Just about all of our guests have been across our swingbridge – it is our lifeline to the paths in the rainforest and to the outside world when the Waiatekatanga River floods.
At over 40 years of age, our beloved swingbridge is getting on in years. Time for an overhaul. To help us we have called in bridge builder and bungee jump specialist Mark Barker. As a first step, we have renewed the foundations of the bridge and the ramps. Around a ton of concrete serves as an anchor on both sides of the bridge and the four suspension ropes (which we also replaced) are anchored in it. In early summer 2021 we plan to renew the middle part of the bridge (girders, railings with handrails and a non-slip wooden floor).
The bridge is very important to Wairua – especially during floods when the river can no longer be crossed by car, which happens about 3-5 times a year. In these cases the bridge is the only connection between Wairua and the outside world. The bridge also connects to our numerous rainforest trails and is of course a very popular photo subject.
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