In this analysis the resilience of family farmers is investigated in two hill country districts of New Zealand (Central Hawkes Bay and Waitomo District), through following the experiences of a sample of 119 sheep/beef producers over three decades. The famers and their spouses were first interviewed in 1984 prior to the removal of state subsidies and other assistance. Follow-up interviews were undertaken with 94 of these farmers (or their successors) in 2012-13. Over the period these farmers coped with economic shocks, natural disasters (particularly drought), and for some, personal tragedies. The focus of the study is on the economic viability of the family farms in the face of a range of adverse events, and how their owners (and families) are adapting and responding to global and local economic and social change, and the natural disasters which are a normal backdrop to farming.