The International Day for Monuments and Sites known as World Heritage Day is an international observance held on 18 April each year.
Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been declared in 1995 World Heritage Site no 740
“The site, located in the south Atlantic, is one of the least-disrupted island and marine ecosystems in the cool temperate zone. The spectacular cliffs of Gough and Inaccessible Islands, towering above the ocean, are free of introduced mammals and home to one of the world’s largest colonies of sea birds. Gough Island is home to two endemic species of land birds, the gallinule and the Gough rowettie, as well as to 12 endemic species of plant” -UNESCO
Gough Island is located at 40°S, 9°W – 2600 km from East Pier, Cape Town Harbour. South Africa has been operating a weather station on Gough Island since 1956. It is uninhabited except for the 8 to 10 expedition members of the of the South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP). It is a lonely place, about 400 km southeast of the other islands in the Tristan da Cunha group, 2600 km from Cape Town, and over 3200 km from the nearest point of South America.
Images credit: Tom McSherry
