Well-heeled adventure tourists make stops on North Pacific atolls and islands aboard the “Caledonian Sky”
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- Category: News
- Published: Friday, 17 May 2019 04:59
- Written by Bill Jaynes
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By Bill Jaynes
The Kaselehlie Press
March 10, 2019
Pohnpei--Mwoakillese traditional dancers greeted the passengers of crew of the “Caledonia Sky” as they arrived at the Pohnpei Port late on Sunday morning. The sun broke through the clouds dispelling to insistent rain just in time as the bow of the vessel came into view.
The 74 guests aboard the luxury vessel each paid a minimum of $14,000 for the cruise that departed from Rabaul, Papua New Guinea on March 7. The cruise was offered by Zegrahm Expeditions which has been offering “one-of-a-kind expeditions to remote locations for 25 years. During their first day at sea, lecturers introduced them to the history of the Federated States of Micronesia.
The vessel’s first landing was in Touhou, Kapingamarangi on March 8 while shell horns blew and locals sang and danced for the entertainment of the guests. There they toured the community, snorkeled, and took part in wreck dives guided by the Kapingamarangi Chief who is a dive master.
On the next day they arrived in Nukuoro where in addition to taking a walking tour of the island, they visited the school where they donated school supplies. There was also a short opportunity for diving and snorkeling in Nukuoro’s pristine waters before the vessel departed for Pohnpei’s main island at 1:00 in the afternoon.
On arrival in Pohnpei, guests were whisked to buses past the local vendors who were on hand to sell offering a variety of products from Nukuoro black pearls to Kapingamarangi carvings and hand crafts.
Three tours were offered. All of the tours included visits to Kolonia and the Catholic Bell Tower, Nan Madol World Heritage site and the beautiful Kepirohi waterfall, while each offered slightly different emphases. One of the groups made a visit to the Adam’s family residence to view their private collection of WWII era tanks. Another group spent some time at the Pohnpei Botanical Garden for bird watching.
After a five hour tour, the guests returned to the port where they spent a short period of time shopping. Local vendors at the Port were H&D Store; LP Gas; Prints, Signs, and Solutions; Nukuoro Black Pearl; and Kapingamarangi Handicrafts shops.
After leaving the port, the vessel steamed to Oroluk.
The ship was scheduled to sail in a westerly direction with stops in Chuuk, Pulap, Satawal, Gaferut, Ifalik, Sorol, Ngulu, with disembarkation in Koror, Palau.
