Australian couple bought a barren 26-hectare island; 17 years later, they moved in

Ram Island is situated in southeast Tasmania’s Little Swanport estuary. Image Credit: Peterswald The story of Ram Island began with a simple newspaper advertisement and grew into a 17-year project that turned a weed-covered, undeveloped piece of Tasmania into a private home. Ralph and Caralyn Mansfield bought the 26-hectare island in Little Swanport in 2002, even though it had no jetty, ramps or home. Much of the land was covered in gorse, and the couple knew it would take years before they could live there. In 2019, after clearing the site and moving 38 truckloads of building materials across the water, they finally made the island their home.How a 26-hectare island entered the lives of an Australian coupleRam Island sits off Tasmania’s east coast, between Orford and Swansea. When Ralph Mansfield first saw the property, it was not ready for anyone to live on. As reported by Domain, about 80% of the island was covered in gorse weed. There was also no jetty or ramp, making even basic construction work difficult.The island came into the Mansfields’ lives almost by chance. Ralph saw a small advertisement in a Melbourne newspaper, travelled to Tasmania to inspect the property and retur...