Day 455: Cook Island and Benson Point

Jul 1 - Now that a time has been coordinated for snorkeling, I am free to fill the early morning with a walk around the north end of the lagoon.

A lot of rain the night before. It takes about 20 minutes to get pass the village and out into the palm groves.

It rained plenty last night, but the morning is clear and at this early hour already warm and humid. The sand track goes on past the houses to coconut groves. Here I veer off the track and to the lagoon. The edge of the lagoon here is past a wide flat area, with sand banks and mud flats. I can tell where the high tide mark is, based on vegetation. The mud flats are either smooth or hummocky, the latter indicating areas a bit lower in elevation. Now, the tide is down so much of this is exposed. There are a million crabs around, especially in the soft hummocky area, each with its own burrow.

I want to wade across the lagoon to a low island. It isn’t far, but impossible to gauge the depth. The mud here is sticky and sometimes my feet sink 20-30 cm past the bottom. My first attempt to cross is thwarted when I sink to chest level. Given that I am wearing a pack and holding my shoes, I can tell that if I slip any deeper, I will get everything wet, including my phone. Retreat to the sand bank and secure my pack and shoes under a bush. Go back to the channel and sure enough, must swim the deepest part.

Double rainbow. I did not have a large-angle lens on the phone to show both ends.

One of the drainage channels connecting the lagoon proper with flats that are only inundated at high tide.

Same channel, facing out to the lagoon proper.

The ‘island’ (really a peninsula when the tide is low) is a beautiful place, with long sandy beaches and no evidence of anyone being there. The only signs of humans I can find are two boards laying under a bush. It is amazing that in this part of the lagoon, despite its proximity to a population center, is devoid of trash on the shore. Swim back across the channel and head back to the resort.

These open-sided structures are everywhere in town, and are called maneabas (meeting houses). Some are public, to be used by anyone, while others are private, owned by one church or another. I note that some people sleep in them at night. These are people too poor to have houses yet or have recently immigrated without means to set themselves up anywhere else.

The boat guide and assistant arrive by 10:00. We are told they can probably locate an extra mask, so there is a long delay while they find it. Finally head out across the lagoon at 11:00, in a tiny boat with a couple of folding chairs set up in the middle for us. It’s the kind of boat where you just hope a squall doesn’t start up. Fortunately, all three of us are outfitted with full water suits, so have almost no skin exposed to the sun.

Our snorkeling yacht.

Go out past London to a finger of land that denotes the end of this side of the island. Past this is the channel that connects the vast interior lagoon to the open ocean. The point at which the sea floor drops away is indicated by the large waves breaking as they hit the trace of the atoll.

There is an island in the middle of the lagoon mouth called Cook Island. This is a bird sanctuary, which requires a permit to set foot on. It is teeming with sea birds. We see noddy, tern, petrels, and lesser albatrosses. Some of the birds follow us, divebombing the boat in hopes that we are cleaning fish.

The snorkeling site is just off a gravel/sand bar north of Benson Point (Google maps shows this area with the name ‘Paris’). This is the other tip of Kiritimati, that borders the sea connection between the lagoon and the ocean. Unlike the northern tip, there is no sign of human habitation. To get an idea of the geometry of this excursion, refer to the map below.

Today’s route: Lagoon View Resort, past London and Cook Island, to Benson Point. Then return swings by Motu Upua.

Cook Island.

There is some current, but it is manageable. The dive area is flat with sand at four meters depth, random coral heads rising to two meters. Visibility is good (unlike inside the lagoon), probably 20 meters. The coral is all hard, with abundant giant clams. Plentiful fish, some larger species present that I think are what the fishermen are looking for. A few notable absences, such as lionfish, starfish, sea anemones, and clownfish. I swim into the shallow zone by the gravel bar. Here, in barely 75 cm of water, are six young black-tip sharks. They flit away when I get too close and are easier to see when I just stand up and look at them from above the water.

Janet finds an octopus, so we spend about twenty minutes observing it. It is a large one, hiding in a cave below a coral head. I think it took refuge here when Janet saw it, because there is a fish that keeps attacking it as though trying to get it out. For a time, it covers the cave entrance, almost standing like a person with some tentacles in the sand and head at the top, two tentacles at its side like arms. When the fish irritates it, it flails out an arm as though punching it with a fist. The resemblance to a person is uncanny. During this time, its color changes from a milky white to dark brown/red with white spots, and a curious white pattern running down its ‘forehead’.

The octopus defending its hiding place.

I’m sure the octopus gets tired of us floating around looking at it, but it is quite fascinating to watch.

Benson Point and Paris.

We take a detour to a flat lagoon area near the island of Motu Upua. Here, there are spotted eagle rays drifting along just under the surface. They are easily visible only because the bottom is white sand.

Returning to the resort.

Kiribati