Day 36 14th February 2011

Adamstown Pit Cairn

Pit Cairn Islanders boat

View of Pit Cairn from Balcony

It is another warm day and probably more accurate to say hot. The high spot of the day was the visit to Pit Cairn Island. The ship arrived at about 3pm and a boat full of local people came out the ship to set up a small market for people to buy crafts and stamps. The problem was that 1900 passengers wanted to meet 45 stall holders in a small place out on deck in the full sun. It was a mad house. They had chosen a place with very limited access for wheelchairs. There is a single narrow passage with a high lip that Chris’s powered chair could not go over and I had to lift it. It weights 35 kilos plus Chris so not easy. On the deck the stalls where clustered together so that everyone was funnelled into a narrow space. It was a shambles. I am surprised no one fainted in the heat which was intense.

The captain presented the islanders with a plaque and they in turn gave him a model of HMS Bounty. There were also presentations from the Isle of Mann and Cockermouth. We could not hear what they said so not sure what their purpose was.

We managed to get some stamps and sent several cards etc which we hope will get posted. You had to give them to the stall holders to post for you so it was a bit informal.  The people seemed friendly and helpful so I am hopeful. It was difficult because of the scrum to see what the islanders were selling but I did see a lot of wood turning. The islanders would not start the market until all their people had a chance to set up and sell their wares.

From the ship the island is surprisingly green with palm trees. It is also quite rugged with high cliffs. The main settlement is Adamstown which is a scattering of perhaps twenty buildings with a path leading down the cliff to a landing place where a large building stands probably to store the local boats. It is a small island and looks to be now more than an hour’s walking from one end to the other. The islanders came out to Aurora in a large powered open boat. We saw them unload and there was a huge amount of goods.