If you’ve wandered along the Te Araroa Trail east of Palmerston North and Levin, spare a thought for Ian Argyle.

There wasn’t a single public tramping track in the northern Tararua Range when Ian retired  in his early 60s, so he set about developing a network of trails  in the area.

He wasn’t even a tramper – just, in his own words, “a cow cocky from the backblocks of Kahuterawa”.

His greatest skill was not taking ‘no’ for an answer.

Ian walked the walk, hid his considerable light under a bushel and quietly got on with all his mahi. 

Ian died on July 10, aged 88. He left behind Shirley, his wife of 66 years, his children, grandchildren and many great-grandchildren.

 – Joe Nawalaniec