Moyenne Island
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Moyenne Island | |
Geography | |
---|---|
Location | Seychelles, Indian Ocean |
Coordinates | 4°37′S 55°30′E / 4.617°S 55.500°ECoordinates: 4°37′S 55°30′E / 4.617°S 55.500°E |
Archipelago | Inner Islands, Seychelles |
Adjacent bodies of water | Indian Ocean |
Total islands | 1 |
Major islands |
|
Area | 0.099 km2 (0.038 sq mi) |
Length | 0.4 km (0.25 mi) |
Width | 0.3 km (0.19 mi) |
Coastline | 1.7 km (1.06 mi) |
Highest elevation | 61 m (200 ft) |
Highest point | Mont Moyenne |
Administration | |
Group | Granitic Seychelles |
Sub-Group | Mahe Islands |
Sub-Group | Ste. Anne Islands |
Districts | Mont Fleuri |
Largest settlement | Anse Creole Travel Services (pop. 1) |
Demographics | |
Population | 1 (2014) |
Pop. density | 10.1/km2 (26.2/sq mi) |
Ethnic groups | Creole, French, East Africans, Indians. |
Additional information | |
Time zone | |
ISO code | SC-18 |
Official website | www |
Moyenne Island is a small island (9.9 ha or 24 acres) in the Ste Anne Marine National Park off the north coast of Mahé, Seychelles. Since the 1970s it has been a flora and fauna reserve. From 1915 until the 1960s, the island was abandoned until its purchase by Brendon Grimshaw, a former newspaper editor, originally from Dewsbury in Yorkshire, England.
Grimshaw was the only inhabitant of the island until his death in July 2012.[1] Currently the island is a National Park and can be visited as part of organized trips.[2][3]
History[]
Brendon Grimshaw purchased the island for £8,000 in 1962[4] and set about making the island habitable. He did this with the help of one other man, Rene Antoine Lafortune. They operated the island as a nature reserve, charging visitors €12 to come ashore, roam the island, dine at the "Jolly Roger" restaurant and relax on the beach.
Grimshaw and his friend planted sixteen thousand trees, built 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) of nature paths, and brought and bred Aldabra giant tortoises, intending to create an island of incredible beauty. Apart from a wide variety of plant and bird life, the island is home to around 120 giant tortoises.[5] The eldest, Desmond, is 76 years old, according to Grimshaw in 2012. He named the tortoise after his godson.
In 1996, Grimshaw wrote a book about himself and the island, entitled A Grain of Sand.[6] In 2009, a documentary film was produced about Grimshaw and the island, called A Grain of Sand.[7][8]
After 20 years of persistence, Grimshaw and his assistant Lafortune achieved their goal of making Moyenne Island a National Park in its own right,[9] separate to that of the Ste. Anne marine park. Now known as the Moyenne Island National Park, it harbours more species per square foot than any other part of the world.[citation needed] The island is 4.5 kilometres (2.8 mi) away from the main island of Mahe.
Grimshaw died in Victoria, Mahe, in July 2012.
In 2013, after the island has received its own national park status, a new hut was built and a warden was posted on the island, collecting the entrance fee from tourists.[10]
Administration[]
The island belongs to Mont Fleuri District.[11]
Tourism[]
Today, the island's main industry is tourism, and it is known for its beaches, especially Anse Creole Travel Services (formerly known as Anse Jolly Roger). The restaurant on the beach is a haven for tourists. Behind the restaurant is the local warden's house. The island is also visited for its wide variety of underwater creatures like fish, sharks and rays.
Cuisine[]
Fish is the main ingredient.
Image gallery[]
Map 1
District Map
Moyenne Island.
Mahe Island View.
Moyenne island
References[]
- ^ "Seychelles' Brendon Grimshaw, owner of Moyenne island, dies at age 87". Breaking Travel News.
- ^ http://wanderingcarol.com/seychelles-islands-moyenne-tortoises/ Moyenne 2016 visit
- ^ "Moyenne Island Seychelles". www.cerf-resort.com.
- ^ "An 86-year-old, real-life Robinson Crusoe". BBC News. 29 April 2012.
- ^ "How to Buy Your Own Private Island". 2012-05-16. Retrieved 2012-05-21.
- ^ "New African". IC Magazines Limited. March 30, 1998 – via Google Books.
- ^ Hua, Vivian (May 2, 2012). "A Grain Of Sand Environmental Documentary Preview & Stream".
- ^ https://www.cultureunplugged.com/documentary/watch-online/play/7218/A-Grain-of-Sand
- ^ "Moyenne island declared a national park". Retrieved 2013-10-15.
- ^ "Luxury Seychelles Travel Holidays". Creole Travel Services.
- ^ "Virtualseychelles – the Safest and Fastest Organic Instagram Growth Service" (PDF). November 15, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-11-15.
External links[]
- Media related to Moyenne at Wikimedia Commons
- Official Moyenne Island Guide
- Islands of Mont Fleuri
- Private islands of Seychelles
- National parks of Seychelles