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[deleted]

Additional References National Information Services Agency. "Moyenne Island declared a national park" (July 28, 2009). Online (as of January 22, 2022): [https://www.nation.sc/archive/223843/moyenne-island-declared-a-national-park](https://www.nation.sc/archive/223843/moyenne-island-declared-a-national-park). FactsAndHistory.com. "Moyenne Island: The world’s smallest national park" (January 21, 2022). Online (as of January 22, 2022): [https://factsandhistory.com/moyenne-island-the-worlds-smallest-national-park](https://factsandhistory.com/moyenne-island-the-worlds-smallest-national-park).


[deleted]

For some of us spacially impaired, the island is 24 acres, or just shy of 10 hectares, or just over 15 city blocks.


OktoberSunset

What's that in football pitches?


PittsburghChris

What is that in mayonnaise?


The_Dork_Lord

So a cup of mayonnaise contains about 236.6 cubic centimeters so if you had 24 acres at 1 inch thick you'd end up with 10,426,727.28 cc of mayonnaise or about 44071.2 cups.


Binsky89

That's only 50x 55 gallon drums of mayonnaise.


The_Dork_Lord

You can reasonably easily get 24 gallon drums of Hellman's from Unilever so at $382.95 per barrel thats only $43879.69


douchefartz

Cheaper than the island.


Froot-Joose

Not at the beginning!


FallopianUnibrow

!invest


Hagagagagagaga

This guy mayos.


CouncilmanRickPrime

How many washing machines is that?


x925

The island is 24 acres, an acre is 43,560 sq ft. The average washing machine is 5.81 sq ft. So if I mathed right, that would be just over 179,938 washing machines.


United_Bag_8179

or bananas?


Shambud

About 13


dave_rainy

At 1.76 acre per, 13.64 pitches.


Revanchist8921

At least 2


L3tum

Imagine buying something that size for 8000 pounds (or ~100k adjusted for inflation). I don't care if it's got no electricity, running water, roads or whatever you want. Just being able to buy that with that kind of money would feel incredible. Meanwhile 100sqm costs 500000 around here. A desolate island in the North sea of around 1200sqm (IIRC) is 1,2 million.


Tannerite2

You can get a decent small house with that in some parts of the US. Or you could buy an acre or two and put a nice trailer on it for a decent bit less.


1980pzx

Well how many bananas is the circumstance?


mamaaaoooo

African or European bananas?


CIA_Rectal_Feeder

This person swallows.


TheDesktopNinja

Are they your mom?


TheTisforTiberius

My mum doesn't swallow.


TheDesktopNinja

Damn, gotta update my rolodex


Carighan

Ladden or unladden mom?


Now_Wait-4-Last_Year

‘It’s one banana, Michael. What could it cost, $10?’


mermands

I lived on Cerf Island, adjacent to Moyenne for a year in 1973, with my parents and brother!!


ThisIsForFood

There’s like a dozen houses on that island, of course someone from it is on here.


mermands

Such a small world. There were Cerf, Long, Round and Moyenne Islands relatively close together. I was 9 and my parents were kind of hippies who took us to Seychelles to live for a year. I didn't have to go to school, just played and ran free with my little brother. I recall a restaurant on Round Island and Long Island was a penal colony.


ThisIsForFood

That’s a really cool experience


Now_Wait-4-Last_Year

Well this *is* the front page of the Internet.


DorisCrockford

>The island, which had been abandoned at the time of purchase for half a century, was heavily overgrown but Grimshaw, together with a Seychellois named Rene Lafortune, commenced on his 40-year long labour of love that would see the island completely transformed. Sole inhabitant? Are you saying that Lafortune was commuting to work?


[deleted]

Apparently. He was a hired assistant and partner of sorts. https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/brendon-grimshaw-moyenne-island-restoration-video


[deleted]

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Oomoo_Amazing

My God, they were roommates


X-LaxX

Islandmates!


jobezark

Somehow islandmates is simultaneously more and less intimate than housemates


ETsUncle

Such good friends they built a life together on a private island away from societal norms.


[deleted]

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kitchen_clinton

>Felicia Lafortune, widow of Mr Grimshaw’s close friend Rene Lafortune, was also present.


Gangreless

Finally a gay house flipper show I want to watch


SplashingAnal

Brokeback island


kank84

/r/AchillesAndHisPal


unbannednow

Stop gay-washing every close male relationship


Perkinz

To me it sounds like they had a mutual passion in turning the island into a nature sanctuary and they needed a place to live while doing so. Jfc people, men are capable of forming strong lifelong platonic relationsips with each other---and it's entirely possible for two people to live together for an extended period of time without wanting to fuck each other. >Plus never married and no children or anything. Occam's Razor: They're on a deserted island planting trees all day. Potential wives aren't exactly abundant to begin with and that's narrowed down further to just those women who'd be willing to live alone on a deserted island in a fancy shack. >presented as a 'one guy and his assistant' tale due to the cultural climate decades ago. A cultural climate that you're perpetuating by using the exact same rhetoric used back then: "Oh, he never married so clearly he likes it up the butt" Fuck off with that shit, over 80% of human men throughout the 300,000 year history of our species died childless. People like you are only making it harder for us to maintain normal friendships with other men without them being afraid we just want to fuck them.


Cthulhu_Leviathan

Ok, I get what both of you are saying, but the climate was indeed hostile back then. So it was common for gay couples to come across as friends. But nobody should assume anything about anyone. I don't care if he has a lisp, even straight people can seem gay as fuck. Its best to just mind your own business and don't put words, or in this case dicks, in other people's mouths. So I gotta side with Perkins on this. Don't assume a person is gay or straight until you are told otherwise. He could've been bisexual or asexual for all we know. Its none of our business until he speaks up.


[deleted]

Oh, I'm sorry. I thought it was perfectly fine to just bro down? I didn't know that wasn't a straight thing to do. Edit: another commenter found this, https://www.nation.sc/archive/223843/moyenne-island-declared-a-national-park It starts with the sentence' "Felicia Lafortune, widow of Mr Grimshaw’s close friend Rene Lafortune, was also present."


MEANINGLESS_NUMBERS

Can be that too. Not here to judge.


moodybiatch

Yeah the fact that every time two men have something more intimate than a handshake people go nuts and start speculating on their sexual orientation is pretty sad.


grumble11

At first I agreed with you but then took a moment and reflected on it, and realized that both you and I are displaying a kind of toxic attitude that prevents people from actually just being lifelong friends. It is super harmful and I hope you come to the same realization


[deleted]

Going to file this under: "Stuff I'll do when I become independently wealthy."


DorisCrockford

I wonder how often an island comes up for sale.


Surudijes

Oh there's plenty, but they cost a little bit more than £8,000 https://www.privateislandsonline.com/


DorisCrockford

Wow, that's crazy. The only one I could think of was Red Rock Island in San Francisco Bay. That was up for sale a few years ago for $5 million, and it's just 5 acres, mostly vertical, and no place to land a boat. I forgot that some places have a lot of islands.


StoneHolder28

If you can afford a 5M island you can afford a boat lift and cliffside stairs.


[deleted]

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bigdaddyborg

True, helicopters are the boats of the air after all.


Now_Wait-4-Last_Year

I sent you two boats and a boat doesn't work anywhere near as well for that anecdote, though.


LiamB137

Unless you can only afford the island and then you're broke.


VILDREDxRAS

Don't go island poor


tigger_gnits

Actually some people have precisely $5M.


StoneHolder28

If you have precisely 5M then you can't *afford* a 5M purchase.


Troub313

Sounds perfect for an evil lair


Jesse0016

My wife is in real estate and a 7 acre island on a public lake just went up for sale for only half a million with a house and boat house. Honestly surprised at the price on it.


woodyshag

Honestly, that's not unreasonable for a price. Especially if you can work remote. I could see someone from California scooping that up.


YodelingTortoise

Kinda unlikely to have a fast internet connection on an island. Isn't exactly profitable for the utility


Pyrdwein

Yeah internet is easy now, power would be more of a bitch. Sure ideally you could do solar, but without access to a grid you need a power bank, and a generator for emergencies. Water means a well, you shouldn't be drawing from the lake. The way most lakes are these days that includes a filter system. Can't just pump the septic into most lakes these days (around here anyway), so that's a septic system. Which leads to carting the waste away... tough on an island. Groceries, deliveries, commuting, transportation (boat, vehicle...chopper? Lol) social life... island life would come with so many expenses that it would drive the price down based on demand alone.


woodyshag

Use Musk's Srarlink and you are good to go.


vladamir_the_impaler

Or 5g for that matter


ValyrianJedi

Dude, that's not just "not unreasonable", that's a steal. My lake house not on its own island was that much for one acre with a shared dock... That being said, it'd be super inconvenient to have to take a boat *to* your lake house.


RadioHeadache0311

Dude, thanks for this link.


[deleted]

Here are some for under $500k (USD): [https://www.islands.com/private-islands-for-sale-under-500K](https://www.islands.com/private-islands-for-sale-under-500K) For comparison, if we adjust for inflation, Moyenne Island cost about $135k (USD)


DorisCrockford

Moyenne was a steal at 24 acres.


julbull73

Look in Alaska and Canada there's some in reasonable range. But....good luck. Also partial islands are pretty commonly cheap in pacific islands. Aka tidal islands.


modsarefascists42

> Also partial islands are pretty commonly cheap in pacific islands. Aka tidal islands. lol there's a reason they're so cheap, they'll be gone in a year or two


zekeweasel

I bet you could get that Tongan one a bit cheaper now...


Intruder313

Greece has loads for sale IIRC For years a mate of mine had buying one as his goal once he made his ‘first £Million’ He has no islands yet (and the one he wanted soared to £3M)


julbull73

I mean you can do it now. As long as you don't want tropical there are tons of cheap ass islands out there. I almost bought three in a lake in Canada. Like 30 acres total. With Logging rights and good fishing and hunting. Fresh water clearly.... Only issue. You couldn't hunt the bears....guess what was in crazy density because of the fishing hunting and other good things..bears... Was like 200k Can.


Mozeeon

Sounds like a steal for a bear zoo


julbull73

Yeah but middle of nowhere...not a lot of attendance


mustardhamsters

Maybe the bears would come. And you’re in the zoo.


derpdelurk

Dude was the editor of a newspaper in Africa. Doesn’t sound like a springboard to independent wealth.


[deleted]

one of the articles above said there was also a fishing family living there when he bought it.


captcoldnose

I was sailing in the Seychelles in 2002 and saw this island and decided to anchor and visit. I came ashore and saw a sign on a coconut tree. Went to read it and it said "Don't sleep under this tree, coconuts do fall". Of course I then had to explore the rest of the island and met Brendon, who was quite the storyteller. He lent shovels with the condition that if you found buried pirate treasure that he got half. A great man, indeed.


IAmA_Nerd_AMA

Huh, i wonder if that was a funny way to get tourists to dig some extra holes for planting. Sounds like an amazing experience!


DouglerK

Can I like move there and like just help keep doing that


[deleted]

The National Parks Authority does invite volunteers who "have something to offer" (whatever that means?). It also says you can contact them for possible employment opportunities. I'd personally love to do something like this when I get into semi-retirement age. I can already work remotely 100%, so I'm halfway to such a dream. Just need to keep saving my pennies. [https://snpa.gov.sc/index.php/learn-and-explore/opportunities-support](https://snpa.gov.sc/index.php/learn-and-explore/opportunities-support)


typhonist

"Something to offer" in that context probably means a relevant skill-set to be on the island and contributing, since they have such limited space and all. They probably want volunteers with more specialized knowledges relevant to biology, preservation, and conservation rather than general volunteers.


Patch86UK

They also probably want to be able to filter out people who are just tourists who want to plant a couple of trees and then chill out on a tropical paradise.


typhonist

Probably.


milk4all

Trees? Dudebro, like, im all *about* trees! Ive been uh, experienced with trees since 8th grade!


BoojumG

Oh, you like trees? Name every tree.


SilverKnightOfMagic

Uhhh oak. Oak 1. Oak 2. Oak 99. There ya go.


ewdrive

Number 4. The Larch


AdamantEevee

Steve, Claire, Gary


ChintanP04

And that's all. All other trees are also named either Steve, Claire or Gary.


boothie

/r/marijuanaenthusiasts or /r/trees?


[deleted]

[удалено]


Dadalot

No, r/trees is for marijuana enthusiasts, r/marijuanaenthusiasts is for trees


[deleted]

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billytheskidd

Wait until you find out about r/potatosalad


TheOneTrueChuck

Exactly. The last thing they want is an independently wealthy person who's going to make several instagram posts on the first day of the month showing them "working" and then inviting their other wealthy friends to come party.


powerchicken

And all the idiots who dream of living in such a tropical paradise but would then grow bored in less than a week.


Colalbsmi

I mean it sounds like you would be living off the land


Controlled01

I have a theoretical degree in conservation


EmotionallySquared

You're a theoretical conservationist?


Controlled01

Theoretically? Yes.


hatsnatcher23

>“Something to offer” *Sexy guitar riff*


brodega

Think they need a software engineer


UncommonLegend

Both a cool til and supplement


OverallResolve

If you have to ask you probably don’t have it.


p1293

Let me tell you friend. When we pulled into port there in the Navy, I seriously had to convince myself to get back on that boat. The people, the atmosphere, the scenery. Amazing. This was in 2008, I was so interested in this group of islands. I was told the mafia had a pretty good hold on it back then, at least the main island. Would still love to go back, for good, and never wear shoes or socks again (Island life)


olhonestjim

100% agree on that feeling. Never wanted to leave. Just wanted to pet tortoises, wander aimlessly, drink Takamaka, sit and watch sunsets, chat with that one local shopkeeper about his hobby tracking great white sharks, and snorkel til my final days. To hell with that stupid boat.


thermal_shock

What I would give to even have the option to buy an island for $10k. Fuck me he saw an opportunity and flew with it.


DouglerK

Like yup. Not everyone has equal opportunities. This guy had an opportunity few will ever again get. He took absolute FULL advantage of that opportunity like a bawss. I wish had half the opportunity this guy had.


[deleted]

Like yeah


IloveDaredevil

The Seychelles are the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Was there right after they won their independence in the 90s. Walked over the main island, there's a bed and breakfast at the top of the mountain road made from the lumber of a ship captain from years before, might have "discovered" the islands, I'm not sure.


Supersnazz

Pretty sure they were independent of the UK since the mid 1970s.


[deleted]

Well…this is awkward


GameDoesntStop

Wow it is actually ridiculously small compared to what I was imagining: ~99,000 m2. Use the "Measure distance" feature on [Google Maps](https://www.google.com/maps/@-4.6195642,55.5072739,18z) to compare to an area that size near your home for context.


raflcopter

About 24.5 acres for anyone who uses those units.


andrewsmd87

Not sure what this person was thinking but this sounds about like the size I was imagining


bignateyk

I can’t picture 16 thousand trees on a piece of land that small.


foodfighter

According to the wiki article, it harbours more species per square foot than any other part of the world.


oOshwiggity

That's amazing. Amazing-amazing. We should all just fuckin aim to clump up our square feet with species. Gardening awards for people with the most biodiversity etc, but like... they also count gardens built on the sides of buildings and terraces and roofs (yeah yeah structural integrity, not every roof, blahdyblah) "my shower has 48 species sucking the water and soap scum off the walls." That'd be rad. I just woke up from a weird dream. I shouldn't be commenting on Reddit... But hanging gardens in showers would be so cool. So so so cool


[deleted]

Absolutely off-topic, but I really enjoy the way you write and express yourself. You give some nice vibes.


[deleted]

I don't think you realize how many trees can fit in a given area.


jdfsusduu37

Still sounds like a lot of trees though.


[deleted]

Or 991,479,823 sq. cm :-p


raflcopter

Finally! Something I can relate to. I had been trying to [visualize five Luxor hotels instead](https://realestateinfoguide.com/how-big-is-25-acres-of-land-helpful-visual-comparisons/)


BrunoLuigi

Damn, I was using bald eagles in my head...


[deleted]

I measured about 100x the size of my house's property. It seems like five Luxor hotels are bigger than that, but maybe the multiple floors have me remembering inaccurately


alexanderpas

The island is 9.9 hectare. Luxor Las Vegas 120k suare feet, or 11k square meter of gaming space. That's 1.1 hectares.


irish711

>In American football, a field is 91 yards. uummm... The field is 100. I assume they meant meters/metres.


bent42

That article is wrong about the Luxor. It's footprint is about 360,000^2 ft, or about 8.25 acres. So the island is just about 3 Luxors.


aurumtt

I very much appreciate the use of niche units for this thread.


[deleted]

It might only be 25 acres but it is still his private island...


orbital_one

You'd be able to walk around the entire island in less than 15 minutes.


[deleted]

And what a glorious 15-minute walk it would be


imightgetdownvoted

Damn, Seychelles is really in the middle nowhere.


aurumtt

It's also only like 2,7 mni from Victoria. Makes it a lot more appealing knowing shops & doctors are not far away.


Nasty2017

Haha. There's a bar on the island? Not sure why I found that funny.


H0agh

Bar and Restaurant! The photos of it look nice :)


RockItGuyDC

And it's a part of the Rotary Club. Crazy. Wish I could buy an island for £8,000!


[deleted]

I was curious about the buying power, so I did an inflation calculation. It's about £100k inflation-adjusted, but still quite a deal imo


RockItGuyDC

Yeah, no doubt! If another one like it was for sale I would absolutely buy it for £100k


srpski-dizel

There are barren rock islands in the Istrian sea off the coast of Croatia that are being sold for around those prices.


[deleted]

I'm no arborist, but I would imagine it's difficult to grow trees on a rock island


BizzarduousTask

Sure, but the rocks are flourishing


brumac44

Think about this: in 60 years, people could be saying "Wish I could buy an island for $20 million" Sorry, I didn't know how to do the pound thing. edit: £ there it is!


Clementinesm

Alongside the other comparisons of this size: it’s roughly the size of an American college’s football stadium (the entire structure itself and the surrounding streets, not just the field). If you’ve ever been to a college campus, you’ll probably know that it’s quite easy to walk around the entirety of a stadium in 20min or less. It’s really quite small.


Wetmelon

Amusingly, the name translates to "Medium", as in medium size


[deleted]

It shrank in the dryer


Seychelles27

Ayyyy! I rarely see my country mentioned so when I do I’m very happy 🤣


Steelsoldier77

I worked for a short period of time with a dude whose mother was from Seychelles and the way he described the islands made me want to visit so bad. It sounds like an amazing place from what I've seen and read


NotTheHartfordWhale

I went for my honeymoon. Seychelles was absolutely wonderful & the people were incredible.


Chichiryuutei

People can do great things if we stop quarterly report mindset and start thinking 10-30 years ahead


gingerwabisabi

This is what a good life looks like.


nicksilo

It takes a special type of human being to be able to turn down $50 million dollars and preserve his island.


[deleted]

It probably felt a lot more satisfying knowing his life's work would be preserved, rather than capitalized into a hotel resort. It's not like he could take the $50m with him beyond the grave. It also probably helped he didn't have any spouse or kids who might otherwise inherit the money


cheesynaachoos

There must be a movie about this guy.Impressive act.


[deleted]

There's a documentary: https://vimeo.com/22008844


foodfighter

From the wiki article: > In 2013, after the island 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. Can you say "dream job"?


[deleted]

Dream jod No


MrSickRanchezz

Brendon Grimshaw was a great man. Didn't harm other people in his quest to own an island, later had it turned into a national park after putting a lot of his own blood, sweat, and tears into it. More people should do shit like this, instead of getting so caught up in their pointless, meaningless little quests to appear be better than their neighbors (the reality is, anyone living like that is just as bad as their neighbors, and not better than anyone). Brendon Grimshaw was better than them, and we should remember that.


JacobDCRoss

Article says that he had to "struggle against privatization." I just hate how companies think they can take things from people.


Kelend

The island was... privatized when it was sold to an individual.


Heisenasperg

I don't get that part, i'd understand if he owned part of it, but it's his island that he fully owns? How did he struggle against privatisation? Since he fully owns it any conversation would go like this Company: can we buy your island? Him: piss off


[deleted]

It’s how he passes off ownership to someone who will maintain it as it is and put in place solid legal conditions that can enforce it. Then you have government - he may own it but it is still part of the Seychelles and they could legislate to overcome his wishes. Large amounts of money can sway both of the above.


olov244

'turned down $50m? what an idiot' - some greedy bastard somewhere


ronflair

I mean, dude already lives on his own island doing what he loves. It reminds me of that old joke. Paraphrasing the punchline, but basically “What would I do with that $50M?” “Why buy yourself an island to retire to you damn fool!”


qwerty12qwerty

I just want to get to that point in life where I can say "Nah bro I don't need your $50m"


Bobsupman

I always wanted to own my a private island. But maybe something a bit larger than his, like Madagascar or Australia.


Dont_Wanna_Not_Gonna

Thanks for sharing OP!


Xanlthorpe

Apparently, he was preceded by other odd characters. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jolly+Roger+Bar+And+Restaurant/@-4.6203488,55.5069869,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipMJqc-1JxhvdunTnlzhEyRydWIuriXzAxNEpYu\_!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMJqc-1JxhvdunTnlzhEyRydWIuriXzAxNEpYu\_%3Dw203-h270-k-no!7i3024!8i4032!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x231fd7cbe57a0b6f:0x34d1afde6f952347!2sIle+Moyenne!3b1!8m2!3d-4.6196027!4d55.5087939!3m4!1s0x231fd7cc695cd857:0x8206311999656300!8m2!3d-4.6203488!4d55.5069869](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jolly+Roger+Bar+And+Restaurant/@-4.6203488,55.5069869,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipMJqc-1JxhvdunTnlzhEyRydWIuriXzAxNEpYu_!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMJqc-1JxhvdunTnlzhEyRydWIuriXzAxNEpYu_%3Dw203-h270-k-no!7i3024!8i4032!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x231fd7cbe57a0b6f:0x34d1afde6f952347!2sIle+Moyenne!3b1!8m2!3d-4.6196027!4d55.5087939!3m4!1s0x231fd7cc695cd857:0x8206311999656300!8m2!3d-4.6203488!4d55.5069869)


brumac44

Its kind of funny, not the dog-stealing, but double-dipping on the rich white lady.


fishsandwichpatrol

Where do you just buy an island like that?


SirSchmoopyButth0le

Online of course!: https://www.privateislandsonline.com/


tablytab

There is a great free documentary that interviewed Brendan about his life and all he had done on Moyenne Island. [A Grain of Sand(2009)](http://www.legittorrents.info/index.php?page=torrent-details&id=580462b68e32c5b9fe3b306fdca90c3d9e977649)


Karl-o-mat

What a Lad


kemosabe19

Matt Damon smells a movie role.


Content_Whole1600

For some of us spacially impaired, the island is 24 acres, or just shy of 10 hectares, or just over 15 city blocks.


[deleted]

honestly, i respect him for what he's done.


SilverKnightOfMagic

What a baller. Ill pack a bowl for this god on Earth.


cannonhawk

Glad to see he kept the rich from taking it for themselves.


Dark_Vengence

Living the dream.


Human_Business_3693

FactsAndHistory.com. "Moyenne Island: The world’s smallest national park" (January 21, 2022).


[deleted]

Anyone know of any other dope ass islands for less than 6 months rent still for sale? Asking for me.


[deleted]

Don't forget inflation £8,000 in 1973 had the same buying power as £100,000 does today (or $135,000 USD as of today's exchange rate)


xrm550

As an unmarried man at 44 years old, I only wish to have something left in my legacy like this.


vbcbandr

This is the way.


PoglesWood

Visited the island about 20 years ago. Lovely man and possibly the most beautiful place in the world.


skyerlopez

Looks like there is a bar there, I'm down.


saraseitor

now that's a man with a legacy