‘Away-Day’ with snakes

In the early ‘90s I undertook a year long Teacher Exchange Programme to Western Australia.

As part of the varied activity sessions for 12 challenging Yr. 10 students, I was asked to take the said group on an ‘away-day’ trip to an uninhabited island approximately one hour off the coast of Fremantle.

I was joined by an ex ‘Pommie’ PE colleague from the UK, who was visiting Australia.

We were transported from the port of Fremantle over to the Island on an ex-military boat. The journey took just over an hour. (Note the time taken!)

Upon reaching the island we disembarked and heard the parting and faint words of the boat’s skipper ….. “Don’t get between the sea lions and the waterline”

Guess were I was standing!     

As the boat moved further from the shore he then also shouted “Watch out for the snakes.  Stamp your feet as you walk “

The four hours on the Island, called Carnac, were fairly uneventful, except for when the two girls in the group rushed up to us teachers to say that the boys were throwing rocks/stones at a lot of snakes.

We went off to investigate and saw that the said boys would definitely have to be rescued — from at least a dozen angry snakes.

I subsequently learned that Carnac island was the most dangerous island

surrounding the mainland of Australia as it was inhabited by some of the most venomous snakes in the world, Tiger snakes!!

Their bite/venom will kill a human in 30 minutes, and we were 1 hour away!  Bear in mind also that this was well before mobile phones!!

Health and Safety has come along way since the ‘90s!