The most labour-intensive portion of the work was the Tobin’s Creek Deviation, a 21-mile section of new road between Yarrowitch and Yarras, in places five miles north of the old road that it replaced.

Clearing and excavation started at the eastern end of the deviation in July 1928 when a workmen’s camp was set up at Ralfe’s Creek, close to Yarras. In October 1928, workmen moved into Tobin’s Camp 47 miles east of Walcha. A smaller camp was established at Ginger’s Creek a few months later.

More than 700 men, plus a few married couples and children, lived in the camps, which were primarily tented communities. Tobin’s Camp had a store, post office, butchery, police officer, doctor and a temporary hospital. Committees were set up to promote sports such as football, cricket and athletics.

Much of the early work was done with axe, pick, shovel and horse-drawn ploughs, scoops and drays. Five crawler tractors and two steam shovels were introduced later. The steam shovels needed a continuous supply of water, as did the camps, workmen, horses and other machines. A dam fed by a spring was constructed and pipes laid to supply water to the access points along the line of road.

Three tons of gelignite and 19 tons of blasting powder were used to bring down rock and destroy the stumps remaining after thousands of trees were felled. The steam shovels and tractors did the heavy work while horse-drawn drays transported rock and soil from the cuttings to new embankments.

The crews working from either end of the deviation met in the middle during June 1929. Three cars and a lorry were allowed to pass through before the road was again closed until late in December 1929 when all work was completed on the deviation.

Tobin’s Camp was evacuated during February 1930 with the remaining men moving to a new camp within two miles of the Ralfe’s Creek Camp. This affected Walcha’s businesses since supplies for the work, which had been provided locally, were now dispatched via Wauchope.