You have probably read the story of Robinson Crusoe, who was forced to spend 28 years on a desert island after a shipwreck. This adventure novel by the English writer Daniel Defoe was published in the distant 1719. However, it turns out that in modern times too there are people out there who choose to live an isolated life.
A WOMAN who has lived alone on a remote island for 40 years insists she never gets lonely – as long as she’s got her binoculars to hand to admire its stunning wildlife.
Zoe Lucas, 67, lives in a wooden-clad house on Sable Island off the coast of Canada, which is covered in fog for around 127 days of the year.
She first fell in love with Sable Island when visiting as a 21-year-old student in 1971 and soon made it her home.
Zoe said: “I squawked and squawked, I wanted to come so bad. I originally came out here for the horses.”
Now a citizen scientist, the 67-year-old rarely returns to her hometown of Halifax in Nova Scotia – and instead depends on supplies being flown in on a weekly basis.
There is no way to reach the island, other than by boat or charter plane. During her four decades living on the island, a refrigerator, crateful of fresh peppers from a shipping container, popped balloon carcasses and even a fake LEG has washed up on the beach.
Zoe spends her days studying ecology and collecting horses’ skulls so that scientists can discover how the animals have been able to adapt to the island’s stark landscape.
The sandy shores on Sable Island have been home to more than 300 shipwrecks over the years. Sable Island was made a National Park Reserve on June 20, 2013.
It’s amazing how an ordinary woman can live on a remote island for so many years and never miss civilization. What do you think about this? Share your thoughts in the comments!
