One hundred and fifty days! Wow! And it’s snowing! Amazing how I celebrated my 100th day in the snow and now the forest is providing another beautiful snow day to celebrate 150 days. Can you believe that I have been here at the top of this tree for that long? Today I celebrate this day as a milestone. As a symbol, I guess you could say, of my determination to protect this forest. And so today I want to reflect on what it has like to be living in this tree for five months. And to share this journey with you.

Weld Valley – Pete Maarseveen.

Of course, while it is a great achievement in many ways to have stayed up here for five months so far. There are is another side to it. And that is that every single day of those 150 days is another day in which the forests have remained under threat. Every day of that 150 days there has been precious forests of world heritage value being lost across Tasmania. Forests that were meant to be under a conservation agreement. The very forest that are the subject of the negotiations and are ear-marked as future reserves.  Sadly, a lot trees can be felled in 150 days.

And so it my sincere hope that I will not be sitting here in another 150 days. Simply because I don’t think that Tasmania’s forests can afford to wait that long. So please, help me to celebrate this milestone today by taking part in the cyber action so that these forests can get the protection they deserve and so I don’t have to be up here for too many more milestones! If you’ve already signed the online action, you can still help out today by spreading the message, getting your friends to sign on and sharing it online. CLICK ON THE TASSIE DEVIL PICTURE BELOW  TO TAKE ACTION

Sassafras in rainforest

Five months ago now I climbed a rope to the top of this tree and vowed not to come down until this forest was protected. It has been an incredible journey, with challenges and rewards along the way. One of the most rewarding things has been getting to know this forest so well. Not only have I come to appreciate the value of this forest, it has also been assessed by a government endorsed independent team of scientific experts in that time. This verification assessment found this area to contain world heritage value, providing clear evidence of the significance of these forests and the importance of protecting them.

The other incredible experience of these past five months has been the level of support I have received from all walks of life and all corners of the globe. What an overwhelming response I have had so far with so many messages of support and encouragement. I think the highlight for me was the global 24 hours of action (feb 14/ 15), with over 70 actions across 15 countries around the world calling for the protection of Tasmania’s forests.  This action sent a strong and clear message to the corporate customers of Ta Ann that people around the world do not want to buy products that come from the destruction of Tasmania’s precious native forests.

There is clear evidence that this logging coupe where my tree is located is due to be logged in order to supply logs to Malaysian company Ta Ann. The company have been identified in official documents as the key driver behind the ongoing logging in high conservation value forests. Yet they continue to misleadingly market their products internationally as being “eco” wood and coming from plantation sources. I believe that the customers who are buying these products have the right to know the truth about where the wood is coming from. I also believe that Ta Ann needs to be accountable for the lies they are telling in the global market, and they need to be accountable to the community here in Tasmania, whose precious environment they are impacting. That is why I am committed to staying up in this tree. because I want to expose to the world the truth about the ongoing destruction of these forests and by doing so hopefully inspire others to take action to help protect these forests forever.

Of course there have been some challenging times. And those of you who have been following my blog over the past five months would know this well. There have been times of loneliness, isolation and frustration. There have been many hard nights battling the elements of cold, wind, rain and hail. Sometimes it can feel all a bit overwhelming, but then I look out over the forest around me and remember what it is I am standing up for, remember why I am here. And suddenly those challenges don’t seem to matter, they seem so small compared to the challenges faced by the forests as it is met by chainsaws, or the young Tasmanian devil trapped in its den when the trees begin to fall.

And I will tell you this; the rewards of being up here for the past five months certainly outweigh the challenges. The beauty of each sunrise and sunset, starry night skies and moon lit mountains. Days of softly falling snow. Wedge tail eagles souring above, and owls swooping into the branches of my tree. Morning wake up calls from Carrawongs. And a deep and growing feeling of connection.

Probably one of the most special days was the day I discovered the baby Tasmanian devil that is my close neighbour. My support crew regularly go out to check the hidden remote sensor cameras that are set up around the forest. These cameras record footage of wildlife. When I pulled up my rope that day, took the SD card out of the bag and popped it in the computer, I couldn’t believe it… the cutest little devil sniffing and bouncing around. It was a moment of hope. Because the last time devils had been seen on our cameras was when a mother devil was filmed on December 12th. The night before logging began in the area. Luckily the logging only continued for a few days after I climbed the tree. And I am so glad to see this little devil survived and is now out of the den and exploring the world!

Thank you to everyone who has been following my blog, all those loyal readers who have followed my journey over these months, and to all the people who are just discovering my blog for the first time. And speaking of loyal readers of my blog; check out out this slideshow made by an ObserverTree supporter ( click on the image to view slideshow).

Talk to you tomorrow for my 151st day 🙂
Miranda

Please help protect Tasmania’s precious forests.
Click HERE to sign the online action.

P.s. With winter approaching I’m need of a few extra things to help stay warm and dry. Any donation you can spare would be appreciated and put to good use! Observer Tree bank details:
Bendigo Bank
Acc:144673571
Bsb:633000