Squinting out beneath his wide-brimmed hat and casting an eye over his 40 hectare property, 87-year-old cane farmer Herb Robke's name is a legacy.
But he's not done yet.
A secondary melanoma diagnosis late last year may have knocked him around a bit, but after six weeks of radiation, he's in the clear, and armed with an enduring humility, strength, and warmth, he is still ploughing ahead.
"They'll have to put up with me for a little while longer," he said.
"I'm still doing what I'm doing. If I sat down I'd deteriorate. I've seen it happen...You've got to keep active.
For 73 years, he has worked tirelessly, witnessing the changes of the industry and the revolving tide of advancements throughout the region.
"I've had the same job...I'm still learning," he said.
Yet this year was unique, and despite decades of expertise, there are still twists and turns that can surprise even the most seasoned of farmers.
"I've never seen anything like the prices we're getting this year...(growers) are optimistic," he said.
"(But) our biggest problem this year was rats. It's only a small farm and they've cost me about 200-300 tonnes of cane and about a unit of sugar...I've never had that experience before.
"They're chewing the young cane off. We need a good wet season. They get a virus in the wet.
"I've got three little border collies, I let them go..if there's a rat there they know it. They got five in the last week and a half. There are paddocks in the district that have just absolutely been destroyed."
With his harvest done, and 4000 tonne crushed, he is reaping the rewards of another promising season, tending to his pecan and avocado trees and rows of eye-catching flowers, popping with shades of blue and red under the warm, summer sun.
"I'm a bit of an optimist. I planted a nectarine tree, a peach and a plum tree and I'm going to plant an apple tree now. When you're 87 and planting trees, you're a bit of an optimist," Mr Robke said.
He celebrated his birthday on Sunday with loved ones, including his daughter, Lorelle Flynn.
"My dad is one of the last true gentlemen," Mrs Flynn said.
"He's a very gregarious person. He loves talking to people of all different ages.
"Growing up as a country kid, we had a lot of freedom and just saw how hard work pays off. Good work ethics from mum and dad, and just seeing how it all pays off in the end.
"Dad is BMP (Best Management Practices) accredited. He did that back in 2021. He just thinks if lot more people got on board with that, it's for the betterment of the industry as a whole."
Looking around his beautiful Te Kowai home, the rewards of hard work are undeniable. It's a beauty.
"There's no better feeling for a farmer than working good soil," Mr Robke said.
"If you get a crop on good soil, it's very rewarding."
Mr Robke left school at 14 to take up the family business after his father, Kurt, passed away.
A German migrant, Kurt moved to the region in the 1920s, stamping the Robke name in the Mackay record books with the Robke Livery Stable in Wood Street.
"On my mother's side of it, my great grandmother and great grandad were the first settlers at Finch Hatton. There was nothing up there then. There was no cane up there for a start. There was only corn and that type of stuff," he said.
"(My father) went on to buy a farm at Hampden and bought another one on the river. I think it's called Riverrun now."
Raised on the family farm across the road with his brother Kevin and sister Benita, the boys had a first-hand look into what it took to manage the 68ha of assignment, growing 1200 tonnes at the time.
And while just boys, they quickly became men - taking up the plough and holding the reins firmly in hand as they began a new generation of Robke cane.
"From horses to old tractors, modern tractors, it was pretty hard work hand-loading, harvesting in those days. The first big change was end loaders, that helped a lot, then the harvesters came in...We didn't have any rotary hoes or that type of thing. It was done with just ploughs, bumpers and harrows," he said.
"We gradually cleared about 150-odd acres...and we transferred another assignment onto it and filled the farm up. We ended up getting it up to 5000-6000 tonne, me and my brother (Kevin).
"We bought a farm at Marwood. It was kind of marginal country, about 300 acres. We planted pasture on a lot of it, had cattle, and we put a bit of cane out there...we run about 50-60 head on it.
"Then we ended up buying a cattle property over the range called Donnybrook. It was about 300-400 acres. It had probably about 500 head on it...(which we expanded to) 1000 head. We cleared and pastured and developed that one up."
The brothers continued to expand their empire, buying up another 38,000 acre block down from St Lawrence called Ridgelands - at the headwaters of the Connors River.
"Then before the kids got too old and were telling us what to do, we divided what we had up. My brother took the home farm and the Ridgelands and I took Donnybrook and the Marwood farm," Mr Robke said.
After seven years, Mr Robke put Marwood on the market and moved to his Te Kowai home, where he has remained for 40 years.
"Instead of growing 75 tonne to the hectare, I'm growing 120. It's a big difference, the money you can make out of a hectare."
Looking a little further north, the Robke brothers purchased a farm in Proserpine, starting off with around 1200 tonne.
"Between me and the brother and the nephews now, I think between us we grow about 30,000," Mr Robke said.
Family is important to Mr Robke. They stay close - his daughter and neighbour helping him plant soya beans by hand to use for green manure.
And while he has had decades of experience in the industry, he still keeps up with the times - trialling new SRA varieties and methods such as green manure to control vine.
"I'll give anything a go," he said.
Reflecting on his life, Mr Robke pauses, mulling over sentimental times at his dining room table.
The poignancy of family and the camaraderie of his community are an asset to the kind farmer's fulfilling life.
"(The region's farmers) work very well together. All the locals here are good to get along with, no-one's enemies, we're all good friends. That's the way it should be.," he said.
"There's sad moments ...I like to highlight the good moments. Our first boy we had, we lost him at two and a half years old.
"The boy after him (Doug) gave us more life than we could handle. Then Lorelle came after him. We've got two nice kids now, (who) I'm pretty proud of...(and four grandchildren, Mitchell, Brendan, Emma, and Keenan).
"I lost my first wife, Elaine, in 2002. I re-married and my wife now is Marie. We've known each other most of our lives."
Past six paddocks of various cane varieties, a little oasis flanks the Pioneer River along the back of his Te Kowai property.
Buffalo grass blankets the shade beneath pine trees, with gardens hugging the corners of the retreat, and a wall of mangroves flanking the river bed.
Mr Robke sits at the picnic table, nodding approvingly at the charming corner of his home.
It's a passion project of the family - started by Mr Robke and taken up by his daughter and son-in-law Andy.
An area of Boxing Day cricket rivalry or a peaceful pocket of paradise to unwind, the family's love for the natural spoils of their home is evident.
As for Mr Robke - he leans back, pondering the multitude of lessons from his life.
But one stands out above the rest. One he hopes carries on for generations of Robke to come.
"Whatever you want to do, be dedicated and do it properly."
