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Opening day of the final piece of road on the Haast Pass, at Knights Point, November 6 1965
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DescriptionOpening day of the final piece of road on the Haast Pass, at Knights Point, November 6 1965.
J.B Rowntree photo.PhotographerJ.B RowntreeDate of PhotoNovember 6 1965Map[1] ContributorChris Burles
J.B Rowntree photo.PhotographerJ.B RowntreeDate of PhotoNovember 6 1965Map[1] ContributorChris Burles
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Location (city or town)Knights PointHaastLandmark (Place)Haast PassEventOpening day of the final piece of road on the Haast Pass , at Knights Point, November 6 1965
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Category TagRoads
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Date Created26th August 2021CommentsJohn Sweeney
The correct name should read Knight Point . Knight was a black Labrador dog owned by the head surveyor on that part of the highway construction. Who changed the word from singular to plural?
Trish Barry
John Sweeney maybe Knight owned the Point?
Gavin Fredericks
I could never work out as a 7 year old why I had to spend 1/2 day in the back of an Anglia with my 2 brothers to go to the road opening. Didn’t interest me in the slightest.As I recall it poured with rain, we got soaking wet and we were lucky to make it back to Greymouth it rained so hard.
Jim Holland
Gavin Fredericks I wouldn't want to go far in an anglia anyway
Maree Grantham
John Chapman Do you remember this day Dad?
Paul Meikle
And they should've carried on with the road to Milford from Port Jackson
Malcolm Yorston
I remember waiting in that car park for 3 hours in December 1965 after torrential rain for the MoW digger to clear a slip right at the bluff so we and others could get through only to have to wait at Snapshot Creek for the tide to go out before we could ford over the bridge with a sack over the grille to stop water getting into the motor on the Rover 90 we were in.
Dave Lyes
Malcolm Yorston great memory
Dave Lyes
Malcolm Yorston great stuff.
Jewel Lemon
The next road after this was to be Karamea to Collingwood. BUT change of gov and a southern road south got the nod
Valda Spicer
David Stephen were you there then.
Andrew Mckenzie
There will never be another roading project like this again I think as the h& s costs plus the environmental cr#p will out the benefits. Look at transmission gully the costs in environmental cr#p
Harley Vui Davison
True unfortunately, they need a road that connects Karamea to Nelson
David Wood
Harley Vui Davison I know it's unlikely, but dreams are OK to have. Just imagine - it's not very far to stretch the road from the existing road end at the Kohaihai River north of Karamea up the coast to the Anatori River to connect with the existing road up the Whanganui Inlet and back down to Collingwood. And then of course you connect the road from Jackson Bay south through to the Pyke River Valley and on to join the Lower Hollyford. What a drive that would be!!!!
Ted McCreath
Would have been a wonderful road trip then but there was fierce opposition to it by the locals on the Bainham side. Who knows how it would have been? Personally I think it would have been a great thing but then I didn't live up there so.....Bruce Whitfield
It was a spectacular achievement at the time.
Rosemary McKenzie
I was there - my father was a contractor for the road from the north
Annie Smith
I was there with my father, mother and brother. 10 years old.
Karen Burrows
Annie Smith yep me too.
Paul Agnes Smith
In the collection, in a drawer, there is a teaspoon picturing the opening.
Gaire Thompson
My brother rode his Raleigh 3 speed bike through the cattle track that went through before the road was completed.
Denise Bowen
It was a big day for Haast!! I remember this day well ... Sir Keith Holyoake cut the ribbon and it poured with rain. They held a Woodchopping Display and Les Gilsenen cut a Jiggerboard.
Graeme Williams
That pic brings back memories, I was at Knights Point with my brother for the opening of the highway. I had parked my car on the Haast side of Knights Point and due to heavy rain that day a slip came down and trapped us on the southern side of the slip. As my brother was on the MOW survey team he managed to get accommodation for the night at the Haast MOW camp and the next day we got towed through the slip area by a MOW grader.
Linda Gascoigne
Graeme Williams wow thats an exciting memory to have.
Cheryl Rasmussen
My husband
John Rasmussen worked in this road and camped at Potter's Creek. He worked on the bridges between Paringa and Haast. He was full of stories about those days and has heaps of photos. It was a truly magnificent achievement under awful conditions.
Barry Beaton
Mike Simpson more Zephyrs and Vauxhalls but there is probably a couple of Holdens too!
Ken Ashbolt
Wow 1965!
Sue Stewart
I was there, almost 8 yrs old. We came from Franz in the fiat 600. Mum, Dad and my 3 little brothers. Then it closed with a slip and we went all the way to Aunty Heathers in Tarras. Epic.
Greg Mait
The dozer driver who built that road would have done and dusted Transmission Gully in a couple of weeks . But then again when he did the Haast he wasn't held up by a thousand bureaucrats and managers.
· Reply · 13h
Joye Hanrahan
I was there that day I think that is me and my son walking down the road.The road closed four hours later and a lot of people were stuck on the other side including my Mom and Dad
· Reply · 12h
Rod Berry
This recollection takes me back to more than we bargain for. From Hari Hari a car load of us went down to the official opening. Then further onto the celebrations at Haast. Heavy rain set in sweeping the Coast and news came through that evening that t… See More
· Reply · 9h
Ashton McGill
But how did they manage to gather every single vehicle on the coast for one photo?
· Reply · 2h
Alice Gilsenan
My Dad Les Gilsenan(who was a staunch Labour supporter )was there with Bill Heaphyand Dad thought that the oldest resident of the Haast should have been the one to cut the ribbon so seeing that wasn’t about to happen he decided to get out his pocket knife and cut it himself they then had to hold up a short piece of the ribbon for Sir Keith to officially cut .Much ado followed but all ended well and the Whanau still have the piece of ribbon pocket knife and the write-up in the Greymouth paper in a jar.My Dad was a really fun man with a great sense of humour
Alice Gilsenan
Ps,they also took an official sticker off another vehicle in Hokitika and stuck it on theirs so they could drive closer to Kight ,s Pint for the opening
Alice Gilsenan
Point
Kaye Kelly
I’d have loved to meet your father, Alice, he sounded like a real hoot- great sense of humour. x
Graham Porter
I stop there on all the trips to the Coast,, a nice spot to relax and take in the scenery ,, since 1983.......
Lynne Peterson
One of my fav places
Jason Murly
look like the old mabel bay road punakaiki
Nana Pop Detlaff
We were there. We got caught up in the official line of cars coming out of the Franz Josef Hotel. There were army folk lining both sides of the road who saluted as the officials went by. We got a good few salutes until we decided that we had better behave and exit the official group!Glenn Johnston
My Dad was there at the opening. He brought some blue commemorative ribbons home with him to Hoki. They sat around home for years but were thrown out a long time ago.
Les Holmes Germanicus
My uncle Len did a vast amount of surveying work for this road.
The correct name should read Knight Point . Knight was a black Labrador dog owned by the head surveyor on that part of the highway construction. Who changed the word from singular to plural?
Trish Barry
John Sweeney maybe Knight owned the Point?
Gavin Fredericks
I could never work out as a 7 year old why I had to spend 1/2 day in the back of an Anglia with my 2 brothers to go to the road opening. Didn’t interest me in the slightest.As I recall it poured with rain, we got soaking wet and we were lucky to make it back to Greymouth it rained so hard.
Jim Holland
Gavin Fredericks I wouldn't want to go far in an anglia anyway
Maree Grantham
John Chapman Do you remember this day Dad?
Paul Meikle
And they should've carried on with the road to Milford from Port Jackson
Malcolm Yorston
I remember waiting in that car park for 3 hours in December 1965 after torrential rain for the MoW digger to clear a slip right at the bluff so we and others could get through only to have to wait at Snapshot Creek for the tide to go out before we could ford over the bridge with a sack over the grille to stop water getting into the motor on the Rover 90 we were in.
Dave Lyes
Malcolm Yorston great memory
Dave Lyes
Malcolm Yorston great stuff.
Jewel Lemon
The next road after this was to be Karamea to Collingwood. BUT change of gov and a southern road south got the nod
Valda Spicer
David Stephen were you there then.
Andrew Mckenzie
There will never be another roading project like this again I think as the h& s costs plus the environmental cr#p will out the benefits. Look at transmission gully the costs in environmental cr#p
Harley Vui Davison
True unfortunately, they need a road that connects Karamea to Nelson
David Wood
Harley Vui Davison I know it's unlikely, but dreams are OK to have. Just imagine - it's not very far to stretch the road from the existing road end at the Kohaihai River north of Karamea up the coast to the Anatori River to connect with the existing road up the Whanganui Inlet and back down to Collingwood. And then of course you connect the road from Jackson Bay south through to the Pyke River Valley and on to join the Lower Hollyford. What a drive that would be!!!!
Ted McCreath
Would have been a wonderful road trip then but there was fierce opposition to it by the locals on the Bainham side. Who knows how it would have been? Personally I think it would have been a great thing but then I didn't live up there so.....Bruce Whitfield
It was a spectacular achievement at the time.
Rosemary McKenzie
I was there - my father was a contractor for the road from the north
Annie Smith
I was there with my father, mother and brother. 10 years old.
Karen Burrows
Annie Smith yep me too.
Paul Agnes Smith
In the collection, in a drawer, there is a teaspoon picturing the opening.
Gaire Thompson
My brother rode his Raleigh 3 speed bike through the cattle track that went through before the road was completed.
Denise Bowen
It was a big day for Haast!! I remember this day well ... Sir Keith Holyoake cut the ribbon and it poured with rain. They held a Woodchopping Display and Les Gilsenen cut a Jiggerboard.
Graeme Williams
That pic brings back memories, I was at Knights Point with my brother for the opening of the highway. I had parked my car on the Haast side of Knights Point and due to heavy rain that day a slip came down and trapped us on the southern side of the slip. As my brother was on the MOW survey team he managed to get accommodation for the night at the Haast MOW camp and the next day we got towed through the slip area by a MOW grader.
Linda Gascoigne
Graeme Williams wow thats an exciting memory to have.
Cheryl Rasmussen
My husband
John Rasmussen worked in this road and camped at Potter's Creek. He worked on the bridges between Paringa and Haast. He was full of stories about those days and has heaps of photos. It was a truly magnificent achievement under awful conditions.
Barry Beaton
Mike Simpson more Zephyrs and Vauxhalls but there is probably a couple of Holdens too!
Ken Ashbolt
Wow 1965!
Sue Stewart
I was there, almost 8 yrs old. We came from Franz in the fiat 600. Mum, Dad and my 3 little brothers. Then it closed with a slip and we went all the way to Aunty Heathers in Tarras. Epic.
Greg Mait
The dozer driver who built that road would have done and dusted Transmission Gully in a couple of weeks . But then again when he did the Haast he wasn't held up by a thousand bureaucrats and managers.
· Reply · 13h
Joye Hanrahan
I was there that day I think that is me and my son walking down the road.The road closed four hours later and a lot of people were stuck on the other side including my Mom and Dad
· Reply · 12h
Rod Berry
This recollection takes me back to more than we bargain for. From Hari Hari a car load of us went down to the official opening. Then further onto the celebrations at Haast. Heavy rain set in sweeping the Coast and news came through that evening that t… See More
· Reply · 9h
Ashton McGill
But how did they manage to gather every single vehicle on the coast for one photo?
· Reply · 2h
Alice Gilsenan
My Dad Les Gilsenan(who was a staunch Labour supporter )was there with Bill Heaphyand Dad thought that the oldest resident of the Haast should have been the one to cut the ribbon so seeing that wasn’t about to happen he decided to get out his pocket knife and cut it himself they then had to hold up a short piece of the ribbon for Sir Keith to officially cut .Much ado followed but all ended well and the Whanau still have the piece of ribbon pocket knife and the write-up in the Greymouth paper in a jar.My Dad was a really fun man with a great sense of humour
Alice Gilsenan
Ps,they also took an official sticker off another vehicle in Hokitika and stuck it on theirs so they could drive closer to Kight ,s Pint for the opening
Alice Gilsenan
Point
Kaye Kelly
I’d have loved to meet your father, Alice, he sounded like a real hoot- great sense of humour. x
Graham Porter
I stop there on all the trips to the Coast,, a nice spot to relax and take in the scenery ,, since 1983.......
Lynne Peterson
One of my fav places
Jason Murly
look like the old mabel bay road punakaiki
Nana Pop Detlaff
We were there. We got caught up in the official line of cars coming out of the Franz Josef Hotel. There were army folk lining both sides of the road who saluted as the officials went by. We got a good few salutes until we decided that we had better behave and exit the official group!Glenn Johnston
My Dad was there at the opening. He brought some blue commemorative ribbons home with him to Hoki. They sat around home for years but were thrown out a long time ago.
Les Holmes Germanicus
My uncle Len did a vast amount of surveying work for this road.
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West Coast New Zealand History (30th Aug 2021). Opening day of the final piece of road on the Haast Pass, at Knights Point, November 6 1965. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 9th Apr 2026 05:18, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/29890