Pohnpei

By we time we sighted Pohnpei the wind was up to 35kts and we were beyond tired, the capt having had no sleep for 3 days. We tried to get to the main port of Kolonia but were thwarted by huge steep seas and vicious winds. We therefore retired to a harbor at the S end of the island, Ronkitti, which has nothing but a resort on a small island. Still, we could rest and we did so for about 3 days.

Of course, Customs officials don't understand these things and were miffed that we hadn't come into port to properly check in. So, when we tried to take a taxi into town to advise them, they ordered us back on the boat so they could board us. After another day of waiting for the winds to abate we tried again to reach Kolonia, which required about 6 hours to make the 15 miles or so to the N end of the island.

This is a shot of the yacht harbor at Kolonia; El Tubbo is on the far left. Sokhes Rock is a landmark comparable to Diamond Head in Hawaii.

The citizens of Kolonia are much more well heeled than the Solomon Islanders. Here, a stroll through one of the outlying small villages, suggests that an open air living area is the way to keep cool.

One of the most incredible archeological sights in the world are the ruins of Nan Madol, likened to the wonders of Easter Island.

Speculation is that building began about the 7th century and and was completed in the 16th. Tons and tons of basaltic rock were moved from Sokehs Island to these tiny islets in a manmade lagoon; some of the basaltic "logs" weighed 20 tons. How this was accomplished, well, there is only conjecture from Magic to extraterrestrial forms. Anyway you look at it , it is a true architectural feat.

Here we see a lovely island girl showing the scale of these ruins. It's hard to imagine how the "logs" got stacked, much less moved here. There are some 90 of these islands in what's been called "The Venice of the Pacific".

After a two hour kayak through the shallow lagoon marveling at this ancient enigma called Nan Madol, we stopped for lunch at a white sand islet. Here we indulged in a Japanese dish of tuna and rice before heading out for a swim and snorkel.

As our last act of tourism here we decided to climb Sokehs Mountain. Although Pohnpei was not a Japanese military "asset" it was defended by some antiaircraft guns and a naval gun. Here Capt Hub pokes his head out of one of the former. These guns were surrounded by bunkers and other fortifications.

The view from the top of Sokehs Mountain is pretty spectacular. This is looking at the town of Kolonia, with the yacht harbor at the right.

We spent almost 3 weeks in Pohnpei but don't feel we got to see that much of it. This is partly due to the fact that we needed to get provisions and things shipped in from Capt Hub's long-suffering mother and repair the boat. We wanted to go diving but were stymied by the awful weather. We had a rendezvous planned with a daughter and were looking forward to finally visiting the diver's Mecca, the legendary lagoon that is Truk!

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