Boats of all shapes, sizes and colours will celebrate New Zealand’s rich maritime history and Commodore Aaron Martin said the association would love to see some extra classic or wooden boats of any type join in to help to make it their largest parade ever.

The pre-parade dinner and captain’s briefing will be held at the VR Resort on the evening of February 7.

Martin said many of the boats will be historical and well-decorated wooden launches with costumed crews, along with every other type and size of small boat imaginable – sailed, rowed or powered, including some strange ones like the vintage, tiny Personal Watercraft.

“The parade will be started by a real cannon firing, and traditional Māori waka have been invited to lead it.”

An onshore viewing area is available for the public a few hundred metres south from the Okere Store and Martin will announce the boats as they pass.

“The boats go really close to the reserve in the Okere Arm, so people can look at them close-up. I think it’s quite a special sight to see so many old boats, including a couple of steamboats, usually.”

Association members will then head for a chosen bay where they all park up their boats along the beach for inspection. They then enjoy a picnic before fun and games at the beachside reserve.

Martin said there would be bobbing for lollies, sack races, egg throwing, tug-of-war and The Great Rotoiti Yellow Duck Hunt for the kids.

Martin said he believed it was important to keep classic and wooden boats around and out on the water because they were mainly New Zealand-made and part of New Zealand’s heritage.

“All these boats need repairing and restoring from time to time, so it helps keep the traditional boat building industry alive.”

He said many of the boats had been involved in Rotorua Lakes transport and tourism for many years.

The use of wooden boats on Lake Rotoiti goes way back in history to the arrival of the great waka Arawa on the shore of Maketu.

It did not take long for these first Māori explorers to discover the beautiful lakes of the Rotorua area.

The lakes soon became the main method of travel between the sub-tribes of Arawa, in particular, Ngāti Pikiao who settled around Rotoiti.

European influence was first felt in the 1930s as city dwellers from Auckland, Wellington and Hamilton were able to purchase small lakeside parcels of land for holiday homes.

Many well-known old merchant families including the Winstones, Rendells, Stevensons and Hellabys regarded Rotoiti as their summer playground, and they needed boats.

In those days they were nearly always displacement launches, and built to last – many are still alive and well, tucked into sheds around the lake shores.

In 1997 two neighbours on the Te Akau peninsula, Gillian Marks and Lindsay Brighouse, decided this living history was too good to waste – these fine old boats needed to be gathered for at least one day each year.

The Parade of the Wooden Boats was born.

A foundation committee, which also included longtime lake personalities Morrin Cooper and John Barrowman, was set up and Brentleigh Bond and Phil Cunningham soon joined.

The first parade, held on Waitangi Day 1998, had 40 entries. Since then, attendance has grown to around 80 wooden boats of all shapes and sizes.

The parade is now recognised as one of New Zealand’s most significant inland waterway marine occasions and has established Lake Rotoiti as a mecca for vintage wooden boats within New Zealand.

Event organisers are on the hunt for old photographs or articles of boating on Rotoiti.

“We wish to establish as part of our website a historical section to further enhance our knowledge of our lake’s wonderful history,” Martin said.

All committee members are honorary, enthusiastic wooden boaters who Martin said were doing this for the enjoyment of all.

“There is also a willing band of enthusiastic helpers who all do their bit to make a fun day. Unfortunately, there are costs involved, and any fees charged will be kept to a minimum to cover the basics.

“Our association is keen to keep building its membership. People don’t have to have a classic or wooden boat to enjoy club activities,” he said.

The family membership fee is $10 annually, and for a membership form or to see all the boats and events go to www.woodenboatparade.co.nz

The rain date for the Lake Rotoiti Classic and Wooden Boat Parade will be February 9.