Photos of today's state funeral
Photos of Sir Ed's lying in state
Video: Sir Edmund Hillary obituary
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Sir Edmund Hillary's casket has been moved to St Mary's church for his funeral service.
A lone navy drummer sounded out the beat as six pall bearers from the navy, army and air force carried Sir Edmund from the Holy Trinity Cathedral to St Mary's.
About 100 members of the public watched from Parnell Road as the procession entered St Mary's for this morning's funeral service.
The doors at the cathedral were closed earlier this morning with last minute well-wishers turned away before the start of the funeral.
About 100 people were lined up to pay their final respects to Sir Edmund shortly after 7am.
Last night thousands of people were still lined up at midnight, with a wait of over two hours.
But shortly after 7am this morning the wait was only 20 minutes.
Huw McKinlay and Hannah Craig decided to pay their respects before work this morning.
"It was a quiet moment. He was pretty much the greatest New Zealander. His humility, I never met him but he exudes it," Mr McKinlay said.
Last night the line of people stretched from the Holy Trinity Cathedral down local streets.
Marguerite Rogers waited 90 minutes in the queue before getting to see Sir Edmund's casket at about midnight.
"I went to Everest as part of the 50 year anniversary. I got cancer a year later and revisited with my son in 2006," Ms Rogers said.
A guard of honour with long-handled ice axes will be part of the ceremony today as New Zealand farewells its greatest legend.
Family and friends of Sir Edmund Hillary will gather with dignitaries from around the world and admiring New Zealanders to farewell the man regarded as a hero in Nepal, a legend in his own country and the humblest of great men by many who knew him.
Eleven days have passed since Sir Ed died at Auckland City Hospital, and his farewell will be New Zealand's largest state funeral.
The funeral at St Mary's in Parnell is the culmination of two days of official mourning, which began yesterday with the lying-in-state of his body at the Cathedral of Holy Trinity.
Led by his widow, Lady June Hillary, and Prime Minister Helen Clark, family, friends and dignitaries will gather at St Mary's and at the cathedral next door for a private service.
Hundreds of thousands more will gather in front of outdoor screens in Auckland and around New Zealand, and countless others will share the occasion around the world.
Personnel at Scott Base in Antarctica will view the service live via satellite link.
Sir Ed's body will be taken from the forecourt of the Cathedral at 8.45am to St Mary's in a ceremonial procession.
The service will begin with his favourite music, and Dame Malvina Major will sing.
Among those speaking at the service will be Norbu Tenzing Norgay - son of Tenzing Norgay, who reached Mt Everest's summit with Sir Edmund - close family friend Jim Wilson, and members of the Hillary family.
Sir Ed's friends at the service will include 1953 Everest expedition members George Band, Mike Westmacott, Jan Morris, Alfred Gregory and George Lowe.
Ang Rita Sherpa, chief executive of the Himalayan Trust and described by Sir Ed in his 1999 autobiography View From the Summit as "my right-hand man", will also attend.
International dignitaries include Irish, Canadian, US, Australian and Nepalese government representatives, and former British Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer.
No member of the royal family will be at the service, but the Queen has offered the Hillary family a memorial service at St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle in April.
When the service ends at 12.30pm, the cortege will pass through Auckland Domain, and thousands of people are expected to line the route.
The normally busy shopping area of Newmarket will come to a standstill as shops close in honour of Sir Ed.
"We are expecting the footpaths and balconies to be thick with people and a deafening silence to fall over Broadway. Only Sir Ed could command that," said Newmarket Business Association general manager Cameron Brewer.
"The last time Newmarket would've witnessed anything remotely like this was when troops marched off to World War II nearly 70 years ago."
Parts of Parnell Rd and St Stephens Ave will be among the roads closed for the cortege.
Parking will be restricted in Parnell and the domain, but extra parking will be available on the sportsfield, be accessible from Football Road and Wintergarden Road from 10am.
After the service, 40 members of the New Zealand Alpine Club will form a guard of honour, each carrying a long-handled wooden ice axe "as a symbolic salute to Sir Ed and the great mountaineering achievements of his generation", club president Phil Doole said yesterday.
Sir Ed's family will go on to a private cremation, and an informal memorial will be held at the band rotunda in the domain.
The Sky Tower's lights will be turned off tonight to mark the day's ceremonies, and the end of a life of adventure.
- with NZPA
