Showing classic Kiwi ingenuity, a Tapawera couple are tackling the problem of a washed-out road by chucking pack saddles on their horses to bring home the groceries for the next few weeks.
The road into Cornelia Vervoorn and Jim Livingstone’s property has been hit by floods before and they are usually prepared by leaving the vehicle on the other side of the problem section.
“This is not our first rodeo,” she admits. “Last year we were stuck here for five weeks, and this is the sixth time we’ve been stuck here. But this is the first time this bit of road has been a problem.”
The previous trouble spot on the road had been rectified, and they thought they would be fine this time, so kept their 2WD car at home when the rain began to fall.
However, Cornelia says the river has changed course after repeated floods and water flooded onto a different section of road, carving out a big chunk of it above the river.
“We were taken aback by the damage,” she says. “We’re kicking ourselves for not moving our car to the far side beforehand.”
They can both work from home, so being holed up at home isn’t a problem. Keeping their pantry stocked over the next few weeks is the challenge. They can walk to where a vehicle can meet them the other side of the washout and carry supplies home in backpacks. Or they could let the horses do the heavy lifting.
Now their two Arab horses, Sanaa and Rhapsody, are getting used to carrying pack saddles so they can bring the groceries home.
“It will be a novel experience for them! It will be a bit of an experiment.”
She usually hacks out on the two horses around local forestry trails and farms, rather than using them as pack horses. Local horse owners responded to her call for pack saddles and this week the horses will hopefully be bringing home a few dinners.
While road repairs could take several weeks and locals have offered to transport groceries across the paddocks in 4WD vehicles, Cornelia is confident Sanaa and Rhapsody are up to the task.
