I got back from Redang yesterday and what a full 3 days it has been.

I literally hopped from the Laguna ferry to our own SiPenyu I where I was greeted by Slot D volunteers who had just completed their round island snorkeling trip with Mahadi.

Everyone got busy as soon as we had exchanged niceties. There was a joyful feeling of togetherness as we worked to get our Turtle Gallery ready for the “arribadda” visit by 98 high school kids who had been selected from all over Malaysia to participate in the marine appreciation program organized by the Ministry of Education.

Little did the volunteers know that they were yet headed for what was probably their busiest night ever… Seven turtle landings and 6 successful nestings! We have never had this kind of nesting density so early in the season. We were further rewarded by an early morning nester that presented a fantastic photo opportunity. I knew the volunteers were in seventh heaven and so was I! (Nesting update as of 23 April 2008: 82 green turtle nests and 2 hawksbill nests).

And then, as described by Man, the great “arribadda” descended upon us. We had to divide the students into 3 groups, Man and Mahadi talked about nesting and nest protection on the beach, me, the overview of the project while Lim, Fiona, Huser and Putra (the BM speaking ones) were in charge of the exhibits in our Turtle Gallery. Two of the kids came to me for a photo pose and told me they had read about our efforts in their English textbook. They were truly happy to see turtle conservation in action. And this is not all. Our “Say No Turtle Eggs” campaign was given a boost by the 100 signatures we collected. All the students promised to help collect signatures in their individual schools.

We thought we could settle down a few moments after the students had left, but no…… Lim (the RA) had sent a messenger saying he thinks a nest has been attacked by ants. We rushed to the scene, and yes Nest 077, only 4 days old had been infiltrated by those little monsters. We managed to save 112 eggs (all with the white patch developed on them already) with only 3 having been penetrated by the ants. Good job, Lim for making the early discovery.

Later I got Gary and Harry (new worker Fifi) busy helping me to make some turtle related artwork. The making of the empty eggshell masterpiece was aided by Mahadi. The bones and scutes came from the incomplete carcass of a green turtle found by Mahadi and Man last year. I wonder if these attempts will invoke little smiles.

The day was not over yet. I had noticed how dilapidated our lookout tower was. No one uses it anymore these days and being infested with termites, it poses a hazard to both turtles and us. I needed that one last look of Chagar Hutang from the tower. I know that tower brings back memories to many people…

Gary was very much the action man as he tore down the roof and banged his body against the tower to loosen it up. And then, within minutes, our tower was down.

It was time to go the next day. Putra had developed a bad skin allergy and I knew how bad the itching is (I have been there before) and his condition really needed medical attention. Guz, good friend as he is offered to cut short his stay and accompany Putra back to Singapore. This group of volunteers from the Singapore Management University, and Malaysians Ong and Fiona, are a good lot and their one week with us will forever be etched in their memories, and mine as well.

Chan, reporting on trip to Chagar Hutang from 21-23 April 2008.

• Little Princess deposits her third nest
• More eventful days
• Little Princess, the amazing hawksbill that nests in Chagar Hutang
• Sweet labour with 16 landings in a night
• First trip to Chagar Hutang in 2009