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Dear Friends of Bream Head,

I want to acknowledge, at this sad time of his death, Sir Edmund Hillary’s involvement with the Bream Head Restoration Project as its founding patron. I’d like to share with you some observations from the time we invited him to visit us for the Trust’s official opening.

It all started in a committee room at the Whangarei District Council where the trustees meet each month to weave through the usual mire of red tape and possibilities in order to make this project happen.

John Davidson, one of our forward thinking trustees, came up with the suggestion to fly Sir Ed up by chopper, and also offered to finance the cost of the trip. It was through his friendship with John that Sir Ed became aware of our project and agreed to support it in this way.

I’m not sure how it came about that I got the job of assisting Sir Ed on the journey but the prospect was both a great honour and completely terrifying. I should add here that my day job is as a furniture maker, working by myself, and rarely having contact with customers let alone honourable people like Sir Ed.

In 2004 Auckland traffic was choking so the plan was for me to stay the night with my friend, Grant, who lived just up the road from Sir Ed, and thus reduce any chance of getting caught in traffic and missing the departure time for the chopper at Mission Bay. Not much sleep was had by me that night worrying about all the disasters that awaited me in the morning, but dawn came as it always does, and off I went arriving half an hour early just in case.

Sir Ed greeted me with warmth and a twinkle in his eye as if we were about to set off on an adventure. I wasn’t prepared for his size; he must have been a very imposing man in his prime. We had a cup of tea and waited for John Davidson and his brother Ron to join us for the flight up to Bream Head.

This was my first helicopter flight and the worries of the event soon left me as we swept over the Northland coastline. I was soaking up the views like a dry sponge. Our intercom didn’t seem to work so there wasn’t a lot of conversation at this point, but everyone seemed completely captivated by the scenery.

One thing that stood out was how almost completely modified by human activity the landscape was. It wasn’t until Bream Head loomed up in front of us like a great dark green beacon that I realised for the very first time just how unique a landscape feature it is in this area.

The chopper set us down in the reserve at the Urquhart Bay end, and the official function began. Fortunately for me, we had organised name tags for everyone so I was spared the embarrassment of having to faint like Basil Faulty when he couldn’t remember a name.

Sir Ed delighted all who met him and Diane Stoppard, our photographer, managed to capture our best sides in the group photos that ensued.

Sir Ed planted a pohutukawa at this point which continues to grow strongly and will be a lasting reminder for us all of the event. Two children from the Whangarei Heads School were organised to fly with him around the reserve and land at the school for further ceremonies. He made these two feel like a King and a Queen; he obviously enjoyed the contact with the next generation.

The school had prepared a delightful welcome for him and many locals came to hear him speak, some to personally meet this true NZ icon. Lady Hillary had been very clear that we should not over burden Sir Ed and so the morning tea guest list was smaller than we would have liked. One always risks offending people in a small community such as ours on such occasions but it was Ed’s welfare that had to come first.

One of the delightfully spontaneous things that happened during the ceremony was when the school principal, Sean Valvoi, introduced another guest, Jim Bates, a member of Hillary’s team that beat Fuchs to the South Pole. Jim had modified the Ferguson tractors for the trip. Ed was delighted to see him and promptly burst into reminiscing about the event with Jim while we all sat paralysed in captivated silence by these two men apparently oblivious to their situation and just enjoying renewing their friendship.

Sir Ed, with the help of the children, scattered native seeds which we have grown, and within the blink of an eye, it was time to board the helicopter for the flight home. It seemed to me that his contact with the children was particularly relevant to him and we are very grateful to the School for the contribution they made that day.

I was jolted out of a sense of complacency that had crept in (everything had gone so well) and I was getting used to this fine man with his measured conversation and size 16 shoes as we landed at the heliport in Mission Bay. Right next door was an upstairs restaurant and I swear that building was at risk of toppling towards us when the guests saw Ed come out onto the tarmac. There was a smiling face in every square inch of the windows; he waved and smiled back as if he knew them all personally.

As we got into the car for the short drive home we had the first chance to talk comfortably and I asked him how he coped with fear. He paused for a moment and said, “Well in my case it gets me going.”

The last thing he said as I dropped him home was, “Give me a call when you get the fence up.” I took that to mean, “Don’t bother me in the mean time, but I’ll be ready when you are.”

Sadly, he won’t now be ready to open the gate, but his tenacious determination to achieve will inspire us to finish the job for the sake of our native wild life.

Thank you, Sir Ed, you have made a profound impression on this community and we will strive to make your legacy a long one.

Geoff Pike
Trustee and Restoration Committee Chairperson.