"Please hide your things! These kids... They are rascals" the bus driver implored grabbing my arm as I clambered out of the ancient van. I nodded in understanding slightly distracted trying to make sure not to snag my bag on the rusty corner of the sliding door. A plume of smoke from a wood fire wafted across the khaki dirt road and mixed with the sweet scent of large white and pink frangipani trees that lined the shoulder of the road. A family across the way were roasting a pig in a open grassy field behind their home. The kids pulling down large paddle shaped leaves from a thicket of banana trees and running inside with them. Frangipani flowers dislodged by a gust of wind fluttered as if in slow motion to the ground through the smoke and landed near my feet.
"Hellooo!"
I turned around and saw a pair of elderly women in the shadows of some coconut palms waving over at me. Behind them the azure and turquoise blue of a secluded bay sparkled in the sunlight. I greeted them back and began walking in their direction.
Pango Cove, named after the small village the bus driver had just dropped me off in front of. The night before i had walked through the neighborhood my modest hotel was located in that sat on top of a hill overlooking the islands main town and stopped in a nakamal for some evening Kava. I had grown over the last few days to become fond of the caustic tasting but mildly psychotropic drink favored by men in Oceania. It was an excellent social concoction that gently soothed ones mind while encouraging conversation. And at the nakamals friendly conversation with strangers was the norm.
I had already gained a reputation the prior nights as the foreigner who could drink as much kava as the locals and was invited by a group of six men sitting in a circle of chairs made from old palm tree stumps. A tall dignified man poured me a cup of kava into a shared coconut shell and smiled saying "Welcome. This is good kava. Strong." I gladly took the shell and drank down the kava in one go. As conversation went on through the night i got the distinct impression this man hosting the small circle of locals was the alpha male of the group. The others deferring much of the conversation to him.
At one point I mentioned how i was on a quest to do as much diving as i could around the area. That i was looking for a secluded place with no people or boats in which to go in the morning. The mans eyes lit up and he excused himself and came back with the word Pango Cove written on a piece of scrap paper. He said simply, "just hand this to your bus driver. " I thanked him and as it was getting late made my way to the street outside the nakamal. A lady stopped me as i exited and said "that man regards you well. He's the village chieftain." That suddenly explained the men surrounding him who all seemed like prominent businessmen in the area and as to why he seemed to be holding court over all of them.
So here i was standing on the beach of this cove watching two men net fish while a group of children laughed and splashed in the water. I was the only person out of place and they all paused momentarily and watched quizzically as this new stranger stood there in front of them taking in the scenery.
The cove was exactly what i wanted. No tourists, unspoilt and the reef seemed to extend for a kilometre straight out and was about two thirds of a kilometre wide. Scanning the cove there was a path along side the water i could take to a spot i figured would be the best place to enter the reef. I walked carefully along a thin ribbon of sand and rocks that aproned the lava rock that the edges of the bay were carved out of.
Remembering the bus drivers words i watched behind me often to make sure I wasn't being followed by the kids playing back where i came through the coconut grove. Besides my snorkling gear my bag also contained my tablet and two days equivalent of a typical locals wages in cash. Which i didnt want anything to happen to. I knew once in the water it would be impossible to swim back to shore in time to prevent anybody from going through my things and running off.
Surveying the lava rocks as i passed i began to find ideal nooks and crannies in which i could hide my gear. But rejected each one as being too visible to anyone else walking down the same path i was on. I finally chose a hole along the top of one large section of lava rock that would be concealed from passerbys. Conveniently a scraggly tree with one particularly lanky branch that grew out above the canopy like a flagpole of foliage sat right behind the hiding spot making a natural landmark for me to use when looking for my hidden belongings later after i had finished snorkeling. Smiling i thought to my self, Edward Kenway would be proud of such a location to hide his own treasure.
The reef was harder to get to than i had imagined. Along the shore the reef was only 12 inches deep. Too shallow to swim across even if i tried sucking in my belly. Already wearing my flippers i decided the only thing i could do was army crawl across the rocks making sure not to disturb any coral. Once i had made it out past the initial reef i found the water much deeper. A good ten feet or so. And behold was a marine paradise.
It was sunny, the water crystal clear and visibility very high like a pristine swimming pool. Just below me a school of clownfish stared up at me from a large patch of anenome. Bold turquoise and mint green parrot fish swam along the sides of my legs and picasso triggerfish hunted in and out of the corals.
Surfacing to check my new surroundings and double check my hiding spot only to find nobody anywhere near me as they were all still at the base of the cove i dove back under, relaxing my worries about my hidden gear. I realised that the reef went for nearly a kilometre in any direction.
This reef was unique from the prior two i had explored. It had far more variety in corals. Instead of bonnies, (rock spires of corals) there were vivid splotches of colours each a different type of coral like a Jackson pollok on a living canvas spreading out before me. Chartreuse, maroon, red, violet, lavender, royal blue and yellows were the palate nature had used to paint this masterpiece.
I quickly discovered that the cove was not one solid reef carpeting the entire sea bed. Instead the topography was like a massive underwater crater. The reef and the myriad of smaller fish encrusting the rim, while larger sea life inhabited the center bowl of the crater. As i cruised over the deeper water in the center of the cove i watched the occasional stingray shuffle around on the bottom making their way around giant blue star fish and sea cucumbers the size of your arm.
Again i saw my new friend the yellow lipped sea krait and watched him undulate along the sandy expanses and search every rock and growth of coral for food. Although the thrill of swimming with venomous sea snakes never gets old, this time i only followed this one for maybe fifteen minutes.
Dead center at the deepest part of the cove i spied something glinting in the sunlight maybe 35 feet down. Curious i dove down to get a better look and found a childs tricycle sitting upright on the bottom. It looked like it had been there for a few years. It was a strange thing to find sitting hundreds of feet out from shore. It must have been dropped there off a boat but most boats would not be able to get over the shallows of the outer reef, and dive charters stayed to the outskirts of the reef. So it must have took some effort to place it there.
Almost forgetting about my hidden stash on the shore after an hour of swimming, i quickly surfaced and hoped i didnt see kids pilfering through my bag. Happily there wasn't a soul in sight. Everyone had gone home or left save for a pair of dogs clearly buddies trotting along the beach. I could even still spot the one unique tree and figure out the location of where my gear was safely hidden.
I scanned a 360 in the water and decided the reef must really be spectacular out near the mouth of the cove where the waves were gently breaking over the shallow corals and swam lazily in that direction.
The reef here was composed of tall rocks covered in corals forming deep canyon like ravines carved by the seaward currents over time. Different types of fish inhabited the walls of the little canyons at different depths. One particularly intriguing canyon had large car sized boulders that had fallen in between the walls and lodged themselves creating natural arbors and tunnels to swim under and through. A school of yellow and black striped morish idol, their long banner like fins rippling in the current behind them inhabited one of the crevases. Angel and butterfly fish, their angular crosshatches of bold markings hovered under one of the stone arches. I dove down and through one of the schools. The confident fish excepted my presence and didnt scatter when i got close. It was sureal.
Out past the edge of the reef in the "open ocean" the sea floor plunged out of site below me and the water changed several hues darker in color. Out in the distance i saw a large shadow slowly swimming but i couldnt make out what it was. Was it a shark? Dugong? Dolphin or manta ray? I dont know, but i knew i was close enough to the reef that i could quickly seek protection in its shallower waters if things got a little hairy.
I kept my eye on the dark shadow as it lurked below me somewhere near the bottom until i felt like the increasing current was becoming tiresome and i swam back towards the shore, aiming for the scraggly tree marking my treasure.
I had not noticed that the tide had come in and the narrow ribbon of shoreline was completely submerged now. Only under 18 inches of water but all the alcoves i had originally thought to stash my gear in were now underwater. In my urge to get in the water i didn't account for the tide. If not for my last second decision to hide my bag in a hole on top of the lava rock my tablet would have been underwater and i wouldn't be typing this account to share with you guys. I got lucky by an arbitrary decision i had made and averted disaster.
The water in the shallows along shore were ridiculously hot. Without exaggeration maybe 90-92 degrees. Right where i was standing was soft white sand with occasional beds of short ribbons of green seagrass that swayed with the lapping of the tide. Some small fish here and there swam about searching for treats in the sand. It was like the worlds greatest jacuzzi. So i took off my fins and simply sat in the water for the next hour just enjoying the sun, the hypnotic patterns of the light on the surface and the soothing tendrils of hot water swishing through my toes and around my body.
Dave's makeshift hot tub
Just the water and me
It was getting late and i knew getting a bus back into town would be more challenging then it was getting the ride out. With the shoreline submerged i swam back to the palm tree lined base of the cove using a side stroke with one arm and holding my bag and tablet high in the air above the water in the other. Half an hour later i had made it past the reef shallows and close enough to normal sandy beaches where i could walk to shore. My right shoulder relieved it did not have to hoist the bag up anymore.
I had made my way back to the dirt road and since my feet were still wet and i didnt want to get my shoes so soaked and filled with beach grit i opted to walk down that dirt road barefoot knowing it was a good kilometre or two before id see a bus. But that was ok. I wanted to feel the ground beneath my feet. Take it all in.
Taking my time i idly strolled down the road, past the village and towards town. At one point a caravan of UN relief helpers drove by in a caravan of SUVs. They barely noticed me and splashed me with a puddle of water on the shoulder as they drove past. A few minutes later a lorry full of locals standing in the bed and sitting on the roof cruised by. Everyone waved and smiled. I think partly amused to see a foreigner barefoot, muddy and seemingly unperturbed strolling down the road out here instead of hiding behind the walls of their villas and resorts.
Eventually i made my way nearly to town when i came across a concrete and heavily fenced fortress. A bright red flag flew in the ocean breeze on top. The chinese consulate. And luckily a few busses awaiting travelers parked in front. I walked up to the window of the first one and asked for my hotel. He smiled and nodded and i hopped in.
Little bit of Chinese consulate on right. Just after the bus had picked me up.
Off we raced back towards town through the relatively upscale area just on the outskirts of the port.
The rest of the evening i floated in the hotel pool letting the chlorine cleanse any of the scratches i recieved by the coral and made my way to an early night in bed forgetting to eat dinner entirely. A summer shower had come through and i listened to the rhythmic patter of rain on the roof and fell asleep quickly.
As usual uploads of pretty flowers i took while out on the adventure
Delonix regia- Royal Ponciana known here on the island as "Christmas Tree" because it blooms during the holidays. Its one of my favorite landscaping plants. Bold and copious red flowers and light green feathery leaves shaped into a beautiful canopy.
Pink Ginger and Torch Ginger
Heliconia pendula
Heliconia bihai -"Claw 1"
All pictures by Steemydave