Wakatahuri in the outer Pelorus Sound at the top of the South island has been many things to many people. A fish-factory, a boat-yard, a ship-breaking base and a community hub. For legendary navigator Kupe it was
a place to repair his waka. For the McManaway, Wells and Jones families it has been a place to live and thrive and for countless fishers, seafarers and summer visitors it has been a place of fascination and wonder. Davey Jones came to Wakatahuri as a young fisherman in 1956 and he still lives there much of the time. This book draws on the stories he heard from the Wells family and from his own experiences as a ship-breaker, boatbuilder, trawlerman and ocean wanderer. It includes a list of boats built or altered by the Wells family at Wakatahuri and a complete reprint of Sounds Wrecking Co by Martin Berthold, an article first published in NZ Marine News in 2009. Illustrated with over 200 black and white and colour photographs of ships and boats and their skippers.