There’s something special about a private island. An isolated piece of paradise, its beaches and forests yours alone to enjoy. A virtual private kingdom under the sun. While this is enough for most of us, for some, only a real kingdom (or republic, or principality, or …) will suffice. For these folks, a private island is but a means to an end - the establishment of a new, independent country. But is such a thing really possible?
The short answer is a pretty conclusive ‘ no’. Since the early 20th century, every square foot of dry land on Earth has been claimed by at least one country or another, which pretty much rules out discovering an unmapped tropical paradise, planting your flag, and setting yourself up as the local sovereign. Similarly, existing countries are more than a little reluctant to part with pieces of their national territory, no matter the financial incentives offered. However, 30 years ago one man hatched an enterprising (if a little bizarre) scheme at getting around these little details. Read more »
If you want to find Pitcairn Island on a map, search Google Earth and wait for the program to pinpoint the barely visible dot in the middle of the South Pacific. Just because you can’t see any other land on the surface of Google’s orb once you’ve located Pitcairn doesn’t mean Google Earth is malfunctioning. Pitcairn really is that isolated - a volcanic rock under two square miles surrounded by pounding surf in the middle of absolutely nowhere.
Don’t be surprised if you’ve never heard of Pitcairn island - not many people have. This storied island isn’t located on any flight routes and getting there is strictly for the determined. The other alternative is to arrive by accident and that possibility seems as remote as the island itself. Its utter isolation is why the descendants of its modern day population sought it out in the first place. Read more »
Here we will discuss the perils and pleasures of island ownership, along with the perks and pitfalls of being completely surrounded by water. That can be a joy on a beautiful sunny day, when the lake is calm and the water is warm, but a bit frightening during a storm when the wind is crashing the water over the dock and you know that you cannot safely take the boat to the mainland. Of course, that’s the time to throw a log into the woodstove and put on a Garrison Keillor tape and just sit back and relax in your private little world and laugh at those crazy Lutherans in Minnesota. Read more »
They entrust her to caretakers who give the isle their best / for this is their summer of a lifetime; they are blessed / to be her Friends…
—From the song “To the Friends of Seguin” by Lawrene
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Caretaking is a lifestyle for some; for the Denkers family it was a chance for a unique extended family vacation. They responded to an ad in The Caretaker Gazette for summer caretakers on an island off the coast of Maine. They were interviewed by the non-profit organization, Friends of Seguin Island, were accepted, and soon after moved in.
The Denkers are a family of four. Although not every family can just up and slip off to an island for three months, they had a few advantages. They are self-employed. Harry is a carpenter with an established clientele who, for the most part, were willing to put off their summer jobs until the fall. Lawrene works with Harry, writes for the local paper, and does some secretarial work for a teacher’s union. Rachel and Anna had to arrange for missing a month of school, and they were given work by their accommodating Ontario teachers for island home-schooling. Read more »
Honesty prevailed over emotion, and I conceded with great sadness that I would have to sell. There just was not enough potential pasture area for raising dairy cows and horses, or to fulfill my desire to cultivate hundreds of exotic fruit trees. Most of the island is quite steep and covered with mature giant hardwoods such as Amoghis, Natuk, and Nara. Altogether I found maybe twenty acres that could be put to agricultural use and I needed much more than that.
I gave no real thought to practicalities when I acquired the land, I was overwhelmed by the island’s stunning natural beauty and surreal features. My heart won the battle over my head and I was sold.
As the boat pulled away from the beach on my last visit there over a year ago, I could not bear to look back. Still, the hauntingly mystical vision of the island kept appearing in my mind’s eye, and will remain forever. Read more »
After our second visit to Petite St. Vincent we arrived home with a new determination to find our island. We need an island big enough to hold the facilities we envision. We want the resort to be in close proximity to excellent diving locations, yet within easy reach of the airport. The land needs to have fee simple title located in a country with a stable government and growing tourism industry. Most important, it needs to be affordable.
We searched the internet nearly every evening looking for something that fit our Caribbean dream. We were amazed at how many islands there actually were for sale. We found that the well-known destinations were considerably more expensive than those less traveled. Most of the islands that met our requirements, we simply could not afford. The search was a long and frustrating process made more difficult by the lack of up-to-date information. Most Caribbean real estate companies rarely update their websites and even more rarely answer an e-mail. The few times that we did receive a response, language barriers prevented detailed conversations. Read more »
This is the story of six years which I spent alone, in two spells on an uninhabited coral atoll half a mile long and three hundred yards wide in the South Pacific. It was two hundred miles from the nearest inhabited island, and I first arrived there on October 7, 1952 and remained alone (with only two yachts calling) until June 24, 1954, when I was taken off ill after a dramatic rescue.
I was unable to return to the atoll until April 23, 1960 and this time I remained alone until December 27, 1963
Tom Neale Tahiti and Rarotonga, 1964-1965 Read more »
We had been on the island for a total of three days, attacked by sandflies, invaded by rats, drenched by torrential rain, and assailed by the sea. Yet we were resolute, and still confident that given time we could carve out our little slice of heaven on earth. On the bright side, the children had fallen instantly in love with the ‘beach island’, and Jenifer and I were doing everything within our power to ensure it worked its spell on us as soon as possible. A shift seemed to occur as our washing machine finished its first load. As Jenifer hung out the clothes on a makeshift line to dry in the gentle breeze, and we looked forward to warm showers courtesy of the newly installed water heater, things seemed just a little more promising. Read more »
We had been on the island for a total of three days, attacked by sandflies, invaded by rats, drenched by torrential rain, and assailed by the sea. Yet we were resolute, and still confident that given time we could carve out our little slice of heaven on earth. On the bright side, the children had fallen instantly in love with the ‘beach island’, and Jenifer and I were doing everything within our power to ensure it worked its spell on us as soon as possible. A shift seemed to occur as our washing machine finished its first load. As Jenifer hung out the clothes on a makeshift line to dry in the gentle breeze, and we looked forward to warm showers courtesy of the newly installed water heater, things seemed just a little more promising. 
