Hello, everybody out there.

Raindrops are falling on my helmet, when i first climbed up the tree...plop, plop..... plop.

It's such a good feeling, when you're getting closer to the roof of this forest, you first see only this huge trunk beside you, but after a few more meters you are able to see the whole Styx valley from above... so beautiful.

Then I reached my new home for the first time - the GRS. There are three platforms above the forest canopy. Well done Adam, Will and all the other people who helped build it. I feel totally safe, sitting in my sleeping bag, writing my first weblog. No wind, but little raindrops in the air. It's getting dark outside. i just switched my headlamp on, only a little light in a big tree in tasmania.
Tinne is reading a book and Jai is nearly asleep... it was a long day. I might also crawl deeper into my sleeping bag...dream well!

Jannik

Hi everybody!!!
I was very excited today because we had a Belgian visitor. He was travelling around the world and for the moment he was staying in Tasmania. He said he would go to New Zealand and Chile afterwards. Apparently he doesn't live far from where I live. How exciting that was to speak Dutch again.

Today a new activist arrived, Yannick from Germany. It looks like he's a very nice guy and Sakyo told me he's a good climber. We'll find out tomorrow when he climbs the tree.

Another thing occured to me today. A lot of people ask me what the weather is like up here in the tree. I always explain about how changeable the it is and how scary it was at first when the wind came in. However, I will never complain about the weather. I used to work in an office when I was in Belgium. Many times I looked outside and saw how the seasons were changing. I felt so bad not being able to experience this from inside a building. You can't feel the wind blowing through your hair, or you can't feel the cold raindrops falling in your neck... brrrr. And now I consider myself very happy to see... and to feel the weather changing.

Tinne
(click continue for Dutch)

hallo allemaal,

Ik was heel verrast toen er vandaag een belg op bezoek was. Hij kwam van Leuven en was bezig aan een wereldreis. Na zijn verblijf in Tasmanie zou hij verder reizen naar Nieuw Zeeland en Chili. Het was leuk om terug nederlands te spreken.
Vandaag kwam ook Yannick toe. Hij is een duitse activist die ons team zal vergezellen en blijkbaar is hij een goed klimmer. Morgen zal hij naar boven klimmen en zullen we hem aan het werk zien!!!! hopelijk kan hij in Duitsland veel interviews gven.
Er viel me nog iets op vandaag. De meeste bezoekers vragen steeds hoe het weer hierboven is in de boom. Ik vertel altijd hoe veranderlijk het weer is in Tasmanie en hoe beangstigend het in het begin was toen ik de boom voelde meewiebelen. Hoewel ik nooit klaag over het weer. Ik denk terug aan de momenten dat ik werkte in een kantoor en naar buiten keek en zag hoe de seizoenen veranderden. Ik vond het echter spijtig dat ik niet kon ervaren wat er daarbuiten gebeurde. Ik kon de wind niet door m'n haren voelen waaien en ik voelde de koude regendruppels niet in m'n nek... brrrrr maar nu prijs ik mezelf gelukkig dat ik het weer zie,.... maar vooral voel veranderen.

Tinne

Hello hello,
How are you guys doing?

I am fine up here in the tree. Today we had Sarah Roberts visiting us, she's from Greenpeace Australia Pacific. She's a very nice girl. Not only did she bring some delicious home made brownies, but she also brought an Alaskan yoga teacher called John. We had a great time, especially because of the brownies and the Belgian chocolate that was still hidden in our tent for special occasions. ;)

A few days ago I got another mail for an interview for a Belgian magazine read by many young people. It is so great to see how many papers and radio stations are interested in this issue. In Belgium the most important newspapers published articles and they even wanted to interview my parents. I heard through mail that I was on the radio a couple of times so I'm very happy that Tasmanian forests are getting a lot of media attention all over the world. I know that I'm repeating myself, but I can't stop telling what a beautiful place this is!!!!!!!!!

Love, Tinne

HI everybody,
Yesterday and today we got a visit from a Japanese photographer Mr Yoshi Muruyama. He wanted to spend the night on the platform so he got a short training about how to climb the ropes. He was not afraid at all and didn't seem to have any problem with heights. So we spent the night with Yoshi, Sakyo, Vica and me. After a delicious dinner (we had some soup), Yoshi did an interview with me in japanese. Luckily Sakyo was there to interprate into English.

A lot of photo's were taken and the interview lasted until midnight. It will be published in a weekly magazine in Japan and the most famous outdoor magazine. I already saw some pictures of Yoshi and they were really good so I think this interview will also be very good. Tomorrow they will fly in a Cessna over the valley to shoot some more pictures. I'll wave to the camera when they fly over the platform ;o)

I also wanted to say thanks for all the mails I got from Belgium. That was great!!! Bye for now..
Tinne
(click continue for Dutch)

Hallo allemaal,

Gisteren en vandaag hadden we nogmaals bezoek op het platform, deze keer van een japanse fotograaf Mr Yoshi Muruyama. Gisteren is hij na een korte klimtraining zelf naar boven geklommen. Dat was geen enkel probleem en van de hoogte had hij blijkbaar geen last. We verbleven met 4 op het platform; Sakyo, Yoshi, Vica en ik. Na het avondeten volgde er een interview in het japans. Gelukkig zorgde Sakyo voor de vertaling. Er werden een heleboel foto's genomen en tot middernacht stelde Yoshi vragen. Het interview zal verschijnen in een wekelijks magazine en in het belangrijkste outdoor magazine van Japan. Ik heb al een paar foto's gezien van Yoshi en die waren echt knap dus ik denk dat deze artikels ook de moeite zullen zijn. morgen zullen ze met een Cezna boven de Styx vallei vliegen om nog extra foto's te nemen. Ik zal zeker eens naar de camera zwaaien als ze voorbijvliegen ;o)
En ik wou ook nog effe zeggen dat ik een paar leuke mailtjes kreeg vanuit Belgie!!!! Bedankt allemaal !!!
Tinne

...the little taste of summer that we we're getting has up and left with a vengeance. In it's place we now have the familiar freezing wind and rain. Oh joy, I've so missed not having two sets of thermals and heaps of jumpers and coats on, and I've especialy missed the way my hands burn with cold when I'm climbing while the rest of me sweats under the wet weather gear...

I'm starting to fantasise about the tropics. When this is all over and we've saved this forest, I hope I can find the time to head north for a bit of sun and warm.

There were two documentary makers here today, but it was too rough to allow them up the tree. They said they'd come back next week though. I hope they do because one of them will be seen by very big audiences in the U.S. and in Europe.

Also, Yoshi Murayama arrived for a 3 day stay today. He is a famous Japanese photographer and will have feature articles on the GRS in two magazines apparently. He will be coming up the tree for the night. I really hope for his sake, that the weather improves a little.

Anyway, that's it from me for today. I'm going to hide in my sleeping bag and read...

Peace and love to all you aware people out there (and everyone else too),

Adam
ps. all's well with the sit, rigging, power, equipment, personnel, and ground support's doing a great job.

Hi people, are we ever getting busy up here with famous people!
We had a visit from Jimmy Barnes that was quite amazing. He came up the tree, singing save the planet as he was hoisted. He then came down and did a bunch of very inspirational interviews with Win TV and some newspaper journalists.

Just before he left three timber industry workers also turned up to give their side of the story. There was a lot of shouting from the loggers and a lot of quiet responses from us. It is sad that the timber workers are so unsure of their future. They don't realise that clearfelling will end their jobs and sustainable logging will insure a happier future.

Today I took a German news man and his camera guy up the tree. It's always fun taking first timers up, you get to relive the way you felt in the beginning of this thing... then Brice Courtney (The Power of One, remember that book? I thought it was good) visited. I bet he will write something really good about this campaign. And now I have to give some training to Lin, a co-host for a show called Killer Instinct that airs on BBC and Outdoor Life Network, seen in Europe and the States. She's developed a new program which will be aired over there and the Tasmanian oldgrowth situation will be part of the first and second episodes!!!
And the list goes on... Dave Warth is also here making a documentary called A Natural State. I'll be training him up as well this afternoon so that tomorrow morning they can climb up and get some footage in the GRS.

So, busy busy... it's very good though because it means our campaign is gaining momentum, so I'd better stop writing and get on with the training... and not forget to find out from Hobart what time Mr Murayama, the Japanese photographer is arriving. He will be taking Sakyo away from us for a couple of days to guide him around and explain the situation here. Oh well, we loose Sakyo for the day, but the campaign is helped, so it's all good.

have a good day all!
Adam

When I saw several articles in the newspaper, I firstly realized how much Jimmy Barnes visit has effected many people. (sometimes I can`t get what's going on the ground because we are up the tree!).

I met him up the tree. He was not scared of heights but when he sang a song suddenly, it scared me a little bit. He had a long interview here. In this interview, he mentioned about the possibility of a tourist business that could take over clear felling of ancient forests, so he is not a traitor like some opinionated letters in the newspaper state, he is definitely still the hero of the Working Class Man.

Sakyo

The weather today was real mild, there was hardly any wind till about 5pm. Today was the sunniest day since I've been here! We sat on the platform all day....

I got a bit sunburnt which was nice. It was the first day without thermals and a big sweater wrapped around me. Then I made a few sketches of the surrounding scenery.

Ten metere's above the platform there is a crow's nest. Till yesterday I had never been up there, I revisited it today.You get a whole different perspective from up there you can not see from the platform below. It like being in the nest of a giant bird.

Tinne
(click continue for Dutch)

Vandaag was het een zonnige dag. in tegenstelling tot andere dagenwas het heel warm en zaten we de hele dag buiten op het platform. de eerste dag zonder thermisch ondergoed en dikke trui ;) ik heb een paar tekeningen gemaakt van de omgeving en hoop zo een tekeningen-dagboek te maken. een tiental meters boven het platform is er een plekje gemaakt tussen de takken van de eucalyptus waar je rustig kan zitten. tot gisteren was ik nog niet helemaal tot daarboven geklommen. vandaag klom ik er terug naartoe. je krijgt er een heel ander perspectief want ziet het platform onder je terwijl je
in het net ligt.het lijkt wel of je in een vogelnest zit. het noemt dan ook 'crow's nest' of kraaiennest.

It's been very busy on the platform recently. Yesterday, Jimmy Barnes came to visit us. Aparantly he's a very popular singer in Australia which I didn't know.

Today Ian Cohan came to the Styx Valley. Both were very impressed when they reached the platform after the long climb up. We would like to thank them for their visits which have boosted media attention and public awareness of tasmanian forests. Everything is going well on the platform. Today we were spoiled by Ben. He made us some delicious soup and sent it up. And also we got some chocolate from a visitor.;)

Tinne
(click continue for Dutch)

Het is druk op het global rescue station. gisteren kwam Jimmy Barnes op bezoek, in Australie is hij een bekende zanger, en vandaag Ian Cohan een New South Wales parlementslid voor de groenen. beiden waren onder de indruk toen zij boven op het platform aankwamen na een zware klim. in Australie krijgen de tasmaanse bossen verschillende keren per week media-aandacht ook dankzij onze bezoekers. voor de rest gaat alles goed op het platform. vandaag werden we verwend door Ben die heerlijke soep maakte en een emmertje naar boven takelde. en van een bezoeker kregen we chocolade ;).

Australian rock icon Jimmy Barnes today visited the team of campaigners at their 65m high platform, known as the Global Rescue Station, in Tasmania’s Styx Valley.

He joins a growing list of performers who have lent their support to the Wilderness Society and Greenpeace's campaign against logging in the area's old growth forests.

Read more...

.

We had our first visitor from NSW state parliament - Ian Cohen. He climbed up the tree and hung out for a while. It has been showering and windy so it was difficult for the satellite phone to get good reception. But finally he was able to call to media and had many interviews. He is really motivated and talked a lot about forest.

I have met a few famous people here up the tree. But unfortunately I don't know about these Australian celebrities because I'm from Japan. So I don't know if I am lucky or unlucky??

-Sakyo

It's hard to describe the feeling I had this morning. For the first time since I live on the platform there was no wind. It had been a long time since I heard a silence like this and that's why I noticed it. It was still dark when I woke up. I could hear the birds singing their songs. I was still hidden in my sleeping bag. So warm... so safe... the most beautiful way to wake up.

Yet, there is something that disturbes me.... I try hard to concentrate. I get up and step on the platform. It's getting lighter. The valley is covered in a mist and the treetops are coming to have a look... On the background I can hear a noise. It doesn't belong here. Everything becomes clear…

Tinne
(use link for Dutch version)

Het is moeilijk om te beschrijven wat ik vanmorgen voelde.
Voor het eerst sinds ik het GRS bewoon is het windstil. Hetwas lang geleden dat ik de stilte had gehoord en daarom viel zeme des temeer op. Het was nog donker toen ik wakker werd. Stilaan werden de vogels wakker en genoot ik van hun ochtendconcert. ik lag nog helemaal verstopt inm'n slaapzak,m'n warm en veilig nest. Er is geenmooieremanier om wakker te worden.
Er is echter iets dat onrust in mij opwekt. een geluid....Ik probeer me te concentreren.

Ik ga naar buiten en sta op het platform. Stilaan wordt het licht. De vallei vult zich met een mist en de boomtoppen komen een kijkje nemen om te zien wat er gebeurt. het lijkt alsof er op de achtergrond een geluid is dat niet thuishoort in dit tafereel. En alleswordt stilaan duidelijk...

I want to try and share with you the feeling of sitting 65m up a tree named "Reg" (Eucalyptus Regnans).

Reg germinated around 400 yrs. ago, so they say, after a bushfire and immediatly shot straight toward the sky in a fierce battle with siblings for the warmth and light of the sun.

Each day the wind comes along with gusto to remind Reg to stay strong in the face of adversity.Many creatures use this tree as a home or refuge or for a short stop-over between flights. Insects, birds, ants, crawlies, blowies, mossies and sometimes even people.

The big tree creaks and sways in the relentless wind. Nightime always seems stronger. The people in the tree house get very afraid when the strongest gusts lift up their platforms and shake their little tents. Ripping and tearing at their flapping banners and tangling the ropes.

Another threat to the well being of this tree is the loggers who want to chop 'im up into tiny little pieces. But the most disturbing threat is the lack of interest and concern by ordinary bystanders. Please help us save all these trees in the Styx Valley..........Come on.........

Contact: The Wilderness Society to find out more and just...... Come on down.

Much love…. Phil.

Belgian activist Kristien Van Iseghem has joined the treesit to alert Belgian buyers of Tasmanian timber that the wood comes from Tasmania’s World Heritage quality ancient forests.

“I want to urge the Belgian buyers of sawn timber from Tasmania’s forests to source their timber from sustainably managed plantations, not ancient forest,” she said.

“The team of international activists in the Global Rescue Station is helping to get the message out to the world that Tasmania’s valuable ancient forest is being destroyed by logging company Gunns Limited.”

Kristien’s visit comes exactly two months after the Global rescue Station launch.

Click the link below to read what she says on her first day up the tree....

I spent my first night up the platform. The climb was pretty amazing! It took me a while before I got up; I guess I never realised how long it would take me to climb 65 m.

On my way up beautiful ferns and eucalyptus trees surrounded me. Once I got on the platform I could see the whole valley and the Styx river. It is such an amazing view from up here. Yesterday I saw a yellow-tailed black cockatoo.
It was so sad though thinking back on yesterday; after spending two days in Tasmania I got to see nine trucks loaded with treetrunks. That made me realise at what speed the logging is happening. I really hope we can stop this.

Bye for now

The Japanese singer Yae and her band came out to visit again, only this time they brought guitars and came down to the base camp for a play. It's easy to hear why she is so successful when she sings.
She sang about 10 songs for us over the afternoon and had everyone entranced. Even though she sang in her own language it was clear how she felt about her subject.
The down side of her visit was that they kidnapped Sakyo! Took him off for a couple of days to explore the forest and local towns. It's a good thing though, because he knows so much about this campaign and the forest now, he will be able to inspire them to say something on the issue when they return to Japan. Not to mention a couple of days out of the tree will re-energise him, there could be a long time up here ahead.
The steady flow of visitors shows no sign of abating. It's good that at the very least a lot more people are seeing the inside of this ancient forest than otherwise would have if the GRS was not here.
We are starting to get a bit sick of the weather. This is summer and 8 degrees c, freezing wind and horizontal rain! At least back in autumn we had warm days occasionally. People even had to use sunscreen.
Anyway, I hope you're all having a good day out there and doing the whole "think global act local" thing! In fact even to think global talk local would be really helpful.
All the best,

- Adam

We were honoured by a visit from Bob Brown, who is the leader of the Australian Greens party and one of the strongest and most effective people fighting to save the environment in this country. He stayed for a few hours and chatted with us, coming up with good ideas and advice for our campaign to save the Styx and end old growth logging. It was hugely encouraging for the crew, everyone was very happy.
It sure has been getting busy with visitors as the summer holiday goes by. We are getting a steady stream of them all day everyday now.
Another excellent thing that happened was a visit from a Sydney Sunday Telegraph reporter who wanted to come up the tree. He was brave I thought because he'd never done anything like ascend one of the world’s tallest flowering plants, in a harness on ropes. I think it was fairly character building for him and he really enjoyed it. It's always fun for us when a new person comes up the tree. You sort of re-live the awe you felt on your own first time up the tree. I hope he writes a good article on us and the forest and the rotten forestry practices of Gunns and the government.
Tinne, our new activist from Belgium is now installed in the GRS and looking forward to her first night. It is very cold and windy so she is getting a fairly tough introduction. Of course though, she is an experienced activist so is nice and calm and just asks politely if the wind is always this strong, and if it's normal for the platform to shake in the big gusts.

Just at this moment we have strong wind, rain, sunshine and a rainbow to the northeast. They say this is one of those four seasons in one day sort of places, but I reckon it's more like four seasons all at once (with some sort of wet season winter cross slightly in the lead).

Anyway people, have a lovely day and keep sending those letters and emails to Japan and our own federal government!

- Adam

Altogether not a very exciting day, so finally I found the time to go after my thermals. A few days ago we had some sunshine. So, I went to the creek, washed my clothes and had a few of them on the washing line up at the station.

Unfortunately, the weather turned rainy again and the wind picked up, as you can read in previous weblogs. Busy doing other things and laying in my sleeping bag I forgot about my thermals on the washing line just off the base-platform.
The wind just blew my beloved (and very important) long-sleeve thermal shirt into another big eucalyptus tree, a few meters of Gandalf’s Staff. Wow, there was my thermal, 30-40 meter high up in the wrong tree!!

As the night was very cold again, I finally made up my mind to go for the recovery mission. I started climbing that new beautiful tree, had a great view onto the Global Rescue Station and our new Information desk below. I really exercised my tree-climbing skills.

Three meters short of my thermal it started to rain, two meters short my rope and the throw-bag got stuck and then it got dark, so...

Well, my thermal is still up the tree, I'll try again tomorrow. Maybe.

Besides, tomorrow probably will be a very interesting day. There are more people coming and everybody is curious about Yae, the Japanese pop-singer coming to visit.

Flo

Another day in the GRS goes drifting by....
We are getting a lot of visitors to the base of the tree now that the summer break is in full swing and the Christmas craziness is over. We didn't realise how many people would come so the ground crew have put in a big day creating a nice sheltered spot for people to sit and talk and have a cup of tea, with information sheets and letters to sign.
(How to find the Global Rescue Station) It is very encouraging all these people coming, it makes us realise that the message is getting out there, and that there are so many people that care so much... so thank you everybody for showing your support, and all the cake and chocolate!

We've got lots of work to do; remove the 3000 fairy lights (click on image), replace some of the older rigging, train some of the new activists that have joined base camp, plus all the other day to day stuff that never goes away. So as usual there's no rest for us, but that's OK because we love it!!!

Adam

It was cold all day. When I woke up in my nice cosy sleeping bag in T-Two (that's the name of our non-COMs-tent up at the sit) I heard the soft rain drizzling on the roof of the tent.

Some birds were screaming (sulphur-crested cockatoos) in the trees
while others sang more beautifully. Still, everything looked cold outside of my tent. Each morning the mist slowly lifts out of the valley of the Styx.

Eventually, I left the warmth of T-Two, descended first into the forests, and then onto the forests ground. Every time I take a look at the forest and its lively undergrowth I can't believe that anyone would want to destroy it - it’s irreversibly. How can Companies like Mitsubishi, Oji and Nippon accept the degradation of this beautiful forest by buying something as simple as woodchips?

But every day again, I get the feeling we're not alone with our thoughts. Today a lot of tourists came and praised the beauty of the Styx Valley. Many of them expressed their disbelief in the future of this coupe by sending letters to those Japanese companies.

So, now in the uprising winds of the night, the day feels like it was a "good one".

Flo

Luckily we have had nice calm weather up here since New Year`s Eve. Actually Christmas Day doesn`t mean to me so much but New Year`s Day and next a couple of days are very important for me as a Japanese.

We usually have some `Sake` and special food with our family at home except when we go to a shrine to wish for New Year. I didn`t expect that I would be able to do these annual routine. But Vica, who is one of our crew from The Wilderness Society, brought me real 'Sake`. Thank You! That was really nice. We finished this yummy bottle in only one night (of course!)

Also I did something that reminded me of my normal New Year`s holiday. It`s a `Calligraphy`(sort of..) When I painted on the new banner, it reminded me of the calligraphy which is done in this time in Japan as well !

So, after all it was not so bad to have a New Year here far away from my country. Oh well.. but nearly 2 months I am here.. very long time...

Sakyo

Last night myself and Adam were climbing up the tree, it was beautiful to say the least......As we jugged up the ropes reaching the canopy of the forest, the blue moonlight painted the trees from above. It was a still night, whilst climbing we spotted an extremely bright satellite above..... passing rapidly, then suddenly, a flaming shooting star shot across the path of the satellite. "WOW"! said Adam in a tone I only hear from children, I too felt like a child again. This place holds an energy, that to me, is priceless, you can't chip it and put it on the market.

Well it's the 2nd of Jan and we've had many visitors today (as well as yesterday), it's great to see so many people are coming out to show their support for the campaign, watching people's response from being in such an awe inspiring place is humbling, they immediatley identify, and can see, the signifigance this place has on biodiversity within Tasmania, they're truly greatful that someone is fighting for this area and we are truly greatful they've taken the time to experience it.....hey you, yeah you reading this page....maybe you should come down to the Styx forest and see for yourself!

Well it's getting on there's much to do, but there's also much you can do. If you haven't already done so please take action and click on one of the links on this website to let the companies who'd like to clear it know how you feel!

Adios Shannon ;o)