EPIC ROAD-MAKING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21938, 23 October 1934, Page 11

EPIC ROAD-MAKING

MILFORD SOUND WORK LENGTHY TASK AHEAD TUNNEL THROUGH GRANITE Making a road with juster claim to fame than the road to Mandalay, 150 men are working steadily in the narrow valley of the Hollyford River, cutting a roadway out of dense forest, hemmed in by mountains rising thousands of feet above them. The workers are 55 miles from the Te Anau end of the Milford Sound Road, which in the main is still in the blue-print stage. In a month 50 more men will be at work, making the gang 200 strong. The new men will go from Waitaki upon the finishing of the big hydroelectric dam. Eight miles from the present scene of work is the sheer face of the Homer Saddle. By May or June of next year the forces of man and machines will drill and hew into the rocky wall a tunnel three-quarters of a mile long. That will be one of the hardest tunnelling jobs ever done in New Zealand. A sample of the reck was shown to an Evening Post, reporter by a Public Works Department engineer in "Wellington the other day. Even seen on the" mantelshelf that piece of rock speaks of Vulcan and sparks. It is known as norite, a kind of granite of greyish colour. Two clean drill-holes proved the rock to be very' close and even in grain. A full winter spent on the task mav see the penetration of the mountain by at least a preliminary hole for ventilation purposes. In about two years and a-half the Tourist and Publicity Department expects to be able to tell a plain tale which to strangers might savour of boasting The long-visioned Te Anau-Milford Hostel Road then will be realised. The estimated cost of the work is a secret so far as the department is concerned. One figure was mentioned in the House of Representatives by a member not in possession of official advice —£250,000. Questioned about the estimated cost,'one engineer said that the figure named was in excess of the estimated cost. More than that cannot be ascertained at present. The achievement will undoubtedly prosper New Zealand's appeal as a land of wonders. The task ahead is being considered in detail. It is possible that special machinery may be employed for drilling the tunnel, air drills being used in conjunction with oil engine compressors. It is likely that more than 200 men will be working before the tunnel is completed, and that a gang will operate from the Milford end toward the tunnel. The total distance from Te Anau to the Milford Hcstel by the route planned will be 74 miles. The rock of' the Hoiner Saddle is much harder than the rock struck in the Otira Tunnel. It is believed that no tunnel lining will be necessary.