Holiday rush ends in a crawl

Sheryll Conn (left) and Ange Ericksen with Great Danes Duke and Topa had an unscheduled stop when their van overheated south of Pohuehue. Photo / Sarah Ivey

A bit of traffic and a hot engine wasn't going to stop Sheryll Conn from getting her two Great Danes to a Whangarei dog show.

But the brothers Duke and Topa, both 17 months old, along with Ms Conn and her neighbour Ange Ericksen, were forced to make a 90-minute pit stop yesterday when Ms Conn's Mitsubishi Delica overheated south of Pohuehue.

The group, who had come from Ngaruawahia as part of a group representing Auckland's Great Dane Club, had already crawled in traffic for about two hours from Auckland before the breakdown.

But they were in the same predicament as thousands of other motorists who left the city for the anniversary weekend holiday.

"Historically anniversary weekend is probably the busiest time onthe roads," said Ewart Barnsley, Transit communications manager.

Warkworth was a main congestion point as people turn off to go to the coast. Transit reported queues tailing back from Warkworth, and more of the same is expected today.

However, Mr Barnsley said conditions were better than in the years before the opening of the Northern Toll Road, possibly because people had started to heed Transit's advice to use the alternative route on SH16.

Luckily for Ms Cann and her party, AA roadside assistance managed to bypass most of the traffic to get to her van, which has built-in cages for the two 80kg, waist-high canines.

"I think it was all the waiting in the line-up of traffic, the heat of the day and the weight in the back that did it," said Ms Conn.

They eventually made it to Whangarei, and were last night ensconced in tents at the Otaika Sports Ground - where the dogs will compete in four shows over two days for the Northland Canine Association and the Bay of Islands Canine Association.