The Count

I spent hours playing Microsoft Dangerous Creatures as a young boy, completely fascinated by the natural world. Now, standing among hundreds of seals & thousands of penguin’s emotions of my childhood came flooding back. How did I, a Boilermaker who works in outback South Australia, end up on a World Heritage Nature Reserve counting seals with a Wildlife Ranger?!

This journey began when our wintering ranger, Dr. Melanie Wells, asked if I’d be interested in participating in the South East Coast Seal Census. I felt honoured to be asked and jumped at the opportunity. The day before the count, we battled through tough conditions, a strong headwind made the walk from Station to Waterfall Bay Hut longer than I’d ever managed before.

The day of the count started overcast, but by the time we passed through the largest King Penguin Colony in Australian territory at Lusitania Bay, the skies cleared to fine conditions. Highlights from the trip included witnessing the return of Rockhopper Penguins to Macquarie Island, visiting Hurd Point Proper where we watched Fur Seals basking on Colobanthus, observing a female elephant seal cow giving birth, and spotting newborn Gentoo penguin chicks.

Towards the end, when the day was almost over, we had reached the Hurd Point SE Bay Herum and took a high vantage point overlooking the female cows. Somehow despite the odds, we both managed to count the same amount, 238. It was in this moment I felt as though I had lived up to what was required when supporting such important science.

This extraordinary experience captured the essence of the island's wildlife. Each moment felt like a privilege, and it was! For that I’d like to take a moment to thank those of you who made it all possible, Bec, Ducky, Amy & of course Dr. Melanie Wells.

Tommy Denton, Boilermaker Welder 77th, Macquarie Island

The Unboxing!

As an expeditioner it seemed like everyone had something they were saving for whether it was a dream holiday, a new car, or even a house deposit. Pat our station plumber had been looking forward to a special delivery, and after a successful cargo transfer from the French Icebreaker L’Astrolabe, it finally arrived. Amid the buzz of the day, there was a moment of shared excitement knowing his special package had finally made it.

The unboxing brought a crowd! Peeling back the packaging revealed a sleek, matte black box. Inside, nestled in soft fabric, was the watch, a stunning Tag Heuer Carrera with a finely detailed black dial and open heart to see the inner workings. The weight of it in hand felt just right, and the Swiss craftsmanship was immediately apparent, making it clear this was more than just a watch, this was a timepiece.

It was a token of all the things Pat had endured so far on this island - Hikes through gale force winds, watching fresh food run out and of course the dreaded fire alarm testing. Each tick of the gears wasn’t just measuring the hours, it was marking the moments he had survived, the moments that had shaped him. In that sense, the watch wasn’t just a timepiece. It was a trophy of resilience. A symbol of everything he had fought through to survive on this speck of an island and a silent reminder that, in the end, time wasn’t about what you measured—it was about what you made of it.

Until next time, Tommy Denton, Boilermaker Welder 77th, Macquarie Island

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