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When Sam Lamb saw the old Chinese junk Hai Ma (meaning seahorse) for sale on an auction website, she could not resist it.
"I was looking for a project," the Taupo 50-year-old said. "It just looked so different."
Although Ms Lamb had started a vineyard and winery, restored villas and organised corporate events in the past, she got more than she bargained for doing up the 44-year-old wooden junk. "We didn't quite realise the extent of the rot," she said. "It was supposed to be three months' work but it took seven."
But now, after stripping layers of paint, replacing the rotten teak and installing a new galley and leather-upholstered cabin, the Hai Ma is set to be launched as a cafe and cruise boat on Lake Taupo tomorrow.
"It's absolutely 100 per cent back to its former glory," Ms Lamb said.
She will rename the vessel "The Junk" at the launch, after which it will be moored at the Taupo Boat Harbour and open as a cafe for breakfast, brunch and lunch, cruising to bays around the lake depending on demand.
Her son, Byron Smith, a barista and chef, hopes to start a wine-and-cigar club, taking advantage of a specially built humidor in the cabin.
Mr Smith, 22, has helped with The Junk's restoration and is one of three skippers who will guide the boat around the lake.
Built in Hong Kong and moored in Auckland from 1988, it is said to be the only authentic Chinese junk in the country.
For the journey to Taupo and restoration, the top deck was cut off to allow the 14m long by 4.2m wide craft to fit under power lines.
The former owners told Ms Lamb the junk had been used in several film and TV productions, including Xena: Warrior Princess.
Ms Lamb would not say what the restoration cost but sold a home in Palmerston North beforehand. "All the money's gone into the boat," she said. "Owning a property's totally over-rated."
