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There is virtually no bridge too far for the man behind the new Hooker Valley suspension bridge at Aoraki Mount Cook.
The marvel of design and modern engineering is due to open next week and replaces the old one that closed due to erosion caused by storms in April last year.
It spans 189 metres across the Hooker River, making it the longest suspension bridge in New Zealand.
Construction started in August last year, and since then workers have faced the challenge of gales and snowfall during construction.
The man behind the design, bridge architect and engineer, Dan Crocker told RNZ’s Checkpoint programme on Friday he feels amazed seeing the bridge in its finished form.
"It's been a lot of work getting to this point, but you know, one of the things is when you arrive on site and everything fits and you've got that beautiful scenery, it just looks right."
As the longest footbridge in Aotearoa, Crocker said it had been no easy feat getting to this point, with the remote site adding an extra layer of challenges.
"Conventionally with a bridge, you might roll up with a crane and concrete trucks. You can't do that in this environment, everything comes in via helicopter.
"You have to work backwards from what you can get to site and working in these challenging environments. It's a very different type of bridge construction in these remote areas.”
Wild weather at the remote area also presented issues.
"The contractor brings excavators and containers to site, the winds picked up and brought all the gravel with it and it ended up stripping the paint off the excavators and the containers.
"You can only imagine how much of a severe environment that is to work in... it's not much fun, but on the other days when it's beautiful sunshine and you can see the mountains it makes it worth it."
Unlike a traditional suspension bridge, the new structure lacks what gave the 'swing bridge' its name, so those taking on the near 200-metre journey don't have to worry about losing their footing.
"Some people are comfortable with moving structures and heights, but a lot of people aren't. So what we try and do is make it as stable as possible, while still maintaining that lightweight kind of appearance.
"There is a little bit of movement, but it's definitely suppressed compared to what you would normally have."
While the Hooker Valley bridge may be the longest, it is certainly not the first pedestrian bridge Crocker has designed.
"We wake up every morning, jump out of bed ready to design bridges — that's all we do here.
"Generally we focus on cycle bridges, pedestrian bridges, the kind of bridges people want to come and see and want to visit."
Crocker said for him, bridges serve as more than a way to get from A to B.
"They connect communities, they connect different areas that people want to visit, but I like to think of them as also placemakers and wayfinders.
"We've got some little bridges in Cambridge that I've designed - they're wayfinders in Cambridge itself with a little blue pedestrian bridge.. everybody uses it... 'go past the blue bridge and turn left.'"
Crocker said he also loves the way he's seen his bridges instil a sense of community pride — something he's seen in Westport with the Toki Poutangata bridge, inspired by the area's pounamu.
The Hooker Valley suspension bridge will open to the public on Tuesday afternoon.
