I would appreciate any ideas on creating a permanent island in an existing 2 acre pond. I am planning it for an area 90 feet from shore and approximately 400 square feet. The water depth at this spot is approximately 40 inches.

Problem: This will have to be manual labor as there is not much of a budget for this project. A friend suggested sandbags as a base topped with top soil. Another suggestion was to use 3 foot logs stood on end and topped the same way.

TIA for any advice.