A Personal Tribute to Brian Conduit - One Year on - By Mary Brazier

On June 23rd 2010 it is one year since we lost our good friend Brian Conduit. I seem to have spent the last year saying that I can’t believe he has gone, but now I am wondering how it can be a whole year since we lost him. Brian was a founder member and active committee member of the Costa Blanca Bird Club and a very popular man. I hope anyone reading this will not think I am being self-indulgent in writing my own feelings here, but hopefully anyone who knew Brian will perhaps identify with some of my remarks.

I can’t claim to have known Brian for a long time, or to have been one of his closest friends, but John and I had begun to spend more time with Brian in the last couple of years of his life and I like to think we had become good friends. We met Brian a few years ago after reading his column in the Jungle Drums and going to meet him in the hide at El Clot.

Our friendship really developed though when he took us on a wonderful trip to the Pyrenees. Not only did he drive all the way there and back, he booked the hotel and took us to some of the most fantastic places we have ever been. He was such a generous man and really wanted to share his knowledge and experience with others, and I know that many people have been taken on a similar trip to see places like the Hecho Valley, San Juan de La Pena and Mallos de Riglos. Personally, I found the scenery to be spectacular and would probably have been quite happy even if we had never seen a single bird!

Of course, for Brian it was all about the birds, and he knew where to find them. We were lucky enough to see, amongst many others, Red and Black Kites, Griffon and Egyptian Vultures as well as the fantastic Lammergeier. Even more exciting was the Wallcreeper we found after trudging uphill along a muddy path trying not to get knocked over the edge by a herd of cows! The final ‘star bird’ was the Black Woodpecker at San Juan de la Pena following a tip off from a Spanish bird guide, absolutely brilliant!

Naturally, while spending a few days in Brian’s company and eating and drinking together we started to get to know each other better, and after returning home we started to spend more time with him. Our trips to Pena Grande became a weekly event which we always looked forward to. John and Brian always had a sandwich mixto con huevo and I had the same but without the egg. A plate of patatas fritas and a few drinks completed our meal. These meetings were always a good chance to catch up on any news and John and Brian would invariably end up chatting about football, cricket or some other sport. For me it was an opportunity to question Brian about my latest bird sightings or for him to pass on other bird related information or news. Apart from these subjects I always found Brian easy to talk to about any subject, such as, recent news items or whatever.

The Pyrenees, Mallos de Riglos, Hecho Valley, Lumbier Gorge, Jaca

Apart from our regular lunches Brian would often ring to ask if we fancied a drive along the Salinas and around the El Hondo area. “Let’s go find some birds” he would say. He showed us so many great places which we would probably never have found on our own, and of course, he could identify the birds and gave us many tips on how to identify them for ourselves. We learned so much from him as well as being inspired by his enthusiasm, so that we still regularly visit these old haunts in a bid to ‘find some birds’.

The other thing we got from Brian was an introduction to some of his many friends, such as, Colin and Jane, Rosemary, Malcolm and Barry as well as all the other members of The Costa Blanca Bird Club. Often Brian would take us up to Colin and Jane’s to see the Bonelli’s Eagles and these trips invariably involved a good meal and few laughs. We still go there of course and Brian is always fondly remembered during these visits.

Another favourite place he introduced us to was the Petrola area where we went in search of the famous Great Bustards. Seeing these impressive birds for the first time was a great moment for us and it clearly gave Brian great pleasure to see our excitement. We have been there a few times now but I have special memories of the day we went with Brian, his oldest friend Alec from England, and our joint friend Bryan Thomas. It was a lovely day in February, we found the Great Bustards, thanks to Alec, and had a nice picnic near the lagoon. The sad thing was that Brian was already ill at this time and had difficulty eating, even though he was only having soup. This turned out to be our last day out with Brian, as the following day he was diagnosed with cancer of the Oesophagus and was admitted to hospital the day after that.

Throughout his illness we visited Brian either in hospital or at home and he nearly always managed to remain cheerful and positive, despite all he was going through. Obviously, he had some dark days after having Chemotherapy but once the effects had worn off he was always in good spirits when we saw him. I especially remember one time when he came back from a week staying with his very special friend, Rosemary, he was on a real high, having had such a lovely relaxing time and being so well looked after by Rosemary. It was really good to see him looking so happy.

The last time I saw Brian was just a few days before he went for his second operation which sadly, was unsuccessful. Perhaps naively, I always expected him to recover so losing him was a terrible shock. Since Brian passed away we have kept in touch with his brother Ian and sister in law Jean, and it is comforting to have some contact with his closest family who obviously miss him a great deal.

Now that a year has gone by, maybe we can start to remember all the happy times we enjoyed with Brian and I know I will never forget him.

Red Kite and Griffon Vulture photos by Bryan Thomas©