Ever dreamt about living so far from anywhere that nobody can bother you? That’s the situation for Kelly Green and her family – whose island is so remote it takes a week-long boat journey to get there.
What’s more once that boat arrives within close proximity of their home, the remainder of the trip has to be completed via raft. In a clip shared to TikTok, Kelly recorded footage looking out to see from her garden, showcasing the vessel and raft in action.
“So living on the remotest island means that to get here you need to travel on that ship for eight or seven days and then this raft comes to pick you up,” she explained, before making her way to the beach.
Her location? Tristan Da Cunha – one of a group of remote volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. The most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, it lies approximately 1,732 miles east of Cape Town, South Africa and 2,454 miles west of Mar del Plata in Argentina.
In a follow-up video with her two daughters, meanwhile, Kelly revealed she has to order Christmas presents six months in advance to be sure she’ll receive them in time. In addition, in a video of an approaching ship shared in July, she explained that this was the “last chance to get off the island until October”.
“Wow!” exlaimed one of Kelly’s followers as her video went viral, racking up 1.7 million views. “A video from someone on Tristan Da Cunha – I’ve always been fascinated by this place since I learnt about it as a kid! Very much here to learn more about life on this remote island.”
A second echoed: “Always facinated by TdC since I first found it in an atlas as a child, and have ‘revisited’ countless times as an adult via Google maps – just mind boggling. So glad to have found your channel!”
A third TikTok user admitted: “I wasn’t familiar with Tristan da Cunha so I looked it up on Google Maps. Wow, remote doesn’t even begin to explain.” Whilst a fourth praised the wonders of social media: “This is amazing, first I got Cecilia from Svalvard and now someone from Tristan da Cunha. Places I always wanted to go see. Glad I found your Tiktok.”
According to the island’s tourism website, Tristan was ignored by early explorers as a possible home due to its rugged mountain landscape, absence of natural harbour, lack of land for agriculture, and a harsh climate with heavy rain and high winds at all seasons. It took an extra-ordinary breed of people , ready to live at the margins of life, to settle and eventually thrive in the world’s most isolated community.”
It adds: “Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory : one of the remaining former colonies which have not yet asked for independence, and wish specifically to retain their link with the United Kingdom. For Tristan, the link dates back to 1816, when the island was garrisoned by Britain.”
As of October 2018, the island has 250 permanent inhabitants, who all carry British Overseas Territories citizenship.
