Nearby is the only settlement, Adamstown, with roads extending from it that go nowhere except to the top of a 600-foot ridge. Other identified features include Young s Rock, Point Christian, Tuhoutumah, the Rope, St. Paul s Point and rocky ground with sandy patches. The north shore is definitely for me with sandy patches that I imagine might create sandy beaches, which must inspire the creation of a beach bar or two. Maybe there s also a place to rent some scuba gear for a dive on the Bounty site. The island, two square miles in size and 5,000 miles east of Australia, rises sharply from the sea to an elevation of 800 feet.
Residents raise bananas, citrus fruits, coconuts, pumpkins, taro, watermelons and yams.
The big export items are carvings and postage stamps sought by collectors. The island, discovered by Europeans in 1767 and named Pitcairn, was rediscovered and settled by nine Bounty mutineers in 1790. Disputes over the women led to fighting, and when the hideout was uncovered in 1808, all mutineers were dead except John Adams, who had a rock named after him. There s no rhyme or reason for the charts Bishop pulls and ships around the world in cardboard mailing tubes. World cruisers in Panama, for example, might have a change of plans and ask us to send them specific charts for new upcoming destinations, he says.