Good news for those heading to New Zealand.
One of the country's Great Walks, the 82km/4-day Heaphy Track, will reopen in October after storms damaged much of the walk's infrastructure last year.
Two substantial new swingbridges will go in before the storm-damaged Heaphy Track reopens in October.
A year after the February storm hammered the middle section of the track, washing away bridges and damaging the track surface, the Department of Conservation (DOC) is on track to have the track open again as a through route by October 6.
Currently, it can only be accessed from either end as a return walk. The Karamea economy has taken a $15 million hit as a result.
A new 93m-long bridge for the Heaphy River and one over 100m long for the Lewis River would future-proof the track, and replace one lost bridge on higher land.