I was very saddened to hear of the recent passing of an old bushwalking friend, Tony Norman. He perhaps should be addressed as Dr Anthony Norman. But to his bushwalking mates, and probably many other of his friends, he was known as “Norm”. He died suddenly at his home in Melbourne, I think while working at his computer, at the age of 59.
Tony Norman in Spring Creek
I first got to know Norm in the late 1970’s when he joined Sydney University Bushwalkers. As well as bushwalking, climbing and canyoning, his other passion was geology. This was what he studied and made his career. His work took him to many remote parts of the planet.
Doug Wheen, Bob Sault, Brad Phillips, John Atkinson and Tony Norman, Patagonia
In his early years in SUBW, he took part in a series of exploratory canyoning trips. Many of these were in the Wollangambe Wilderness, and many with Bob Sault. Some of the canyons he was on the first descent of and named included – Why Don’t We Do It In The Road Canyon (named after the Beatles song – Norm was a big Beatles fan), Whungee Wheengee Canyon (named to be deliberately confusing with the Kanangra Canyon – Wheengee Whungee Canyon – correction – I have found out it was named by Airdrie Long, who was in the first descent party with Tony and Brad Phillips) and Crikey Canyon (named when he looked down the slot in the tunnel section from high above and exclaimed “Crikey mother of God!”). He was also in the first party down Hole In The Wall Canyon (and probably named it).
Tony Norman in Patagonia
I had been on exploratory canyoning trips in the Coorongooba Area of Wollemi National Park in the mid 1980’s. One of these was an Easter trip where we found canyon after canyon. It led to many later trips in that area.
Tony in Fiordland – Cameron Mountains
Also many of my best bushwalks were in parties that included Norm and often he was the person who first suggested the trip. In New Zealand these included a Traverse of the remote Cameron Mountains in Fiordland, and a visit to the Garden of Eden Neve north of Mt Cook. It was on that second trip that we were stormbound in snow cave for many days. Other overseas trips with Norm were to Patagonia (Cerro Hudson and Cerro Tronador) and in Africa (Mt Kenya and The Ruwenzori Mountains).
Steve Henznell, Bob Sault and Tony Norman – Cameron Mountains, Fiordland
New Zealand Alps
Bob Sault and Tony Norman – New Zealand Alps
Norm was also at home in the scrub of South West Tasmania. He completed some remarkable trips with Bob Sault and Roger Lembit. I joined him on a trip to the Norold Range. We went in via Mt Alderbarren in the Western Arthurs and exited via Gorilla Ridge and Federation Peak. Norm was perhaps at his finest when the going was tough – refusing to give in.
Bob Sault and Tony Norman – Ruwenzori Mountains
Bob Sault and Tony Norman – Ruwenzori Mountains
His work resulted in a move to Melbourne, and contact with him became more sporadic over the years. I last did a trip with him on one of his visits to Sydney, back in 2017 – an exciting daywalk to the cliffs of North Head, also with Bob Sault.
Tony will be greatly missed.
Tony at North Head, 2017
“Hole in the Wall” was indeed Tony’s name. Tony named it as we swam past where it meets North Bungleboori in November 1981 – a few days after he submitted his Honours geology thesis. We went back and did it from the top later that season.
He was a fit, tough fellow. He walked and climbed mountains all seven continents. He never used a guide. He also worked in all seven continents.
In addition to the passions you mention, he loved travel in Europe, often involving art, fine wine and good coffee. Fishing and boating were other passions – in recent years with his boat the “Kiltobranks”. And he was a runner: his marathon time was around 2:45:00, which is exceptional given his casual, sporadic approach to training and his physique (more short and stocky, rather than the tall lanky build of classical distance runners). Squash as well in his earlier years.
Norm was always generous, and a great person to have when the going was difficult. He always had very different ideas to the normal for trips to do.
David thank you so much for writing of Tony’s extraordinary exploits and adventures. He was a remarkable person but never big-noted himself.
I first got to know him when we both worked for Pasminco Exploration, where he was known as Stormin. In those days we shared a love for subversion of safety and HR documents, NSW geology and re-allocation of words to acronyms.
Once Pas Ex became Ex Pas Ex we used to meet regularly in Melbourne usually at Brunetti’s in Myers, for reasons which I could never fully discover. Never the less, surrounded by women trying on hats, scarves and coats we would spin one cup of tea out over extended discussions that would cover everything from high-sulphidation epithermal deposits to the biographies of eccentric drillers, to stories of his nieces and nephews, nautical adventures in the new boat, old adventures in the Blue Mountains and lamenting the loss of the rhetoric of PJK to the political landscape. Sometimes we would move on to one of Melbourne’s riverside bars and on those occasions I found myself running for the last train back to Bendigo as the time had passed so quickly with our exchanges of nonsense.
I have to say that I was totally gutted when I heard of Tony’s death – at a computer! He would have had much to say about that !!! I will miss so much his extensive repertoire of stories and observations but even more I shall miss a person whose good-humoured, keen and quirky outlook on the world can never, ever be replaced.