According to records, McCarrs Creek, flowing into the south west corner of Pittwater, was first surveyed by Captain John Hunter in 1789. In his Journal in 1792, Hunter wrote :"We visiting all those parts which are navigable to shipping and having very particularly sounded and examined all the branches before, the business was finished in little more than a fortnight. There is fresh water in various parts of this harbour, with wood in abundance and fish may be caught in all the sandy bays."

About 230m above the headquarters of the Creek was the lofty eminence of the quaintly named Tumble Down Dick and , subsequently, a Trigonometrical Station was established there from which to take sights over Pittwater. The Government Surveyor William Govett had been over the area in 1829 and , referring to the summits he surveyed, wrote : " Masses of rock in some instances appear like the castellated ruins of a fortress with its dilapidated walls and shattered battlements – perpendicular in some cases and sloping in others – and receding into caves overhung by massive canopies. These caves or hollows are called by the natives 'gibbie gunyahs' or homes of rock, under which they occasionally put a night".

On Govett's survey plan dated 13/1/1830 although he listed the creek as "romantic" it is still unnamed and the earliest plan on which the name McCarr appears is that of a survey by J.Larmer which shows a track leading from the creek to Foley's farm at Mona Vale.

In the estuary of McCarrs Creek soundings revealed a depth of six fathoms or about 11m and this was always considered a good spot for red bream, but in the upper reaches among the hills the build up of silt has, over the years, changed all that. The same stretch of water was again surveyed by Captain Sidney in 1868 and the creek was marked on the map as Pitt Inlet.

Leicester Warburton

NEXT MONTH: What put the bump in Bumpo Creek?

Cartoon of the Month Disposal of Dead Boats Need some localised cards? Gwyn has a wonderful selection for you. Contact him at g.perkins@gwyn.com.au
Download a full version of this months calendar, ready for printing - click the calendar image above.

 

Flog your Boat and Motor!
I am a small time second hand dealer of boat's and motor's, going or not.  I have done business with several people on the island but can never find out who owns the seemingly large number of boats looking unloved/unwanted. I settle for cash on the day and pick up from the island myself. My name is Ray and my mobile is 0412189793.

Annual General Meeting of SIRA
NOTICE

The Annual General Meeting of the Scotland Island Residents’ Association (SIRA) will be held:
ON: Sunday 29 April 2007
AT: 10:00am
IN: The Scotland Island Community Hall,
Catherine Park, Scotland Island

All residents are invited to attend. VOTING is restricted to financial members of SIRA. Current members are eligible to vote. Membership for the financial year 2007-2008 ($20) may be paid prior to commencement of the meeting. New 2007-2008 financial members are also eligible to vote.

 

 

Order of Business:
9:30am Morning Tea and Registration
10:00am Commencement
Welcome
Previous Minutes
President’s Report
Treasurer’s Report
Election of Office Bearers
Reports (Emergency Water (Guyren Smith); Roads and Drainage (Sharon Kinnison); Waste Management (Shar Jones); Water & Sewerage (Greg Roberts); Communication (Paul Purvis); Community Vehicle (Gordon Floyd); Community Hall (Kerry Borthwick); Bush Regeneration
Other Business

OFFICE BEARERS for 2006-2007 will be elected. To be eligible for election the individual must be a financial member of SIRA. Individuals must also be present at the meeting or have given written consent for nomination prior to the meeting. Written consent may be posted or emailed to SIRA or given to a meeting attendee.

Positions are:
President, Vice Presidents (2), Secretary, Treasurer, Ordinary Committee Members (9) including the position of Rural Fire Service Representative on the committee which is filled by the nominee of the SIRFS.

NOTE that all Ordinary Committee members are required to take responsibility for the coordination and management of at least one particular area of SIRA’s activities. Relevant activities include: Emergency Water & Sewerage, Roads & Drainage, Community Vehicle, Wharves, Church Point Plan of Management, Green Waste, Community Hall, Communications, Island Vision, Insurance, Social etc.

For further information: Email SIRA at SIRAPittwater@hotmail.com, telephone the current Secretary (Kerry Borthwick) on 9999 4092 or write to SIRA at PO Box 70, Church Point, 2105
 

Interlace is Moving

Interlace, after 30 years in the same location, has moved (reluctantly) to Dee Why. We now do only costume hire and Fancy Dress, as we no longer have the room for the recycled general clothing side of the business, though I am still interested in retro or vintage clothing, from a costume hire perspective.

Our new address is: 5/20 Howard Avenue, Dee Why, above the newsagent. Our new phone number is (02) 9981 4427. Fax (02) 9984 7038.

Liz Brand

Day of Reckoning

Below is a photo taken by June Lahm of the 'Day of Reckoning' rally and march.

About 40 of our jetty owners were there, holding an impressive array of mobile placards (the most professional there) with, of course, the Banner.

Independent reports put the total participants at around 5000, representing over 50 disgruntled community associations.  Nearly 200 had travelled down from the Tamworth area, concerned about the Govt's arrogant handling on their need to get rid of woody weeds.

A small team, lead by Lesley Stevens, had worked hard to develop the slogans, the artwork, the printing and the cutting and assembling of the placards.  We now have them ready at a moment's notice to re enter the fray with the Govt. at any time.

Thanks to all who managed the time to participate. Greg

Major Infrastructure improvements on Scotland Island

Scheduled repairs to parts of the road in Elizabeth Park have now been completed. The type of construction has included a machine mixture of cement, re- constituted bitumen and existing road aggregate approximately 300mm(1 foot) thick. Water is pumped into this mixture, shaped and rolled, to give a thick, hard base and surface.

   Work was done by staff from Pittwater Council, private road building contractors, and Scotland Island RFB. Funding was from a grant through RFS and extra funds from Pittwater Council.

      After 27 years, we now have a vastly improved bush road to the top of our island, enabling safe access for the fire brigade, and residents ,who until now, have no other access to their properties.

      We all need to look after this asset. Users, please drive on these new surfaces sedately, as it will take about a month for them to completely cure. We don't dry our skins with sandpaper, so please take care now, and we will not have to spend extra and unnecessary money repairing them.

     A huge thanks to Colin Mathieson at Pittwater Council for overseeing this project and the workers who worked so hard to get this done with basically no disruptions to island traffic. This project had some peculiar problems to overcome, one of which was getting the profile machine not only up the "hairpin", but managing to actually profile the offending corner. I witnessed some extremely skilful machine operations.

     Council is proceeding with public land clearing Thompson St walking track( west side) and piling it ready for SIRFB to burn. This is part of the Bushfire Management Plan in action. A big thanks to Mark Baharel and Chris and his people for their hard work in these areas. This is an on-going project, and will help to make our island a safer place in these times of global warming.

Thanks from all of us. Graeme Richmond. Captain. Scotland Island RFB.

Pittwater Council gets Women in the Swim

To celebrate International Women’s Day 2007 Pittwater Council will co-ordinate a FREE learn-to-surf program to encourage women to “get into the waves”.

A FREE one-hour lesson with professional instructors from Palm Beach Surf School will be given to women at Newport Beach on Sunday 11 March 2007, between 8.30am and 11.30 am (three timeslots available – 8.30am, 9.30am and 10.30am).

“This is the third year that Pittwater Council has hosted this event to celebrate International Women’s Day,” said Sue Turner, Community Development Officer with Pittwater Council. “At last year’s event, approximately 60 women between the ages of 16 and 60 had their first attempt at the wonderful sport of surfing. It was a really fun day and many men were there supporting their partners by minding the babies, taking photos, or offering encouraging words.”

“We hope that many Pittwater women will take this opportunity to learn how to surf for free,” said Sue.

Bookings are essential with Sue Turner on 9970 1171 or email women@pittwater.nsw.gov.au This event is sponsored by the Office for Women at the NSW Premier’s Department and Pittwater Council.

Earth Hour 

At 7.30pm on 31 March 2007, individuals and businesses throughout Sydney will be turning off their lights for one hour.  Earth Hour is the launch of a 12-month campaign to reduce Sydney's greenhouse gas emissions by 5% - which is the equivalent of taking 75000 medium sized cars off the road for one whole year!

Sign up to turn off your lights at www.earthhour.org.  The earlier you sign up the more impact your registration will have on business, governments and the rest of the citizens of this great city.

The Fireman's Ball

The Scotland Island Rural Fire Brigade is delighted to present the Fireman's Ball with music from the fabulous Lionel Robinson & The Dukes of Lounge, fine cuisine from Elvina Bay's own Lisa Atkins and a licensed bar all within the magical Fire Station Ballroom.

Date: Saturday, 28 April 2007
Time: 7pm
Venue: Scotland Island Rural Fire Brigade
Dress: Black Tie
Tickets: $65 each available from www.pittwatertradingonline.com.au or PMC Hill Real Estate, Church Point

Cloak room available. No BYO, licensed bar operating.

Get your tickets now for the classiest Island event of the year!

SIRFB AGM

Members and friends are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Scotland Island Rural Fire Brigade to be held on Sunday, 4 March 2007, commencing at 2pm at the Station. New members are always welcome.