In the footsteps of Harry Ell

Mountain bikers and walkers have Harry Ell to thank for the freedom of using the Port Hills as their playground.

The former Christchurch City Councillor and Member of Parliament, who was born in 1862, is well-known for his conservation work, his campaign for a Summit Rd and his advocacy for rest houses for walkers on the Port Hills.

The Sign of the Kiwi is one of Harry Ell's rest houses.

His great-granddaughter Paula Jameson, a member of the Summit Road Society, is leading a walk during Beca Heritage Week that will celebrate his legacy, called Walking in Harry Ell’s Footsteps.

The walk on 22 October will follow the Harry Ell Walkway from the Sign of the Takahe to the Sign of the Kiwi and back.

Professor Jameson, a Professor of Biology at the University of Canterbury, will talk about the history of the historic stone rest houses, which her great-grandfather conceived, and his vision for the Port Hills.

Bookings are needed for the return walk which is limited to 30 people. Contact secretary@summitroadsociety.org.nz

Professor Jameson says her great-grandfather was a forceful, driven person.

“He was very much focused on what he wanted. He certainly got things done because he would basically commit to the purchase of an area of bush along his potential Summit Rd and leave other people to find the money to pay for it.”

Without him, most of the access routes to the Port Hills from the Plains would have ended up in private ownership and be closed to the public, Prof Jameson says.

An enthusiastic naturalist, Mr Ell worked towards creating a network of reserves along the Hills connected by the Summit Rd and with rest-houses at regular intervals for walkers to stop at.  His goal was for 15 rest houses but only four were built; the Sign of the Bellbird, the Sign of the Kiwi, the Sign of the Packhorse, and the Sign of the Takahe, which was completed after his death in 1934.

Beca Heritage Week runs until  23 October.