27 Oct 2017

Snorkelling In The Crystal Clear Waters Of Vanikoro

DAY 7: VANIKORO ISLAND

This morning we moored off the archipelago of Vanikoro, where French explorer Jean-Francois de la Perouse was shipwrecked after both his ships La Boussole and Astrolabe struck the reef in 1788. We spent the morning ashore at the small village of Usili, followed by snorkelling from the Zodiacs in the crystal clear waters.

Before lunch we had the chance to view an episode of the BBC documentary ‘South Pacific’ titled ‘Castaways’ which informed us of how the Pacific islands became populated with plants, birds, animals, and humans over millions of years.

In the afternoon, we visited the village of Puma, and were treated to one of the most interesting dance performances to date on our journey. One of the dances depicted the spirits with the fully covered dancers seeming to float across the ground.
After being farewelled by locals singing onshore, we took a quick trip to see the monument to La Perouse, erected by fellow explorer Dumont D’Urville in 1827.

On our return, Courtney, our marine specialist gave a captivating presentation on ‘Capturing the Reef’s Invertebrates’ showing us all the different invertebrate species to look for on our snorkelling journeys, from hard and soft corals to nudibranchs to crustaceans and other creatures of the reef.
While it was sad to leave the Solomon Islands, we now await new adventures as make our way towards Vanuatu.

Written by Kris Madden