Steve Irwin's heartbreaking letter to parents uncovered
A touching letter written by Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin to his parents has been uncovered, 10 years after he died.
The legendary conservationist penned the memo to Lyn and Bob Irwin when he was just 32 years old.
Steve's father Bob recently discovered the unopened letter after it fell from a book while he was researching information for his memoir, The Last Crocodile Hunter: A Father and Son Legacy.
The heart-breaking piece outlined Steve's gratitude to his upbringing and revealed a man who had just started to find joy and understand his purpose in life.
“Probably one of the most unfortunate things in a bloke’s life is that it takes over 30 years to realise how essential you have been to build my character, my ethics and, most importantly, my HAPPINESS,” Steve wrote.
“At 32, I am finally starting to figure it out. In good times and in bad, you were there.
"Your strength and endurance to raise me will not go unrewarded. My love for you is my strength!
“For the rest of my life I will reflect on the unbelievably GREAT times we’ve shared and will continue to share.
"You’re my best friends!”
Bob has told his story to Amanda French, who co-authored his memoir, over a 20,000 kilometre road trip.
"Working on this book I have been constantly reminded of Steve's boundless energy, infectious humour and unrestrained passion for wildlife," he said.
Irwin gone a decade, but legacy lives on
The man who'd wheedled his way into the nation's affections, with his wide smile and penchant for cuddling crocs, was gone and no one could quite believe it.
Steve died on September 4, 2006 after being pierced in the chest by a stingray while filming the Ocean's Deadliest underwater documentary off the coast of Queensland.
His daughter Bindi was eight and her brother Robert aged just two at the time of Steve's death.
In the years since, the Crocodile Hunter's wife and children have taken up where Irwin left off, as loud voices for the protection of Australian wildlife and the habitats that sustain them.
Bindi, now 18, says she's proud of that work and being able to build on her dad's legacy.
Standing on the banks of the Wenlock River, in the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve on Queensland's Cape York Peninsula, Bindi talks about a world-first satellite tracking project that's keeping tabs on crocs inside the protected area.
The research has uncovered previously unknown facts about the fearsome species, including the fact they can travel up to 60km in a single day.
"We can still feel him around us, and we hope he would be proud of us," she told the Nine Network this week.
Robert, now 12 and looking like a carbon copy of his dad, is also along to help catch crocs for scientific study.
"It is incredible that we get to carry on where he left off," he added.
The Last Crocodile Hunter follows Mr Irwin's journey from a Melbourne plumber to conservationist, and will be launched on October 25.
