Sunday Markets on Lord Howe Island

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Posted on 16th November 2011 by capella in Community | Lord Howe Experiences

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The second Sunday of every month is Market Day on Lord Howe Island.

The local area school turns into a bustling market with many varied stalls. Many of the locals get together to sell produce, secondhand clothing, art works and just to catch up on the local gossip! The kids line up for face painting with Charlotte, the local nursery sells fruit and vegetable seedlings and even the Board Administrator mans the coffee machine! Glenys’s cup cakes sell out 10 minutes after the market opens.

We have some talented artists and photographers on the Island. Our own spa therapist Sarah sells her beautiful hand drawn cards inspired by local vistas and wildlife along with Isak who specializes in surf photography.

It’s great to see that now this space is also being used to educate the community and visitors alike. The Island Board have a display on protecting the environment and Ian Hutton, the Museum Curator and island naturalist, has a display of the effects of plastic bags on the island’s seabirds. Ian and the Board are encouraging all operators to use bio-degradable plastic bags and take away containers. They are even supplying these free to operators for 3 months. Many Lodges are now encouraging re-usable water bottles for all their guests.

Of course, here at Capella, we initiated the use of re-usable bottles many months ago as it is important to us to have as minimal impact as possible on the environment of Lord Howe.

Green Sea Turtle Rescue on Lord Howe

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Posted on 17th May 2011 by capella in Community | News

A green sea turtle tangled in fishing line has been successfully rescued in the Lord Howe Island Marine Park waters off Old Settlement Beach. A visitor staying at Milky Way Resort reported that he had spotted the injured turtle at Sylphs Hole reef.

Marine Park staff was assisted by Lord Howe Island Board staff in a search and rescue for the injured turtle. The team snorkelled out to where the turtle was located, managed to capture the turtle and load it onto the ‘Adventure One’ glass bottom boat.

A fishing hook was deeply embedded in the turtle’s right shoulder and the fishing line had wrapped around one of the flippers and was caught inside the turtle’s mouth. The hook and fishing line were successfully removed and the female green turtle, weighing over 80kg, was taken to the beach and quickly examined for any further injuries before being returned to the water.

The green turtle, estimated to be over 40 years of age swam away swiftly and showed signs of a rapid recovery.
Green turtles are classified as vulnerable under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
Marine Park staff would like to thank the local community who all assisted with reporting, locating and rescuing the entangled turtle. A good result all round. Locals and visitors are reminded to not feed the turtles within the marine park.