Truk

aka Chuuk

As avid divers, we have always wanted to dive the legendary Wrecks of Truk Lagoon. We thought it would be even better to do it from our own little live-aboard dive boat, Amante. What we didn't realize was what a strange, dysfunctional place Chuuk state is. Most cruising boats bypass Chuuk entirely and head for Yap. Another hint is the fact that much of the diving is done from live-aboard boats, even though most of the 40-odd wrecks are easily reached from land. What it means is that most people come here to dive and don't want to deal with the locals, who can be less than friendly. This is one of the few places we've visited where we haven't felt safe.

Our passage from Pohnpei was rough, days of 25+ knot winds and big seas. We were tired and cranky when we decided to attempt the North Pass into the lagoon. We'd been through 3 days of constant squalls and visibility was poor. However, we figured if Japanese warships could make it through this pass we could do it, too. It was a bit exciting, but we made it. Once inside we had to head for the dock at Weno Town in order to check in. The wind was still pushing 30 knots and the seas were no longer 12' but the chop was still nasty. We also discovered that Truk Lagoon is rife with shoals and small islets, hazards everywhere. Nonetheless, we managed to arrive at the dock, only to find we wouldn't receive clearance until the next day. The locals were helpful and we got tied up and managed to get some much-appreciated rest. The officials the next day were very nice and happy to see a yacht visit Chuuk State.

Once cleared, we motored to the only anchorage we knew here, a sheltered spot just west of the old Japanese seaplane base, off what is now the Blue Lagoon Resort. This has proved to be a great spot for visiting Chuuk.

When we anchored we saw a mooring ball nearby and allowed space which we thought sufficient for a boat our size. Imagine our surprise when we found our new neighbor, MV Odyssey, was about 140' long. We look like a dinghy trailing behind. They were most friendly and helpful, however, and aided us in moving to a spot safer for us both.

Have you ever been at the dentist's office when they ask you to visualize a magical warm destination where perfection and Tropics are One? Here it is!

The resort where we anchored, Blue Lagoon, was a former Japanese seaplane base. Here's one of the old bunkers near the loading ramp.

Truk Lagoon is a huge and contains 11 high islands and many smaller ones. This is a sunset view towards the islands of Udot and Tol. This makes for an ideal cruising ground, since it is so protected from ocean swell. Truk was called the "Japanese Pearl Harbor" and for good reason.

While staying here we had the honor of a visit by our daughter Kayte, seen on the right. While going to pick her up we met some Seventh Day Adventist missionaries, Matthew and Karisse. They invited us to visit them on their island of Paata, in the lawless Shichiyo Islands on the west side of the lagoon. They have their work cut out for them.

We had been informed that about the only way to visit the outer islands was if we had an invitation of sorts from a resident. Since we had met a nice dive guide who lived on Udot and were aware that it had a good anchorage, we decided to make the arduous 6 mile voyage. There we were welcomed by happy natives. We were the first sailboat they had ever seen.

This is a good example of the problems in Chuuk state. We thought this 3-story Mediterranean palazzo was a small resort under construction, promising jobs for tiny Udot Island, where most kids don't attend school and families have up to 15 kids to support. We were wrong. It's the mayor's house. We were told he now resides in a jail somewhere. Where'd he get the money? From the US government. It was supposed to go for infrastructure, such as schools, or roads. (Udot does have one road, and one car. It belongs to the mayor.) As a result of such malfeasance, the US reduced making payments to Chuuk state, thus further impoverishing the most populous state in Micronesia. Unfortunately, Chuuk is somewhat like Louisiana, i.e. people expect such shenanigans from their politicians, so the situation is unlikely to improve soon.

Here our daughter poses with a small stalk of bananas, which is about the only produce we can buy here besides eggplant. We suspect the natives could grow other vegetables but choose not to, preferring to buy them in the grocery store. The only problem is that tasty, exotic stuff like lettuce and tomatoes are just not available most of the time.

We next went to the island of Paata, having been invited by the missionaries. Once again, we were the first sailboat ever seen there and were thus a major attraction. We did not feel comfortable leaving the boat unattended, so the capt stayed aboard while the crew visited the island. Here they are negotiating a mangrove "street", one of many originally cut under orders of the Japanese, who fortified most of the islands in the lagoon and needed military access to the jungle.

Having worked in isolated villages throughout Africa and Central Asia and knowing what special kind of challenge is involved, one can only congratulate those dedicated to serving the spiritual and physical needs of our global community.

This aspiring "Carmen" caught my attention at an island festivity celebrating independence day which was filled with speeches and dancing schoolchildren. The floor has been sprayed with candy, bubblegum and other sugary delights. We were treated to a lavish feast featuring a stunning array of local cooking.

Kayte had never been snorkeling before, but she became quite the water sprite. Here we're about to snorkel a somewhat shallow wreck off Uman, the Sankisan Maru.

Here our sprite cavorts about the one of the cargo masts of the wreck, which used to break the surface.

Here our other sprite floats above the deck gun of an even shallower wreck off Uman. Note the large coral "flower" growing off the barrel. This gun used to be the most photogenic spot in Truk but the deck has collapsed and the gun has fallen down. We wonder if these wrecks will survive another 5-10 years before the sea dissolves them.

All this diving can make for a hefty appetite. Here our equally hefty Aquahub surrenders to American junk food.

There is surprisingly little left of the Japanese presence on the islands of Truk. Structures that proved indestructible were the Japanese communications buildings. The doors and windows are made of 1/2" thick steel plate. A family lives here here in the safest building on the island of Dublon, aka Tonoas.

This equally secure family lives in a cave used as part of the Japanese fueling station on Dublon. Unfortunately, between neglect and tropical storms almost all buildings here are gone.

This is the old Japanese school on Dublon. Its main purpose was to teach the natives Japanese, the better to obey their masters. It is currently vacant and appeared to be occupied by squatters. The only school we saw on Dublon has been closed for 2 years because the landowner insisted on being paid to allow it to function; "civic duty" is an oxymoron in Chuuk. Thus, the kids here learn nothing.

Here Kayte stands next to the church bell, made from an old oxygen cylinder. The church behind has no windows, nor does it need them.

The honorable Chas Dickens Esq. is alive and well on the isle of Dublon. Here our little Nell collects plastics and rubbish, her only playthings. Our Pacific brunette Heroine has such a tragic countenance for one so tender in years.

We next did a land tour of the island of Moen aka Weno. This is the heavily bullet-ridden but quite intact Japanese lighthouse. We wanted to visit it but there were problems with the landowner, typically Chuuk.

Here the admiral stands before the 1/2" thick steel door of the old Japanese communications building. Truk was the radio center connecting Tokyo with their bases in Rabaul and the Solomons. This building had one direct bomb hit but is in otherwise perfect condition. As one bright spot in Chuuk it now houses St Xavier High School, a Jesuit institution serving all of the Federated States of Micronesia.

Here we are entering a cave on the mountain at the north end of Moen. The Japanese blasted many caves in these islands, which they used for both storage and the placement of large guns. Many of the guns were taken off old Battleships and are complete with armored turrets.

This gun appears to be an eight-incher. The drums in the background are original. They were filled with crushed rock and made a parapet of sorts to protect the cave.

We were disappointed by the land trips. The guides really did not speak English, which is most remarkable after 60 years of US activity here. They also didn't know much about this part of their history. Between neglect of the sites and stubborn landowners they are missing some good tourist opportunities. The sites in Pohnpei were much better maintained and easier to visit. This is a shame, as Truk will someday soon find their famous wrecks dissolved into the lagoon and a sure-fire tourist draw will have dissolved as well. However, we can only visit and observe...

Just to show what a class act we can be, here the Capt & daughter enjoy the finer things in life, viz. box wine and Cheetos. When you travel to places like this, you have to take class-acts where and how you find them.

After sending our guest back to the relative civilization of Armenia, we started the arduous task of diving Truk Lagoon. Every SCUBA diver wants to do this. It's a watery Haj. Our conception of the experience was formed by watching Jacques Cousteau TV programs from about 30 years ago. We know stuff immersed in seawater can go to hell in seconds, let alone 30 years, but we didn't apply that to mythical Truk; myths often don't get scrutinized very hard. You can judge for yourself by looking at the Wrecks of Truk Lagoon page.

Our adventures were further limited by the necessity of using a local dive shop to visit the wrecks. This is mostly because it's the law here, but many wrecks can only be found by a guide as they are not marked. Some you can see from the surface, but most are found by the long experience these guides have in finding the ships by instinct. The guides were very nice and helpful, but you are limited by what you can do and see. They are also there to prevent pilferage, a chronic problem here. Everybody wants a cup or dish with Japanese military markings or Fillintheblank Maru written on it. As a result. most wrecks have just a few broken cups here and there; maybe Jacques got the rest.

Anyway, we spent 2-3 weeks diving wrecks. Most people stuff it all into the week they have to spend here, another reason to live on a boat and just dive all day, every day. We tried to try to pick days that were sunny and calm, the disadvantage being that after awhile we had dived most of the main wrecks and had trouble "fitting in" to the schedules the boats had for the new crops of tourists. Yes, that's one of the trials of living on a boat.

This is a Eten Island. If it looks like an aircraft carriers with trees, that's because in 1944 it resembled a aircraft carrier made of rock. It was the main Japanese airbase for Truk and contained hundreds of bombers and fighters along with repair facilities. The jungle here won in the end.

The flat runway area was the product of much labor by both local slaves as well as Japanese convicts and Korean coolies. The entire island was finished with a skirt of basalt to retard erosion.

This is the main headquarters building, looking sort of like a Mayan ruin in the jungle. Note the bomb damage on the right, which caused the roof to collapse.

Here's a close-up showing 0.50 cal bullet holes caused by U.S. fighter attacks on Feb 17-18, 1944. It appears someone made off with the 1/2" thick steel window shutters. No one lives in this ruin, though it was filled with people when we visited. The thick concrete walls make it a very cool place to hang out on a hot tropical day, sort of like a jungle mall. Yes, that's graffiti.

Kids in the former washroom. These are unusual in that they're not giving a gang-like sign with their hands. The kids here have seen way too much U.S. TV.

We finally had everything together for our departure, including a new underwater camera sent DHL by the capt's long-suffering mother. We began the check-out procedure, whereupon we discovered a minor detail about our stay, viz. the Chuuk state expected to collect a $10/day "anchoring fee", in spite of the fact that we were not on a mooring or had any services rendered. As this would have cost almost $600 alone, the capt was about to go into seizures when the port capt decided to be kind and only charge $100 for anchoring and another $75 in other charges, which was pricey but not devastating.

However, the yachting adventure that is Micronesia would not be complete without the final requirement that we be forced to tie up to an inconvenient commercial dock to get a visit from Customs & Immigration. In this case we couldn't go to the government wharf but had to find a space at the tuna boat dock. Even that didn't work out so we had to tie up to a nasty, bug-infested fishing boat, albeit with a very nice crew. After all the hassle of maneuvering in the small harbor seen above, Immigration was over an hour late and Customs never showed up at all. But we finally did get to leave and leave we did.

This is a rear-view mirror view of the eastern high islands of Truk Lagoon as seen from about the South Pass.

It is remarkable that we have spent almost 2 months here and didn't have much to share with people except some pictures of wrecks. It's the nature of the place. We'll make up for it back in the South Pacific. So, join us as we depart for New Guinea!

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