A group of 4WD enthusiasts will attempt to retrieve their snow-buried cars today, but a search and rescue adviser says they are "underestimating'' the difficulty of the mission.
Almost a fortnight ago, the group of 38 people, including children, spent almost 20 hours stranded in their vehicles 1300m up the Old Man Range above Piano Flat, near Roxburgh.
They were saved but the 13 4WDs were abandoned.
They are mostly owned by Winton and Invercargill people.
Central Otago Search and Rescue adviser Adrian Dance said recovering the vehicles would be a "hell of a big task''.
"They are potentially underestimating it. We're not trying to be a barrier to them getting their vehicles back. We are just looking at the safety side of it.''
Search and Rescue and police were in no way involved with the planned retrievals, he said.
The cars were covered in "a lot of snow'', he said.
"There have also been multiple frosts.
"The last thing we want is for them to get stuck again.''
Some members of the 4WD group were stopped by Central Otago District Council staff while attempting to retrieve the vehicles with a bulldozer last Friday.
The council said the group needed its consent as it was concerned about the safety of the group and potential road damage.
Council roading manager Murray Hasler said yesterday it was working with the rescued drivers to create a safety plan so they could retrieve their cars this morning.
At the council's request, the group submitted the plan and it was working with them on some amendments yesterday, he said.
"They need to make sure they're actually on the road, which could be quite difficult as we've heard from farmers there is about three to four metres of snow up there.''The group planned to use a bulldozer to cut a corridor through the snow up to the vehicles, he said.
To ensure the group did not damage the road, the council proposed they leave a layer of snow on it.‘‘We're trying to make them think about their safety.''
Today's forecast looked "pretty good'', he said.
"It as good as you're going to get in winter.
"We're very keen for them to get them out.''
