When I first call James and Lisa Heberley, they’re at their Okukari Bay home. They ask me to hold on a minute while they nip across to Joy and Joe Heberley’s place next door, just a minute or so away.
You can tell this is a close-knit family, which I imagine is especially important when you have no other neighbours close by, and you’re over an hour away from the closest town.
Once we’re all on the line, we get chatting. Brothers James and Joe have lived at the Okukari Bay property their entire lives. The property,steeped in history, was purchased by their grandfather in 1945. It served as the perfect home base for James and Joe’s father and grandfather, who were part of the Marlborough Sounds whaling industry.
“They were whalers first, and then in the off season they were farmers”, says James. “That’s the beauty of this place: each generation has been able to work both land and sea.”
While the farm has been a constant, over the years the family made the gradual shif from whaling to fishing. But it wasn’t until t he mid-1 960s,when whaling ceased all together, that the family’s Cook Strait fishing operation really started to take shape with the brothers’ father, Joe, at the helm.
Three generations on, James and Joe continue to run this successful fishing business – aptly named Heberley Brothers Limited. They focus their efforts on bottom longlining for shark and grouper and set netting for butter fish. They also have crayfish quota, but have leased this out this year so they can concentrate on longlining.
Both brothers love fishing; it’s their passion. For James, it’s the challenge of no two days ever being the same and the thrill of each catch that appeals. For Joe, it’s about being part of the awesome fishing community.
“Back in the day there were some rebels in the fishing industry who gave us a bad name, but nowadays it’s totally different,” says Joe. “Fishers today care a great deal, and we’ve made some big changes to how we do things over the years and that’s something I feel proud of.”
When asked about the current state of fishing, the brothers quickly agree it’s better than ever.
“I can say with all my heart that the fishing is in much better shape now than when we started,” says Joe. “I mean, I’ve been doing it since I left school in 1980, and it’s much easier to catch fish now than back then.”
Each fishing trip takes around five days all up. The brothers head out on Te Awa to their secret spots inthe Cook Strait, fish, and then unload their catch at Talley’s in Picton. Crayfish, when they’re fishing it,is taken across the Cook Strait to Wellington.
Over the years, the brothers have scaled up and scaled down their fishing operation to suit their lifestyle.
“For many years we had two boats. I skippered one and James skippered the other, and we each had a crew,” says Joe. “In those years we would get up to around 150 fishing days a year. It was full on but a lot of fun. These days, as we start to slow down a bit, we just have the one boat. It’s just the two of us who go out, it’s back to how we began.”
While James and Joe are busy fishing, their other halves – Lisa and Joy – are out farming.
“Farming is something that goes on all the time,” says James. “We’re lucky to have capable wives who have stepped up and taken over the day-today running of it so we can focus on the fishing.”
Lisa who grew up on a farm, and Joy who grew up in a fishing family, had no problem adjusting to life in Okukari Bay. “We just love being out on the farm, being amongst the animals,” says Joy. “And, like fishing, every day is different out there, so there’s never a dull moment.”
Both couples also agree that raising their kids in such a special spot was pretty cool.
“We got to spend so much time together,” says Lisa.”We could organise their schooling around the work we had on each day, so they would come out on the farm with us, go fishing or just explore the beach or bush.”
While remote, the family says it’s impossible to feel isolated these days, with the introduction of broadband internet and online shopping. “I always tell everyone we have everything but the shops,” says Joy. “But now the shops come to you we have that too.”
So, life in Okukari Bay sounds pretty idyllic: farming the land, fishing on your doorstep, stunning scenery in every direction. It would be a hard place to leave, but for the Heberleys, that time has come. They recently put the property and fishing business up for sale.
The family makes it clear to me the decision to sell is not due to a lack of love for the place but rather a practical consideration for the future.
“Our children aren’t keen to take it over so it’s time to pass on the torch,” says James. “We’re getting on, we’ve got grandkids we want to be spending more time with and other parts of the world to explore. There’s a lot of daily responsibilities that come with running both a farm and a fishing business, we can’t keep doing this forever.”
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy a place like this,” adds Joe. “And it’s all there ready to go. The infrastructure is in place, the fishing gear is all there. You just need to move in.”
When the Heberley family leave this historic property, they’ll be leaving behind a legacy of resilience, adaptability and hard work.
“It’s a very rewarding lifestyle. Living in such a remote spot has some major perks, but also its challenges,” says Joe. “While beautiful, life in Okukari Bay is not for everyone, but if you’re looking to escape the hustle and bustle, if you’re up for some adventure, and if the idea of living off the land and sea as we have done for generations appeals, then this could be the right place for you.”
