas of larger vessels, unmotored wooden hulls under restoration etc.  Jessie II will be there; it would be great to see Breezy, Minimus, James Watt, Rusty, Bunyip...  There are two ramps.  A concrete one near Robinvale caravan park, and a dirt one near the restoration site (4 km upriver, on the NSW bank).  The work-platform barge will be moored to provide some access for low-height vessels to raft off, with a ramp or ladder up the bank.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

Messages and phone calls have been flowing.
PS Minimus might be there, but no guarantee.
I have had the greatest difficulty obtaining a contact for a local hire houseboat for a Paddleducker group.  Apparently there isn't one.
However, any listee who arrives and stays at a local hotel/motel and drives out will at least get a short cruise aboard my boat.

It is no good hiring at Mildura a week earlier and cruising up: both the water and the hirer won't let you; I guess that the same is true for coming downriver from Swan Hill.

I put out a query via a communal site, which doesn't list Robinvale/Euston, and didn't have it available on the pulldown menu on the query form.  The result: friendly river people have responded from marinas at Murray Bridge (Riverglen and Long Island), Mannum (Kia), Blanchetown (Quality), Renmark (Liba Liba) and Mildura (Willandra), all commenting that their boats won't help me this time, but keep them in mind for a future hire.  Liba Liba's fleet of sternwheelers is based at Renmark (www.libaliba.com.au).  Clearly, this is the one for Paddleduckers visiting the region to use, but you won't be allowed up through Warrakoo.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[michael]

Five sleeps to go! Can't wait!

[michael]

A wonderfull day it was to celebrate Canally's 100th Birthday. Saturday 8th December a attendance of 40 odd people were there to help celebrate.
Celebrations kicked off around 10.30am where Frank Tucker did a talk on Canally's history, Leigth Donovan did a speech on the raising and restoration so far, then members from each family who owned the Canally did a talk about their family members who operated the vessels: Freemans 1907-1920, Freeman & Tinks 1920-1929, Collins 1929- 1948, Chisletts 1948- 1998(including when sunk in May 1957).
It was most interesting to me listening to Barry Collins, son of famous riverman Bill Collins, and Norm Chistlett who skippered the Hero untill she burnt in 1957.
Ken Robertson, a country musician, sang Happy Brithday and also a song he wrote about PS Canally.
Followed by a toast and lunch and drinks. Was a fantastic day, and was good to catch up with a few paddleduckers!

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's & great snaps Michael ........."A wonderfull day it was to celebrate Canally's 100th Birthday"  :bbq & a   or two

Good old OZ timber in the construction    

[Roderick Smith]

I had looked forward to various incarnations of the centenary celebrations, and planned my cruising accordingly.
At the end of a November Darling River cruise, I left Jessie II with Leigh Donovan, who has been the driving force behind the raising and restoration of Canally.
Fri.7.12: I arrived at Leigh's place at 17.00, collected Jessie II, and drove to the Canally restoration site (at 1130 km).  Leigh launched the boat on a dirt ramp (intended for houseboats, at higher water), using a tractor.  Michael had arrived in time to assist.  We left the boat moored there, and drove to Robinvale Hotel for a rendezvous with Murray Whaler, who would be in town too briefly to bring PS Minimus (and just as well: launching and retrieving difficulties).  That hotel wasn't serving a meal; we dined at Euston Hotel.  Meanwhile, the restoration group was still setting up: signs, canopies, a portable toilet, tables, chairs, flags.
Sat.8.12: The big day built up slowly, guests were on site from 8.00, mingling, looking and reminiscing.  The formalities took place from 10.30, and were explained by Michael.  PS Canally had been a greyhound: partly the hull design, partly by having a railway boiler and direct drive.  The first speaker recalled the nickname of his forebear ('Tearaway'?).  Frank related a famous race with Alexander Arbuthnot, which Canally won after giving the other a headstart.  One nice touch was brought by Pam Francis (descendant of the Francis of the Francis & Tinks partnership).  She is a member of Friends of Marion, and caters for PS Marion cruises (she catered for one on which I was aboard).  She brought on loan from Mannum Museum a bottom-end river flag for the day: Canally had worked along both ends of the river.  Frank and Leigh provided photo albums and photos of lots of boats: I didn't get time to view them all.  Michael brought an album on PS Australien (which I dutifully collected at the end of the day, as Michael had left in the early afternoon to be the engineer aboard PS Pevensey that evening).  The day was too hectic to spare any time to cruise with guests.
Sun.9.12: I took Jessie II up to 1166 km, than back via the short cut into Robinvale (saves 12 km, but barely navigable with the water down), down to the lock, then back to 1130 km.
Mon.10.12: Retrieval didn't work.  The tractor couldn't get the trailer far enough into the water.  The ramps at Robinvale and Euston were too short, with drops at the ends.  I faced the prospect of leaving Jessie II at Robinvale for a year.  Leigh recalled the old Robinvale town ramp, little used since the 1960s.  It worked, and I was out of the water only 2 h late.

Other boats seen:
One of the modern pontoon houseboats to the rear of Michael's picture is a sternwheeler.  Another is moored at the upriver end of the shortcut.  Moored at the weir, waiting for sufficient water to continue, is PV Black Shag.  This had been based at Swan Hill, and was for sale as at mid 2006.  It has been sold to somebody downriver, but I don't yet know its new base.  MV Maranoa was moored at the upriver end of the shortcut too.  I asked the owner if it was built from one of the two railway tenders used for the PS Edwards salvage, and he didn't know.

Ken Robertson has been writing songs for over 60 years.  He has a huge range of cds: paddlesteamers grouped by port, trains, aeroplanes and more.  See www.kenrobertson.net.au.

Leith asked about the formal ownership for this community project.  During the work, the boat is owned by Euston Club, which handles it in the same manner in which it handles three sporting subsidiaries.  The club has been a major sponsor (I did eat there on Saturday and Sunday, and thanked the manager on duty).  When the work is complete, ownership will be vested in Friends of Canally.  Leigh thanked many benefactors: providers of materials, cranes, assistance, special skills.
Yet to come: the contact details on how to become a Friend of Canally.
Enclosed: two photos to complement Michael's.

I'll put up a photo of one of the sternwheel houseboats in an APAM thread.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[thewharfonline]

Good to see some pics coming from the restoration- I haven't been able to find many during my searches for pics on how it was going, so it was good to see some.

Sounds like a great day was had.

Sean

[paddlesteamerman1]

it is great to see pictures of it.. and i am sorry that i couldnt come.. i would have loved too
looks great though

[Excelsior]

I've heard today that the Canally sank recently.  Apparently the top of one side is sitting at water level while the other is sitting in about 20 foot of water.  What a shame!  I'm sure she'll come up pretty well though.

Mac

[michael]

Haha that doesn't suprise me, her bildge pump system runs twice a day for 5-10 mins to pump out all her water, she needs a good caulk, only the hull just above the water line is caulked. They must have forgotten to fill up the diesl for the generator!!

[ljhall]

OK ! -  I must admit that I was a little shocked to hear that she sunk, then again I didn't know that she wasn't completely caulked either.
I'm sure that she we will raised shortly and with minimal damage.
I was also surprised to hear that there's actually 20ft of water so close to the bank.

[michael]

I was talking to shipwright Adam Auditori and he said the river droped and one side sat on the bank and the other side went down and filled her up where she hadn't been caulked. She's still under and I'm not sure when they plan on getting her up, as they live off funding.

[Roderick Smith]

By the end of December, a raising plan had been established; equipment had been obtained; a professional salvage diver (based in Mildura) had been engaged.
The tanks have been supplied by a local industry, which makes them for the wine industry.  I am not sure if they are designed to hold bulk grapes, or bulk fertiliser or insect spray.
Over the first week of January, flotation tanks were being readied, and placed (about two per day).
On Mon.5.1, the generator for the pump was retrieved from the hull.  It had been working as the hull went down, which is consistent with the river-dropping explanation in an earlier post.

Preparation will probably take a further 2 weeks, then the time needed for the raising is uncertain.
The exercise isn't cheap, but the total bill looks like being cheaper than just the hiring cost of airbags for a similar recent exercise.

I called by on Tues.6.1; Paddleducker James was arriving next day (from adventures on PS Marion and SWPV Murray Princess) to spend time working on the preparation.

I enclose a photo taken from the opposite direction from those posted earlier in the thread: looking downstream past the stern, to the diver's barge (which had to come for only about 30 km to this site).

Searching on 'Canally' in the search windows brings up lots of other references, in particular
www.paddleducks.co.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2384.92 for more information, and a photo at 2004 Wentworth Junction Rally.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor