A Scotsman is living his dream as a lighthouse keeper on a remote Australian island with only a colony of penguins for company.
Sandy Duthie, 42, landed the job on Gabo Island, off the coast of Victoria, after the island’s previous lighthouse keeper and keeper decided to retire after 25 years.
Duthie, from Aberdeenshire, visited Australia five years ago with his partner and never left.
He studied ecology at the University of Aberdeen before becoming an arborist.
Duthie now spends six months of the year on the island: one month off, one month off. Another goalkeeper, who has been at the club for 16 years, shares the rotation with him.
Speaking to the BBC about his first stay on the island in his new role, Duthie said: “I immediately felt at home, it felt very much like the north-east of Scotland.”
Sandy Duthie, 42, (pictured) landed the role on Gabo Island, off the coast of Victoria, after the island’s previous lighthouse keeper and keeper decided to retire after 25 years.
Gabo Lighthouse (pictured) was built over 160 years ago and has connections to Scotland and the Highlands. Duthie is now the keeper of the lighthouse and the island itself.
A map showing where Gabo Island is located compared to mainland Australia
Duthie went to the island for the first time two years ago and “immediately fell in love with the place.”
He always dreamed of becoming her caregiver, so when the position came up, he jumped at the chance.
Previous goalkeeper Leo op den Brouw, 70, had been in charge for the past 25 years and had decided to return to family life on the continent earlier this year.
Duthie said it takes about 30 minutes to reach the island by small boat, but conditions can often be rough.
He described Gabo Island as small but with “incredible wildlife”, including a colony of penguins, whales, sea eagles and seals.
Their tasks on the island range from observing the weather every six hours to cleaning public toilets and painting, since the salt air is very corrosive.
“There is a lot of ongoing maintenance to be done on the house,” Mr. Duthie added, “you just have to expect the unexpected.”
Duthie went to the island for the first time two years ago and “immediately fell in love with the place.”
Duthie spends six months a year on Gabo Island, one month off and one month off, accompanied only by a colony of penguins.
While Mr Duthie loves the job, he said it is not without its challenges, as there are “some days where it feels like prison at times”.
Sometimes the phone signal can fail and supplies can run out if a boat doesn’t arrive.
He told the BBC that the previous caretaker referred to it as ‘Alcatraz the Rock’ because you can’t go to family events and you can sometimes be stuck on the island for days due to the weather.
However, Mr Duthie said “you can basically write your own script for the day and get on with your homework.”
Gabo Lighthouse was built over 160 years ago and has connections with Scotland and the Highlands.
Duthie said documents he found suggest that the person in charge of construction in 1859 sought out Scottish stonemasons, as they were used to working with hard materials.
Many of the lighthouse’s previous keepers were also Scottish, Duthie said.