holiday destinations: The Marshall Islands

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Back in 1889, when Robert Louis Stevenson visited the Marshall Islands, he declared them “the Pearl of the Pacific.” Nestled in the northwest equatorial Pacific in Micronesia are the twenty-nine atolls and five islands that make up the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The RMI lies 3800 km southwest of Honolulu and 2800 km north of Fiji. Though the nation is tiny in terms of land area, it covers over 1.2 million sq. km of warm, blue ocean. Even though most people have yet to hear much about the RMI, almost all WWII buffs know about Kwajelein, Wake, Enewetak, or Bikini Atolls, located within the Marshall Islands group.

The Marshall Islands is one of four atoll nations on the globe. Thanks to the insight of Charles Darwin in the 19th century, we know that atolls form through the combined processes of sinking volcanoes and coral reef growth, resulting in a unique environment made up of a ring of islands surrounding a central lagoon. Atolls are roughly the shape of their ancient volcanic craters, although wider because coral grows out as well as up. It has taken some 45 million years for what were once high volcanic islands to become low islands, only a few metres above sea level.

Visitors to the Marshall Islands today come for world class scuba diving and sportsfishing. Soon it will be known for its unique kayaking opportunities.

The water visibility is normally very clear so an array of corals and animals can be seen. A healthy coral reef, like those of the Marshall Islands, is the most vibrant and biologically diverse place on earth. Its coral reefs have so far been spared the destruction associated with coral bleaching in other parts of the region. Here you can find several hundred kinds of colourful reef fish and dozens of corals in a variety of shapes and sizes. RMI corals have unusually spectacular growth forms, such as enormous table structures that are not present in other areas that have more storm activity. In addition, the reefs are particularly colourful in certain areas such as the blue Acropora of Likiep; the purple Acropora of Rongelap; the yellow lettuce coral of Kwajelein; and the bright green and purple mushroom corals of the capital, Majuro.

Exploring Majuro Atoll
A number of companies on Majuro Atoll (pronounced MA - ju - ro), including Marshall Islands Tours, Kidenen Island Kayakers, and Canoes of the Marshall Islands, provide plastic, sit-on-top kayaks and paddles for some really fun warm water paddling. This is how we chose to do our exploring.

Our tour took off from a shady beach in Rita, the southernmost part of the main island. Several children watched attentively as we set up our kayaks and shoved off. Kayaking is still a new activity in the Marshalls and most locals have not yet had the opportunity to give it a try.

With the tradewinds at our backs, we leisurely paddled towards a string of small, green islands only minutes away. We had slathered ourselves with sunscreen earlier and were really pleased we had taken the time to do such a thorough job as the bright sun beat down on our legs and feet. We quickly found ourselves paddling along the rim of this sunken volcano through a chain of flat, idyllic islands filled with shady palms and sandy beaches. These islands are owned by individual Marshallese families and you can see dense coconut forests and small cabins on most of the islands as you glide past.

White fairy terns circled overhead as we took in the tropical scenery. Looking into the turquoise water we could see coral heads surrounded by colourful reef fish. Our guide led us between two islands towards the nearby outer reef area, where the waves were breaking so hard we could barely hear each other speak. We surfed our kayaks in the shallows and whooped as we caught a wave or laughed at each other when we missed it. When we headed back towards the lagoon, the tide was moving out and the water was so shallow that we spotted several baby black-tip reef sharks. Reef herons and ruddy turnstones were picking at uncovered delicacies as we paddled by.

We had received permission to land on Denmeo island and visit a place our guide called “Heaven.” Imagine a white sandy beach guiding a river of saltwater into a warm, quiet lagoon surrounded with palm trees—it was definitely a piece of paradise. We had a couple of leisurely hours to explore the island after a lunch of local breadfruit chips (which were delicious), apple bananas, sandwiches and cold drinks. Some people took advantage of the downtime and snorkeled off the beach.

In the late afternoon, our guide gently rounded us up and we headed home. Along the way, he pointed out a flock of black noddies diving among a splashing school of skipjack tuna feasting on little silver bait fish. He also directed our attention to some beautiful cloud formations and frigatebirds soaring high overhead, and filled us with all sorts of stories about life in the islands.

Descendants of early Micronesian explorers, the modern Marshallese offer a warm and friendly welcome. Remnants of their age-old culture are just below the surface. Perhaps because tourism is relatively new here, visitors instill a delightful curiousity and wonder on the part of the locals that transforms a nature holiday into one sprinkled with cultural experiences.

Visitors should also expect that things move along here on “island time,” translation—at a very relaxed pace.

If you are interested in coming to the RMI, visit the Marshall Islands Visitors Authority website or phone them directly.