MODERN SNOW PLOUGH.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 122, 25 May 1932, Page 9

MODERN SNOW PLOUGH.

KEEPING ROADWAYS CLEAR. GOOD WORK IN MACKENZIE COUNTRY. THOUSANDS OF SHEEP LIBERATED. A grim background to the gaiety of the ski-ing party at Tekapo, between Timaru and tlie Mount Cook Hermitage, last week-end, was the tragedy of thousands of sheep buried in the enow. "We like to see you enjoying yourself," said the wife of a Mackenzie Country station owner to a member of the party, "for when we station folk go ski-ing, it is to seek out snowbound sheep." A wellknown Tekapo resident said that "every man in the Mackenzie Country would be out snow raking and making tracks

through the snow, in order to liberate scattered groups of sheep that have been isolated by last week's blizzard." During the last few days good work has been done by tlie Mackenzie Council men, particularly Messrs. Adamson and Wills, who operate the enow plough, states the "Christchurch Times." These men left their camp at the Irishman Creek as soon as the weather broke on Tuesday last, and drove their lorries through the snow to Tekapo, where the snow plough is housed. Leaving Tekapo on Wednesday morning in a heavy snowstorm, they cleared the main highway down to the old "Sawdon" station homestead (12J miles). Visibility was so bad that they left the plough on the roadside, and walked down to Burke's Pass Hotel, H miles, which they reached at 10.30 p.m. Making an early start on Thursday morning, the} 7 returned to Tekapo, straightening and widening the track as they went along. Leaving Tekapo at daybreak, they set out to clear the road to "Glenmore" and "Godley Peaks" station, 13 miles, where several thousand sheep were waiting to be brought down country. Returning to Tekapo at dusk, they refuelled and set out for "Lilybank" and "Richmond" station road (28 miles), reaching Mount Hay station at 10 p.m. An early start on Saturday saw thej "Lilybank" station boundary cleared early in the afternoon, and the snow plough returned to Tekapo at 3 a.m. on Sunday. After greasing and refuelling, the men started at 4 a.m. for the Braemar Road, which was cleared of snow before sunset. In four days, with a caterpillar tractor and modern snow plough, they cleared 73 miles of road, during which time they covered 150 miles. At the different stations thousands of sheep were ready to be brought down country when the snow fell, and thanks to the "efficient work of the snow plough gang they were soon on their way down to pastures new. Messrs. Adamson and Wills are loud in their appreciation of the hospitality they received from station owners en route, without which they could not have carried on. With the modern snow plough, efficiently manned, and tlie work organised from the head office as at present, the roads in the Tekapo Riding will never be blockcd again with snow, and, a serious bogy to the station owner