Queenstown's vintage "Lady of the Lake" may need a little extra tender loving care during her centennial survey after original steel plating beneath timber decking was found to be more corroded than thought.
The survey deadline for the historic twin-screw steam ship Earnslaw could be extended from the original date of June 30. The cost of repair and maintenance was likely to increase from the budgeted $500,000.
The poor condition of parts of the century-old metal was revealed when 800 lineal metres of timber decking was lifted for the first time since 1952, for replacement with the same quantity of durable kwila timber, sustainably sourced from Indonesia.
Earnslaw and Walter Peak operations manager Angus Small said on Saturday the corrosion had not been a public safety issue in the past, but now the extent of it had been identified, Real Journeys added the job to its to-do list.
The decking was one of many tasks in the extensive two-yearly slipway survey conducted by the owner-operator, before the ship's centenary celebrations, which run from October 14 to 22.
"With the work we're doing now and in the past, we're confident the Earnslaw will ply the waters of Lake Wakatipu indefinitely," Mr Small said.
