There will be no protracted election campaign pitching devout Beaver Island devotees against everyone else who has a differing name for the pile of sticks and stuff that’s stuck on rocks in the Manning River near Martin Bridge in Taree.

A quick election is a good election … someone should let our pollies in on that little pearl of wisdom … I digress ...

Seven days ago I shared my belief that the pile of sticks needed a name as it’s not going anywhere without an extreme wet weather event.  

In the service of the public interest, and with a desire to inspire I reached out to Phil Davies Aerial Photography. Phil said yes to my request for a bird’s eye view of the pile of sticks, you watched the video, and then flooded the Manning River Times’ Facebook page with numerous names and comments – it made for amusing reading.

The birds eye view of the pile of sticks reveals, if you squint, that it is heart shaped, and it prompted Linda Martin and Rose Martelli to suggest Heart of the Manning, and quite a number thought Love Island was rather ... lovely. 

Adrienne Simone has named it Roly Island because “it’s made of every single stick our dog Roly has failed to bring back to shore from the river when we play fetch.”

Fans of the Marvel Comics movie franchise, Guardians of the Galaxy, will love Lissa Luciani’s Groot Island and the suggestion of Mount Stickity Stack by Bree Katsamangos earned 21 ‘Likes’ from our Facebook community.

Sarah Cooper said it should be called “Hope Island because no matter how bad things look, like this island, you gotta have hope that better things are coming.”

And following are a few other names offered up for consideration, yes, there are a few.

Beaver Mountain, Stick Nest Island, Disney Island, Navigational Hazard, Woodstock Island, Birds Nest of the Manning, The Lodge, The Dump, No Tree Hill, Stick Stack Stow, Fort Manning, Manning River Sticks & Co, Twig Tree Island, Sticklers Point, Styx Knoll, Heart of the Manning, Beaver Barge, Sticky McStick Face, Beaver Dam, The Gooch, Bonfire Island, New Zealand, Platypus Nest Island, Roosting Isle, Twiggy’s Peak Island, Mini Goat Island, Debris Island, Eyesore Island, No-Go Island, Manapus Island, Birch Island, Rubble Island, Breakaway Island, Badgers Island, Sticks Afloat, Beaver Dam, Little Glenthorne, Faggot Island, Pelican Knoll, Flotsam Island and finally, Kindling Island.

I’m still a fan of Gomer, a nod to comedian Gomer Pyle … yes, I hear the sound of crickets echoing … the name was offered up last week by a very helpful MidCoast Council spokeswoman who said council had no interest in moving the pile of sticks.

So now it’s time to vote and I’ve decided to put my top five up for polling. 

It needs a name. It’s a bit of fun. Now vote!