¶ MANY of us have been advised at some time to “build a bridge and get over it”, but not everyone takes the advice literally.
Allanson resident Chris Martin did take it literally, and for the past couple of years, his “hobby” has been building a bridge on his daughter Nicole’s property.
There is method in his madness, as Nicole plans to build a home at the top of the hill, but to get the materials on site, there is the small matter of a creek to be negotiated.
Enter dad, who is descended from a stone mason four generations back.
“My great-great-grandfather, Francesco Ventura, was brought out to WA by the Benedictine Monks in the 1860s when they were establishing New Norcia,” Chris explained.
“He was needed to help build infrastructure. After that was completed, he went north to Dongara and did some building there.”
Channeling his stonemason DNA, Chris used an old rainwater tank as the base to hold the stone arch in place, then got to work placing the stones on top and around it.
“It has to be quite strong as there will be some big trucks coming in with quite heavy loads,” he said.
One of the first loads on to the property was concrete  supplied by  Pilattis, who were very generous when they learned of the quirky project.
Not only is the bridge going to be functional when it is finished, it will also be beautiful.
“I have used Donnybrook stone, and some stones sourced from a rocky outcrop at the top of the block,” Chris said.
He works on the bridge when he has the time, and when it is not raining.
Fortunately, the property is not far from his Allanson home.
With the recent rain, the need for the bridge is apparent, as the stream is running strongly under the almost-completed structure.
All that remains to be done is the central part of the surface, then Chris and Nicole will be able to get over it.