The Pitcairn Miscellany
Volume 54 Number 7
My Journey to Henderson by Ralph Warren Peu.
August 2011
(Pulau School)
The ship M/V Aquila came on Saturday the 13th of
August 2011 to pick up Jay, David, Ariel and me to
take us to Henderson Island along with the RSPB
people, two helicopter pilots and the crew of the Aquila
to help make the Island rat free.
When the Aquila was ready to go Jay, David Ariel and I
all went down to the landing. Others came down to
wish us good bye and good luck. The men walked up
to the longboat and pushed it down in to the white,
rough water. As the men started loading the stuff we
needed in to the longboats the ones who were going
said farewell and stepped in to the longboat along with
some of the crew off the Aquila. When everything was
in the longboat and ready to go the longboat sped out
of the harbour. Slowing down, the longboat went up a
big white wave then came down with smash.
When we got out and came alongside the Aquila some
crew hopped on first while some of the others helped
unload the stuff off the longboat on to the Aquila. After
all the stuff was on we waved good bye to guys in the
longboat and were led up to our cabins by Mackenzie
the captain‟s daughter. When we saw our cabins we
thought how small. I went on the top bunk and Ariel on
the bottom on the right and on the other side David
took the top bunk and Jay on the bottom. When we
were all settled in we all went up to the bridge and
watched the front of the boat digging in to the waves.
Henderson Island
After a while Ariel and I got bored and headed back
down towards our cabin and just lay in our bunks listening to music.
After a while Jay and David came in and said would you like to have dinner? Ariel said no but I said
yes and went along with them down to the galley. When I saw our dinner the first time I quickly
rushed back up to the toilet and threw up. Believe it or not I was seasick on the way to Henderson.
Through the night I was so sea sick I couldn‟t sleep much. I spent most of my time with the toilet
and when I was finished, just ten minutes later I would be back there again having another date with
the toilet! After a while I stopped throwing up and finally I went into a deep sleep.
At seven in the morning everyone started waking up. David and I were the first awake and just lay in
our bunks and started talking. Next Jay woke then Ariel. Jay got up and made his way up to the
bridge. It was still a little bit rough. After a while he came back and asked are you guys going to
have breakfast? David hopped out of his bed and joined him at the door. Ariel said no and I said
thanks but no thanks. So Jay and David went down
for breakfast while Ariel and I were in our bunks.
Jay and David came back and said they had egg
and bacon for breakfast.
We all went up to the bridge and watched the
Island as we passed it. We saw a whale between
us and the island. I quickly shot off down into our
cabin and grabbed my video camera and raced
backed up on deck and saw they were gone, Then
5 minutes later they were back and I caught some
good video of them. In the afternoon David and
Ariel were flown ashore while Jay and I worked on
the Aquila.
On board the Aquila
The MV Aquila by Rodger
Even when viewed from afar,
there was not one graceful line on
the boat! Her blunt nosed, black
steel strength was completely at
odds with the two streamlined and
fragile looking helicopters perched
on the rear deck.
The rack of six huge sodium
vapour lights glaring out across
the sea from the roof of the
wheelhouse indicates a
willingness to work 24 hours a
day. The gaping scuppers at the
water line of the deck hint that the work place is often deep with foaming seawater! The shiny black
paint cannot hide the bent and bruised steel of her hull, and the deep throb echoing from the dual
exhaust stacks tells of thousands of horsepower hidden below!
Most of the boats that anchor off Pitcairn Island are slim and sleek. Gadget covered sailing craft,
seaworthy enough, but built to a design meant to please the eye of a keen yachtsman.
But meet the M.V. Aquila! A boat made for strength and utility! The fact of the matter is, that the
Aquila was built to work hard in rough seas. Thanks to National Geographic‟s thrilling documentary
following the lives of King Crab fishermen in „The worlds deadliest catch‟, the lines of the Aquila may
be recognised by many of our readers. Built to hunt for crab near the Arctic Circle, to see her in the
warmth of the south Pacific would suggest that she is on „holiday‟. But this time, instead of hunting
crabs…she is hunting rats!
Based in Seattle, the Captain and owner of the Aquila, Kale Garcia has the job of transporting men
and machinery through the Pacific Ocean on a mission to eradicate rats from three very isolated
islands. The details of this project were described by Johnathan Hall in last months Miscellany,
where it was mentioned that two volunteers from Pitcairn would accompany the team to Henderson
Island. I was lucky enough to be one of those volunteers!
Welcomed on board by Kale and his wife Anji, we were given a tour of the bunks and bathrooms. I
stand at 2.01 metres, and in places the headroom aboard was about 1.75m! As the roof and beams
were solid steel plate, Kale handed me several sticky plasters for my bald spot, „you will use them
soon enough‟ he laughed. He was right of course! Kale‟s daughter, Kinsi looked very comfortable
sitting at the controls in the wheelhouse, but it was difficult to see her half hidden behind banks of
computer screens, navigation aids, radios and techno wizardry! Anji unpacked the bright red
survival suits, and gave us the run down on how to wriggle into them. Mine looked a bit small, but I
guessed neoprene rubber would stretch quickly when there is an alarm hooter blaring in your ear!
The only „no go‟ area on the Aquila was the rear helicopter pad during the hours of darkness. A
rolling deck and no handrail could mean an unplanned swim five metres below!
My job was to help tip tonnes of poison pellets into purpose made bulk bags. Kale‟s teenage son
Tanner then juggled the controls of the hydraulic crane, swinging the bags into the spreading
buckets attached to the hovering Jet Ranger helicopters. Highly skilled operators meant that it was
only a matter of seconds from the time the empty bucket hit the rolling deck until the helicopter was
tilting away with another load of „meals on wheels/wings‟ for the unwanted rats of Henderson!
Wide open decks at sea level are needed for working crab pots, but for this project Kale‟s crew had
welded nine containers to the deck. Sleeping accommodation, toilet and shower, office and
storage. Take the wings and legs off the Jet Rangers, and they slotted neatly into two containers
for the long voyage to and from Seattle. Carefully sealed and damp-proof containers held the rat
bait. It is no good spending millions of donated dollars to travel half way around the world, if along
the way the meals go mouldy and the rats don‟t like the taste of the bait!
We were moored several hundred metres off East Beach, and even from a distance, we could see a
huge amount of plastic rubbish littering the white coral sands. With the poison baits successfully
delivered, thought was given to using the available time, men and machinery to clean up some of
the rubbish. Being one of those people who have always paid lip service to the problems of plastic
rubbish, it was quite a revelation for me to listen to the expertise of the Project Crew as they
discussed the problems of disposing of waste plastic;
picking it up seemed to be the only easy bit! It would be
pointless to just shift the rubbish from Henderson to
Pitcairn, and without a lot of red tape, no other country
would take it! Never the less it was decided that the effort
would be made to pick up as many fishing floats as we
could manage so that they could be recycled and used
again back on Pitcairn.
The amount of plastic rubbish on East Beach could „almost‟
be seen as a positive! Hopefully, in the near future, tourists
will travel across the seas to visit this incredibly beautiful
World Heritage site. This large coral island, 600,000 years
old, home to so many birds and plants found nowhere else
in the world, will amaze them. Hopefully they will give
some thought to the many kind people who donated millions
of dollars to help preserve this unique place. Then they will
be brought back to earth with a thump when they see the
effects that humans are having by dumping rubbish into our
seas! I for one didn‟t realise that it was such a problem. I
will never forget the sight of the plastic on East Beach!
But a week or so before we walked the beach collecting
fishing floats; the main poison drop had taken place on
Henderson Island. Hopefully the next hatchlings of the
Henderson petrel will successfully grow to soar across the
waves. As we walked along the beach, the stench of
death wafted in the wind! There seemed to be a lot of
dead rats!
East Beach
Chickens by Shirley Young
If you live in an area that is infested with chickens, then you
have some idea what we are experiencing here on island.
Infestation you say? Well, rats can be an infestation, but cute
fluffy chickens? Yes, they are. Most obvious is when the
rooster start to crow at 5 am or sooner. When one is hanging
around anywhere in earshot, then shooting the varmints does
definitely cross your brain. In general, all chickens love a bit
of fresh greens, whether in the form of your beloved flowers,
or delicious bits of lettuce. The chickens do not even say
thank you, but snack upon your hard labour grown delights,
as if they had put in the time and energy to grow the stuff
themselves!
We are mostly growing, being pestered by black/dark
coloured chickens. Why? Because the white ones are easier to shoot. A few people here take
their guns out and do a bit of eradication. Not enough though. Gardens, and sleeping in past 5am,
are still threatened. They may have small bird brains, but they are aces at running and hiding
expertly quick. Go out shooting/ stalking and hunting, don‟t see a chicken, you hand the gun back
to the police to be secured, only to have the chickens show themselves once they realize you no
longer are a threat.
Why do we have Chickens in the wild, because they escape from their homeowners compounds,
grass greener on the other side of the fence, or possibly deliberately released because the owner
cannot bear the thought of killing a now seemingly non productive member of the extended family.
Go to shoot a mamma who is rearing not one or two cute little balls of fluff, but oh no, they choose
to raise 12 of the pesky things, and when you get to close to them mum sends out the coded
squawk which means in chicken language, right little ones hide immediately and don‟t show yourself
until I give the all-clear signal. Mum then goes running off in the bushes squawking madly. Oh, the
chicken tales we can tell...
The “chickens” of Pulau School!
A wintery gale was thrashing Pitcairn Island, and with the wind
rattling at the windows, and big waves surging against the rocky cliffs, a
plaintive voice crackled over the radio. The sailing vessel „Bobby‟ was
in the vicinity and was keen to find shelter in the lee of the island.
Alone, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, Emily Richmond was
struggling to keep a steady compass bearing. With no motor, and a
problem with broken rigging, she was 30 days out of Easter Island
trying to make a landing on Pitcairn Island.
For three days the gale blew first from the south, then from the north
and back to the south. At one stage she was blown past, only a few
miles away from landfall. But the only contact that she could manage
was via the static filled microphone of her radio! Unable to sail close to
the wind due to the temporary repairs to her mast, she just had to watch
the misty outline of Pitcairn slide out of her reach each time she
approached.
Finally, frustration set in when the storm abated into a very light breeze.
Having spent most of the fourth day trying to tack up wind towards the
island, Emily decided that enough was enough and asked for a tow from the Pitcairn Longboat!
A few hours later, safely at anchor in Bounty Bay, she could tell her story and arrange for help with
the repairs to her boat. A broken stay meant that the very top of the mast had torn loose, and
rough seas had made for difficult repairs at the top of the wildly swinging pole. Then a broken
engine mount caused the motor to shift and bend the propeller shaft! Oh the joys of sailing the
deep blue seas!
Several days sheltering at Pitcairn allowed for more permanent repairs to stays and rigging, but
although Randy was able to fix the motor problems, nothing could be done with the bent shaft.
Emily explained that she wasn‟t really at risk because of the breakages, but the boat had been very
difficult to sail single-handed in that condition. Apparently from a family of non sailors, she had
been given a yacht, read a book about sailing around the world, and had decided „why not give it a
go!‟ A very capable and gutsy young lady…we wish her well!
A Story from Pulau School
One morning the three little crabs went to find each a new home for them to live in. The littlest crab
built his house out of seaweed. The second biggest built his house out of sand, but the most biggest
crab built his house out of firm strong and steady rock. After they were done building their houses
the big crab told the little crabs to look out for the big bad shark. From near in the reef the big bad
shark heard what the crabs were saying about him. He burst out of the sea weed and chased the
crabs. The littlest crab ran into his house of seaweed. The shark glided up to his house and said,
“Let me in or else I will huff and I will puff and blow your house down.” “No,” said the little crab.
“Then, well, I‟ll huff and I will puff and bubble your house down.” So the little crab ran over to the
house made of sand. The big bad shark swam after him. The little crab ran into the house of sand
before the shark could get his jaws around him. “Let me in,” said the shark. “Or else I will huff and I
will huff and blow your house down.” “We will never let you in,” said the crabs.
“Very well, I will huff and I will puff and blow your house down.”
The two little crabs ran over to the house of rock. “Let me in,” said the shark.
“No,” said the three little crabs. “Well I‟ll huff and I‟ll puff and blow your house down.”
But he couldn‟t. He bubbled in defeat and swam home.
BC
During the last days of August, Doctor Peter and partner Maria were packing their bags and
saying their farewells around the island. Peter has been looking after Pitcairn „medical matters‟
over the last six months, and at times has been VERY busy. On a number of occasions, during the
dead of night, his quad bike has been heard bumping along the dusty tracks, as we all lay in bed
wondering whom it was that he had been called out to help! His care and attention to the
community of Pitcairn has been very much appreciated by both the sick and the healthy! We wish
both Peter and Maria all the very best, and wonder if they will be back for a third „tour of duty‟ at
sometime in the future? Of course a farewell to one doctor always means a welcome to another,
and Doctor Kevin and wife Sharon have arrived to spend the next 12 months. Having worked in
Antarctica, then 22 years as a Navy Doctor, and more recently on Christmas Island in the Indian
Ocean, we know that both Kevin and Sharon will very quickly find their feet on Pitcairn Island. As
keen yachtsmen, will we see them teaching their skills to the sea scouts?
The story of the X-ray Machine
Some of our readers, who have been following life on
Pitcairn Island for a long time, will recall that the Miscellany
of May 2005 featured an article about the arrival of new
equipment for the Health Clinic. It explained how the island
Radiographer, Steve Christian, had been struggling to work
with outdated x-ray equipment, and the article celebrated
the arrival of a brand new x-ray machine for the Health
Clinic.
New Doctor & New Xray Machine
Now that it is 2011, that machine is no longer new! Steve
and Doctor Peter have been called on to take several x-ray
photos over the last few months, and it seems that there
was so much radiation leaking from the machine, that there
was a real danger of them both starting to „glow‟ in the dark!
The inner most workings of an x-ray machine are not easily
understood, and so dust and cobwebs were blown off the
instruction manual to find that the elderly machine was away
past due for a health check up of it‟s own!
Once again, the isolation of the Pitcairn community presents
unique problems. The x-ray manual called for maintenance
check-ups every year, but the cost of freight for the machine, or transport for a service technician is
prohibitive! Our nearest neighbour, Mangareva, does not have an x-ray machine, so we cannot
even share service costs with them. The costs associated with repair or replacement figure in the
tens of thousands, and so with a very restricted budget to work with, the Pitcairn island
administration had some very difficult decisions to make!
Everybody acknowledged the importance of obtaining safe and reliable x-ray equipment, but all the
government budgets were already spent. Who was going to be able to find the $50,000 needed to
purchase the most basic machine? This was a problem that not only occupied the minds of the
British Administration; it was also exercising the brains and imaginations of the community of
Pitcairn. Plastic ice cream containers appeared about the island, calling for donations towards the
cost, market days, fish fries and bring-n-buys were also organised.
The sense of despair was somewhat relieved when it was announced that a band new machine was
already on board the freight boat, on route to Pitcairn! It appeared that a fairy godmother must
have popped out of the bushes to sign the cheque! But the fund raising efforts continue on Pitcairn
Island, everybody knows that money doesn‟t grow on trees, and at some time, somewhere,
somehow that money has to be paid back! In the meantime, the whole Pitcairn Island community
would like to know the identity of the fairy godmother so they can give her a big hug‟!
A Story from Pulau School.
I am a crayfish sneaking along the seabed looking for food glorious food. When I came across a
cave in the rocks I saw a shadow move behind a rock. Suddenly the shadow disappeared just like
that. I crept out of the rocks and sneaked along the little rocks. I thought that the shadow had
disappeared. Then I heard a sound. I looked around but saw nothing. I looked at a dark spot by the
rocks. Something came out. It was another crayfish like me. I went and said, “Hullo. Who are you?”
“My name is Owdy.” “My name is Sprat. Where are you going Owdy?”
“I am going to Pitcairn Island.” “That‟s where I am going too. Maybe we can work together.”
“That‟s a good idea.” “Pitcairn is that way.”
It took two days to get there.
“Hey Owdy let‟s find some food.” Owdy and I smelled around for food. I said, “Owdy, over here.
Look I smell dead fish.” When we came to the fish it was in something. There was a hole in the top
of the cage and I saw the fish inside it. I crawled up the cage and down in to the hole. I told Owdy to
come and eat with me. So Owdy climbed in. We ate and ate for a long time. Then I said to Owdy
“I‟m full.” “Me too.” I went to the hole and looked up. I tried to get out but I could not get out. I said
to Owdy, “You try.” But Owdy couldn‟t. So I went over in the corner and went to sleep. Owdy did the
same. In the morning I heard a sound. It sounded like a boat. I got up and woke up Owdy. Owdy
grumbled, “What?” “I can hear something. It sounded like a boat.”
A big boat came on top of the cage. A rope was attached to the cage. We were getting lifted up.
Two men on the boat took us on the boat. Owdy and I flapped up and down in the cage. We were
taken to an island. The two men pulled up a bigger trap than this one. They put us in the big one.
Lots more like us were in it. Owdy and I looked around. I suggested to Owdy, “Let‟s cut us out of
here.” So Owdy and I started to cut at the net. We made a little hole. Then we stopped.
Owdy moaned, “This is taking too long.” “But we have to keep going,” I replied. “OK,” said Owdy.
So we cut and cut and cut. The hole was big enough to fit one crayfish through. Owdy went through
then me. All the other crayfish came out. They said, “YES! We are out at last.”
Owdy and I went looking for a home in the rocks. I said Bye to Owdy and Owdy said, “Bye.”
And all that time we lived at Pitcairn Island.
KWP
While the Aquila stopped at Pitcairn to unload people and supplies, the opportunity was taken to
use one of the Jet Ranger helicopters to take some aerial photos of the island. The last helicopter
to visit Pitcairn Island was many years ago, aboard a British Navy vessel. The faded photo taken
on that occasion still hangs in the community hall.
The helicopter landed on the
sports ground in Aute Walley
to gather cameras and
photographers, and while it
crouched in the grass,
turbine whistling and blades
flapping, the school children
were allowed to pose for a
photo. Bearing in mind that
this was the first time that
any of these children had
seen a helicopter at close
range, let alone having one
land in their back yard!
When the aerial photos are
available, we hope to feature
a number of them in a future
Miscellany.
Hammering and Sawing at Pulau School.
The concrete surface of the tennis court in
Aute Walley is starting to crack and tilt. The
trees planted close-by to provide shelter from
the ocean breezes have been pushing their
roots under the slab looking for some
moisture. But despite the uneven footing,
Pitcairn Islanders find great delight in
challenging each other to a game of tennis.
Dodging the puddles of water, the cracks and
the piles of goat poo does not detract from the
fierce competition, and the fading boundary
lines lead to many a disputed „point‟. The
children at Pulau School spend much of their
playtime practicing their tennis skills, and the
plastic weatherboard wall of the toilet block
has traditionally been used as the „hit up wall‟.
As the children have grown older, the tennis
strokes have become stronger, and it seemed
that it was only going to be a matter of time
before the toilet wall (or window) was going to
suffer damage.
With all the Pitcairn workmen busy on other projects, it was decided that the children would design
and build their hit up wall themselves! A planning meeting was held after school, where the
children discussed how big they would like the wall to be, and then saw how they would need to
reduce their ideal size so as to fit
the space available. Attaching it to
existing retaining wall posts,
construction and bracing were all
addressed as their plans were
discussed with Mrs Hilary and
Rodger. The nails, bolts and
timber were donated by Rodger,
and the construction was planned
for the next Sea Scout day.
Rodger and Sergeant Russ were
there just to make sure the bolt
holes were drilled into the correct
posts, but almost all the measuring,
sawing, and hammering was carried
out by the children. Apart from one
„short‟ plank, a few „wonky‟ saw
cuts, and a few nails that „just‟
missed their target, the wall grew as
planned. The children had great
satisfaction in actually making their
wish come true, and working
together towards a common goal.
“THE PITCAIRN BEAT”
The “Pitcairn Beat” is intended to give feedback and
identify issues on the island from a Community
Policing perspective.
August has gone and the highlight of the month was
the M/V Aquila coming and going from Henderson
Island. A few of the Islanders got to travel and work
on Henderson and the Aquila, for varying lengths of
time. Our most senior Sea Scout also had this
opportunity. The experience of working with others,
riding in helicopters and living on a ship must have
made a great impression on Ralph. He certainly has
some stories to tell.
This month the Sea Scouts competed around an
obstacle course set up for them. The course was
based on the NZ Police Physical Competency Test.
This test is designed to check to see how many
doughnuts and cups of coffee the “Coppers” have
been consuming over the past year. Amongst the
various hurdles (both under and over), runs, beams to
balance on, there is also a wall, and a fence to climb
over. There is a window to climb up and through, a trailer to tow and a tyre to move. The last
discipline was to drag a body for 10 metres. This was no easy feat as I personally know John Doe
had 4 coconuts in his “guts”.
This is an event where each competitor goes through the course on their own. Everyone else is
sitting back resting and/or waiting, so all eyes are on the individual. Everyone went through three
times and on each occasion they bettered their previous time as they went. This was a great effort
by each of them.
That‟s all for this month as I have to go and start the vacuum cleaner and try and find the sink under
all the dishes. Have a great September, Russ.
Russell TORR, Sergeant, Pitcairn Island Police.
Do you have an issue for your Community Police Officer?
Please feel free to call in at McCoys or alternately email [email protected]
JULY 2011 Weather by Betty
Total Rainfall
79.7mm
Greatest Daily Rainfall
38.6 mm 12th
Days of Rain
9
Av Humidity
62%
Av Pressure
1018.4
Max Temp
22.50C
2nd 3rd
0
Min Temperature
14 C
25h
Mean Temperature
15.40C
Sunshine Hours
196.2
Diary for August 2011
7th MV Wallenius
11th SV Bobby
13th MV Aquila
18th Mavis Warren‟s Birthday
21st Ann Coddling‟s Birthday
24th MV Aquila
24th MV Claymore
31st Video Link with Governor
Henderson Island Rail