The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
UNPREDICTABLE JOURNEY
POHNPEI STATE, MICRONESIA » I’m panicked and soaked as smiling locals fish me out of the bay on the island of Pohnpei in Micronesia. “Trip of a lifetime,” I sarcastically thought as we made our way back to land with an upside-down kayak, our cameras and cellphone ruined.
How did I end up drenched, emotionally drained and out a few thousand dollars in electronics in this remote island nation, one might ask? More importantly, here’s why it was totally worth it.
MAJURO
My husband and I traveled to Micronesia on United’s Island Hopper route from Honolulu to Guam. First stop, 4 ½ hours from Hawaii: Majuro (MAH-zhu-row), a coral atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
We shopped for groceries for a stay on a nearby private island but ended up mostly with items like pasta and cereal; fresh produce was scarce and overpriced. After a 30-minute boat ride to Eneko Island, we spent a few days completely alone, kayaking and chasing colorful fish through turquoise water. Evenings offered breathtaking sunsets, stargazing and cooking our carby meals.
Highlights of Majuro included the tiny Alele Museum featuring Marshallese folk art, history and stick charts used for nautical navigation. Handicraft stores downtown sell traditional, intricately woven baskets and bags. Hotel Robert Reimers offers a solid restaurant and accommodations starting at $45. Pricier lagoon-front cabins are a worthy splurge.
For a pampered vacation, the private Bikendrik Island offers two charming bungalows stocked with cognac and Grand Marnier, three-course meals and occasional visits from the lagoon pet, Oscar the octopus. Rates start at $570.
POHNPEI
A short flight west (with a quick stop in Kwajalein Atoll, a U.S. military base where you cannot deplane) took us to Pohnpei (PAWN-PAY), a lush, mountainous island and one of four states making up the Federated States of Micronesia.
Pohnpei’s capital, Kolonia, has souvenir shops, remnants of a historic Spanish wall and a helpful tourism office. Don’t leave without a colorful floral skirt, an island fashion staple. Arnold’s Restaurant offers tasty American fare and Grace’s Special Bakery on Nantuelek street serves sweet treats.
An hour’s drive took us to Pohnpei’s crown jewel: the ancient city of Nan Madol. Picture 13th century ruins rivaling the splendor and lore of Cambodia’s Angkor Wat or Peru’s Machu Picchu, minus the crowds. As with most of this trip, we were the only tourists.
Kepirohi Waterfall is a gorgeous cascading pyramid near Nan Madol. A hard-tospot sign on Circle Island road marks a turn-off where you pay a $3 entrance fee.
The waterfront Mangrove Bay Hotel has scenic views and a restaurant serving exclusively sushi and chicken wings. The onsite Pohnpei Surf Club can arrange water excursions and guided Nan Madol tours.
To reach some of the 100-plus manmade islets, you can pay local families a few dollars per person to cross their land. But we opted to navigate Nan Madol’s shallow channels by kayak. After winding through dense mangroves for about 30 minutes, the dark, twisty jungle opened into vast, clear-blue ocean. Massive shadows darted around our wobbling vessel — stingrays from a nearby sanctuary.
At this point, I noticed the kayak inching lower into the sea. But we were by then an hour from the marine institute that runs the small boat rental business. We had no choice but to carry on.
On shore we found walls of stacked basalt columns, an engineering feat still shrouded in mystery. We traipsed through megalithic ruins by foot for a few hours before starting our doomed return to civilization. The hull of our punctured kayak was slowly flooding.
My panic grew exponentially after a number of near tips. My husband paddled gently as I clutched the phone, drone and fancy camera purchased days earlier.
The water was calm and we’re both fine swimmers. But I was upset: This was not the plan.
With the dock in sight, the boat’s sway became unmanageable. In the blink of an