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Sandy Point is the easternmost extremity of the island ofTristan da Cunha in theSouth Atlantic Ocean. It is a distance of about 7 miles (12 km) by sea from the island's only settlement,Edinburgh of the Seven Seas. There is abeach ofblack volcanic sand fringed by lowcliffs and a slopingplateau leading up to Tristan'smountainous interior. Itsclimate is warmer and drier than that of the Settlement, being in thelee of the island'sprevailing winds.
A farm was established in the 1950s, and although attempts to grow vegetables were abandoned, thepine plantation and fruit trees ofapple,pear,plum andpeach make the area unique. The grassy slopes above the cliffs are grazed bysheep and aherd of about 15beef cattle.[1]
There is a colony ofNorthern rockhopper penguins (known on the island aspinnamins) at the east end of Sandy Point. The penguins come onshore to breed between August and December, and again formoulting between January and March. Harvesting penguin eggs is a tradition on Tristan da Cunha, but the northern rockhopper is now listed as anendangered species and eggs are no longer collected on the main island.[2][3]
In 1882 theAmericanschoonerHenry B. Paul was wrecked on the beach at Sandy Point, andblack rats came ashore. Within three years they had spread to the entire island, devastating the native birdlife as well as islanders' crops.[4]
In 1956 a number ofGough moorhens were reportedly released at Sandy Point, and have subsequently colonised the island. These "island cocks" are closely related to the extinctTristan moorhen, and are believed by the Tristanians to eat the eggs of theAtlantic yellow-nosed albatross.[5]
In June 2006 islanders were fishing offshore at Sandy Point when they spotted anoil platform washed ashore on the coast. The 6000-tonne platformPXXI had been lost in bad weather en route fromBrazil toSingapore.[6]
The Sandy Pointplantation consists mainly ofintroducedMonterey pines, aspecies of tree native to coastalCalifornia which is known for its versatile, fast-growing, medium-densitysoftwood. TheindigenousIsland Cape Myrtle is also present, along withpussy willow,grey poplar and variousEucalyptus species. The impact ofinvasive trees on Tristan'secology is potentially large, with the Monterey pine being notably successful in extending itsrange. There have been efforts to eradicate invasiveloganberry from Sandy Point, where it formed a denseundergrowth in the plantation, making the area unsuitable for nesting albatrosses andAtlantic petrels.
The islanders do not make extensive use of the plantation, preferring to import wood more cheaply fromSouth Africa. However, in the 1980s the Sandy Point Hut was rebuilt by the Agriculture Department, allowing forestry workers to be based there.[7]
The Tristanians traditionally held an annual"Happling Day" outing to collect fruit from theorchard.[8] A sourcider known asOld Tom was made from the apples grown at Sandy Point.[9] In more recent years, the once-productive orchard had been in decline, being overrun by loganberry and with many ageing trees dead or dying. In 2007 the Tristan Conservation Department restocked the area with 52 new apple trees of theRoyal Gala andGolden Delicious varieties. Pear and peach trees were also imported fromCape Town as part of the restoration of the Sandy Point area.[10]
37°06′57.6″S12°13′01.2″W / 37.116000°S 12.217000°W /-37.116000; -12.217000