APAM- List of Paddlers Part 1 Modern and Restored Vessels

[michael]

Temeraire early Jan 2007.
I saw her under construction at Mildura in 2003 at Cooky's boatyard. She was launched in 2006 where it cruised to Swan Hill ( hull and paddlewheels) where its home port will be.

[Roderick Smith]

Moving upriver from Swan Hill, the next town which is a base for a paddle vessel is Barham (the NSW town opposite Koondrook, Vic.).  PS Barham was built by a machinery enthusiast, and has a rare/unique vertical boiler.  It is dual powered, with a diesel to run for quick voyages.  Another feature is a funnel which can be lowered, so that the boat can pass under the bridge in a lot of river conditions without the formalities required to have the lifting span raised.

I have placed one photo in the Preserved Paddle Ships forum, under a Koondrook - Barham bridge centenary thread.  On that occasion, I was aboard in the afternoon.  The boat held 30 passengers with ease and comfort.  The wheelhouse alone held most, before the decks and the rear cabin (with kitchen, bunks and toilet) were needed.  At that event, this boat was the local host, and headed the ceremonial paddleboat procession under the raised bridge.

Today I enclose two photos, both taken when the Randell Cadell fleet was in town.  On the Tuesday, PS Barham came downriver to be with he fleet for the entry into Koondrook/Barham; on the Wednesday it continued upriver with the fleet for the first few hours.

I believe that the boat has now been sold, but to local owners again.

Today I enlose two photos taken during the Randell Cadell 150th anniversary, showing the boat and the boiler.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

This hull was retrieved from the river at Koondrook Barham, and was placed on drums adjacent to a major park.
It is hardly even conserved.
If ever there is a new Banyulla built, how much original fabric would be in  it?  Clearly reconstruction or replica, not renovation or restoration.

I have transferred this photo from the Koondrook - Barham bridge centenary thread, in the Preserved Paddle Ships forum.

To keep the APAM boats manageable, I do go back and edit older posts as I find new facts, rather than add a fresh post remote from the original one.  I tidied PS Wanera a couple of days ago.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

There was a flurry of interest in this hull in the Preserved Paddle Ships thread this morning, so I have jumped a few boats between Torrumbarry and Echuca to post this one today.
This is a new steel hull, clearly paddle, but has not had any propulsion to date, so it would be misleading to describe it as PV or PS (or even paddle gas turbine or paddle solar electric).
Michael has more technical detail than I do.
The project has stalled as the builder took up a different boat project.

Behind it is barge Ada.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Excelsior]

Just to give an idea of scale...

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's - as Excelsior posted .... Just to give an idea of scale :?:  

John......where is your BRAVERY  :?: we all know that a Holden Commodore ute is approx 22.5 ft long [Bundy with his Ford Typhoon ute may differ]... so with a :computer to calculate our GUESTIMaTIONS.....my guess is.......

22.5 foot multiplied in 3D via a few AUZZIE   would be 22.5 X 2 [plus a BIT] = [44'+5"] or >>>>so'


    - Derek

[michael]

Here's its measurements: front deck 2.4m long, sponson decks 5m long, paddleboxes 3.1m long, rear area 3.6m long.
Hull 3m wide, paddleboxes 1.1m wide.
Paddlewheels 2.1m in diameter, .5m wide 9spokes
Rudder 1.2m long
So roughly hulls 14m long, 3m wide, 5.2 over paddle boxes.
She hasn't moved still in same place.
Shes up for sale for $9,000 with paddle shafts and chains and gears to go with it aswell. She was designed to be a walk thu hull, with a shallow draft for going up creeks and under bridges.Was to have a vertical eclipse steam engine to be installed, then a 4hp marshall.

[Roderick Smith]

AFAIK there is no private paddle boat moored between Koondrook/Barham and Torrumbarry.  This stretch is away from towns, and even away from access roads.  The annual Murray Marathon paddles (ie kayaks) from Yarrawonga to Torrumbarry.  The boats are taken out of the water, and are taken by road to a fresh launching (Koondrook?) for the final run into Swan Hill.

Today's boat was completed in 2006 and launched at Echuca.  It has a South Australian owner, and is making a prolonged voyage to SA.  In this photo PV Lady Rae is delayed at Torrumbarry Weir (along with a houseboat).  With the river down, there is insufficient depth to get across the concrete sill at the downstream end of the lock.  Returning from the Source to Sea voyage in 2001, PS Etona had been stuck on the downstream side for a few months.

The rear cabin on Lady Rae has been built out onto the sponson, which is uncommon.  It has had stability problems, and floats have been attached on each side (one is visible).

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Excelsior]

Lady Rae in October 06.  Before the floats...

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's - I suspect the stability problem is the two 18 gallon kegs of   that the skipper has stored on the STDB side  :?: - Derek  

[Roderick Smith]

Derek's post is closer to reality than he intended.
Either published, or passed on as river lore.  When PS Ruby was a full three decks, but still very shallow draft, the method of maintaining stability on bends was to have deckhands roll filled barrels from one side to the other.
In recent times, Michael has reported the launching of SWPV Risbey at Mildura.  It had fore & aft balance problems, solved by placing filled barrels on the foredeck.  He has supplied a photo of this, either to Paddleducks somewhere, or to me personally.

Related (but not paddle): to maintain stability of modern railway ferries as they are loaded there are ballast tanks on each side of the hull, with rapid pumps.  As wagons are shunted on port side, ballast is pumped in starboard side.  When wagons are then shunted on starboard side, ballast is pumped out.

Digressing further, the Concorde supersonic aeroplane used the location of fuel to maintain trim, and fuel was pumped around the fuselage in flight.

In the 1960s, BMC (later British Leyland) made a great fuss about the Hydrolastic suspension on the Morris 1100: 'This car floats on fluid'.  Aussie versions went round with added bumper sticker: 'So wot, this car floats on beer'.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[paddlesteamerman1]

Michael,
Is the Eclipse up for private sale, or are the owners going through an agent of some description???
And I remember commenting on the Lady Rae in October '06, I thought with the lean it must have been lodged on a sandbar with a hole in one side..

:

[Roderick Smith]

There are more of these than I had realised: a modern pontoon houseboat, but with paddle propulsion.  Plowman shows a lot in his latest book, mainly in the hire market, and mainly stern wheel.

I have seen Run Riot between Torumbarry and Echuca before.  On this occasion it was moored a little down river from Deep Creek Marina (on the Victorian bank, roughly opposite Perricoota Homestead), in use for the school holidays.  There were many hired houseboats along the whole stretch.  The tinny was used for quick trips to Deep Creek Marina for the purchase of supplies from the general store there, or to have a meal at the waterfront hotel bistro there.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

This one was built in 1975, ~12 m long, ferroconcrete hull.
When I took this photo it was moored at Deep Creek Marina, on the opposite side of the water from the moorings and facilities, and was for sale.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[Roderick Smith]

This one was built in 1979, with a ferro-concrete hull.
According to Plowman, it had been out of use for many years as at 2000.
I have now passed it twice, and it has been repainted.
Both on and off list I have been discussing stability of small two-deck boats, largely as Michael works on a design for his own paddle boat (to follow Bunyip into use).
This one looks to be too tall for its hull size, but perhaps the ferroconcrete hull helps keep it stable?  The look may also be misleading: the fore and aft cabins do seem to be recessed into the hull.
Wharparilla is between Deep Creek Marina and Echuca.  The boat is moored on the NSW bank.
Observe another feature of an Australian paddle boat: an aft deck (in this case above the rear cabin) set up as a barbecue area.  This has shown on a lot of the photos which I have posted recently.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor