~ Sam's Island ~

What a forlorn lot we were a fortnight ago when bad weather cancelled our trip to Sam's Island! Now how often does that happen in Dampier? But Mr Lally from the Pilbara Camp School kindly squeezed us in and nothing was going to stop us as the second day dawned fine and hot, with just a gentle sea breeze.

The children had brainstormed what they already knew about Sam and his island and we had watched two short television pieces filmed at various times over the years. So we knew how long Sam had been out there, what he had achieved during that time, the hardships he had faced during cyclones etc and we also knew NOT TO TOUCH THE CAT! But there were lots of questions we didn't know the answers to and these were the ones we were going over to ask.

Mrs Soter, who had arranged our visit with Sam, suggested we take over a box of vegetables, with a few little special surprises like bread, Pork Chops and a packet of 'smokes' (thanks Steve). Sam rarely leaves the island these days and while he has numerous friends like the Soters looking after his needs, a box of goodies is always appreciated. Wherever Sam is, Tiger is sure to be nearby.

Your first impression is that of an island paradise, palms abound, the sprinklers are on and everything is green and lush, courtesy of HI's water pipe.

It's not until you you go to the edges, that you realise just how barren the island is and what a mammoth chore it was to get things growing and physically move all those rocks and that sand. After meeting Sam, we went on a little 'cook's tour' with Mrs Soter.

The evidence of Sam's harsh early life is left for you to ponder upon.

Sam had asked us to leave our inspection of his castle till last so we all sat down and made ourselves comfortable for the Q & A session. The children took it in turns to go out and ask him their questions which Mrs Inglis kindly recorded for us. The plan is for the kids to write a history of Sam next year. Many of the questions made Sam laugh e.g. "Why do you still smoke?" but he answered everything in good humour. We found out things like that Tiger sleeps on his bed, that he's had other pets e.g. chickens and even a donkey, that he's never really lonely as he has so many visitors, yet he has had to order some people off the island for bad behaviour and that he doesn't feel the need to return to his homeland as he has his own little Yugoslavia here. Thanks Sam for your forthright honesty.

We had our Morning Tea then each child cleared a patch of sand for an impromptu drawing competition, using sticks, fingers or a combination of both. The winner was announced later back at school. Congratulations Ashleigh for your drawing of Tiger, the cat.

Sam then took us down to his winter residence, the castle. Fortified against sea winds, this is Sam's more formal home which we viewed through windows and doors to prevent tracking sand in. You just have to marvel at the time and energy that went into the construction of these buildings.

By then it was time for us to start making tracks. It was interesting to note that the whole time we were there, things were happening for Sam: guttering was brought out and erected, a forgotten item was fetched from the mainland and brought back, rubbish was removed and this is one of the reasons why Sam has continued to live there so successfully right into his senior years - the goodwill of others - and I know he is grateful for that. As each group left, the children said their farewells to Sam and he to them. The photos speak for themselves.

Thank you Sam for your hospitality. Thanks Mr Lally for transporting us. Thank you Steph & John Soter, for arranging the trip and thanks to the parents who accompanied us.

We just had the best time!

Additional photos courtesy Bette Inglis & John Campbell