Pages tagged with: ferries

For more than 80 years the overnight Lyttelton ferry was a vital link in the country's transport network.

See a list of the key events in the life of the Lyttelton–Wellington ferry service.

On a fine, calm day ‘Cruising on The Interislander’ can be like a luxury Mediterranean cruise, but Cook Strait can be one of the world's roughest stretches of water. Often, the ferry experience is less The Love Boat and more the 'chuck bucket'.

Although many ships sailed between Lyttelton and Wellington during the course of their longer voyages, a regular passenger service between those ports took time to develop.

Politicians used the ferries to travel between their electorates and Wellington, so they scrutinised the Union Steam Ship Company's management of the ships.

Before 1962 rail struggled to compete with ships for inter-island business, but the road/rail ferries changed that.

The purpose-built Maori of 1907 was a big leap forward, but description of the cabins was limited to ‘well endowed with spring mattresses and superior bed coverings' – no showers, toilets or electric sockets here!

In the 1960s, the ferries' food and services fell short of the glossy ads, but now they are more upmarket.

Crossing Cook Strait is often idyllic, but it can be one of the world’s roughest stretches of water as it's part of the westerly wind belt known as the Roaring Forties.

Every night, weather and sea conditions permitting, two ships crossed in the night at about 1.25 a.m. off the Kaikoura coast as perhaps 1500 New Zealanders passed quite literally like ships in the night.

From 'puke' green to funnells sprouting ferns, the ferries' branding and appearance have had many changes.

Some of the ferry masters – each known as ‘the Old Man' to the crew – were almost as well known as the ships themselves.

The Lyttelton–Wellington ferries were such a vital link for travellers that they were given priority whenever strikes or lockouts paralysed the wharves, but wars disrupted the service.

The old fable about the tortoise and the hare was replayed on Cook Strait as fast ferries offered travellers a quick dash across the ditch.

In the face of competition from other forms of transport the Union Steam Ship Company abandoned its glamour ferry service, sending the Maori to the scrappers in 1974.

Some people tell their stories of travelling on the Lyttelton–Wellington ferries.

The Interislander ferry features in The A to Z of New Zealand stamp series produced by New Zealand Post in 2008.

The Wahine (right) reverses into the new Lyttelton ferry terminal, while the Maori is berthed at another wharf. The image was taken shortly after the Wahine came into service in 1966.

The Maori was built in 1953 and later converted to a roll-on roll-off ship.

The Hinemoa passes the Union Steam Ship Company's trans-Tasman liner Monowai, berthed at the Queen's Wharf outer tee.

HMS Wahine sports the ‘dazzle’ camouflage used to break up the ship’s silhouette.

The first Wahine is seen after hitting Pipitea Wharf in thick fog in 1936.

Seen here at Wellington in 1951, the ferries Rangatira and the Hinemoa were near-sisters, serving together until the mid-1960s.

The King and Queen of Thailand were some of the VIPs who travelled aboard the first Rangatira.

Heavy seas sometimes caused minor damage to the ships, which had to reduce speed. This is the first Rangatira after a storm in 1951.

This large waka mural decorated the second Wahine's cafeteria.

By the time the second Rangatira entered service in 1972, overnight voyaging no longer appealed to many people.

The first Wahine is seen here at the end of her career, carrying troops to the Korean War.

The Maori is pictured berthed at Lyttelton around 1910.

The Maori is pictured soon after its entry into service.

Arthur Hayden's watercolour shows the Maori alongside the Wellington inter-island berth.

In 1895 the old Penguin initiated regular sailings between Lyttelton and Wellington. Fourteen years later, while running between Picton and Wellington, the Penguin sank with the loss of 75 lives.

The Union Steam Ship Company was formed in Dunedin in 1875, and its ships made their last sailings 125 years later.

For 80 years the bronze green hulls and the red funnels of the Union Company dominated the inter-island trade.

Last of the line – the Rangatira served on the Lyttelton–Wellington ferry route from 1972 until 1976.

The Union Steam Ship Company Pocket Guide, October 1929, provided information about the 'Express Service' between Wellington and Lyttelton.

As inter-island passengers switched from trains to private cars in the 1960s, the Maori was converted to a roll-on roll-off ferry, loading vehicles through a stern door.

The story of a bunch of Otago University students trip on the Cook Strait ferry

Video of a rough crossing of Cook Strait

A video of crossing Cook Strait on the Kaitaki

The Kaitaki buries its bow in the waves at the Wellington Harbour entrance.

The Incat 050, marketed as the Top Cat, looked like something out of a science fiction story.

Cartoon seagulls clinging to the deck of The Lynx are plucked off one by one as it gathers speed.

The Albayzin’s woes slowed this Cook Strait fast ferry.

Eric Heath’s cartoon about the timing of stoushes between management and unions

Tourists stranded at the ferry terminal by an industrial dispute

The Arahura shows the fern design on the funnel.

The Aratere displays The Interislander dolphins on its funnels.

The Aramoana shows the Railways' early colour scheme and design.

The Aranui at sea

Cars drive onto the Cook Strait ferry.

Ferry fares of the sixties compared with present-day fares

New Zealand Railways' publicity brochure