Friday, June 10, 2011

Henderson Island (Pitcairn Islands)

Henderson Island has interested me since I first read about it 10 or so years ago. At the time at age 12 or so, I secretly wished I could be castaway. The island is a raised coral atoll located in the south Pacific ocean and contains one fresh water spring. This spring presumably is the reason several famous castaways have survived extended periods on this island. Three members of the crew of a sunken whale ship, the Essex, survived from December 1820 to April 1821 on the island. Later, Robert Tomarchin survived two months in 1957 as well. Neighbouring islanders are known to visit the island 2 or 3 times a year to harvest Thespesia populnea and Cordia subcordata. Overall, the island contains 51 species of plants and 10 endemic ones. Henderson is one of the most isolated places on the planet; 5,000 kilometers from anywhere. I know I am not the only one who has a special interest in islands and the isolation and opprutunity the pose for a chance of survival. If one was to get away from it all, Henderson Island would be the perfect place to do it though, I am sure like other castaways before, it might be a relief when finally rescued.




File:Henderson.JPG
Would you like to go to here sometime?


Photo: Makemake

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey there Caleb,
Interesting post. I live on Pitcairn Island and was just wondering if you were aware of the RSPB rat eradication project that is going to happen on Henderson starting in July this year. Hopefully it will be successful and make Henderson even more special
Cheers Sue

Caleb said...

Hi, google is having some major problems posting my comments for some reason. I had not heard of this project, though, I did know Henderson Island had a mouse problem. I remember reading that Bob Tomarchin's supplies were consumed by mice when he was on the island. Do you have a website I could follow about the project and post a link on my sidebar?

Unknown said...

Ciao from Italy
=^.^=

Caleb said...

Hi visitor from Italy!