I recently spent 8 days with my North American counterpart, Michele Felberg on board the National Geographic Orion Vessel with Lindblad Expeditions. Each year Lindblad Expeditions kindly invite the three scholars to join them on one of their expeditions to learn from their expedition staff. Michele and I just so happened to ask for the same voyage; Solomon Islands to Fiji: The Hidden South Pacific. Over the 8 days on board this incredible vessel, we visited some of the most remote locations within these island countries and experienced an array of raw culture and nature’s wonders, both above and under the water. It was a truly memorable experience and enlightening to see age-old tradition still held in these remote communities.
We had an incredible team of expedition staff to learn from, and among them was Erin McFadden, the 2010 European Rolex Scholar. Erin was one of the undersea specialists for the trip, and Michele and I were able to work closely with her for the entire trip. Our first expedition day was spent on Owa Raha, Solomon Islands. As the zodiac beached the island, we were greeted by the local villagers with an ‘attack’ performance, as if they were protecting their island. We were then treated with some breathtaking performances from the community members, who had all convened from three separate villages on the island to show us these traditional dances. After the performances, Michele and I both went for the longer hike, and visited a very traditional village on the island, Nafinotoga. As the day came to an end, we boarded the Orion to set sail for Vanuatu, and spent the entire next day at sea.
Day 3 started off superbly, with about a dozen sperm whales greeting us just before breakfast. By mid morning we had anchored, and gathered in the zodiacs to head for Lelepa Island, Vanuatu. Again, we were welcomed with a very traditional performance from some of the island locals, and also with a delicious fresh coconut. In the afternoon, we were finally able to hit the water for our first dive of the trip around this beautiful island! It’s so amazing to be able to dive an area of reef that is almost untouched by humans. We spotted some nice lion fish, giant clams, tons of healthy coral and an array of schooling fish!
Day 4, probably my most memorable and favourite of the trip was split into several groups for different activities. Michele and I stuck with the divers, and we were dropped ashore on Esprito Santo Island with our dive equipment. We had the amazing chance to dive the SS President Coolidge and Million Dollar Point. The President Coolidge wreck was so much bigger than I could ever have imagined. I was grouped with Mike, the undersea specialist for the trip, Michele and a very experienced local dive guide. We explored the wreck with a 50 minute dive, but we just saw the tip of the iceberg because of its size. Mike was taking some video to show other guests later that evening. He decided to turn around and video me swimming through a small gap between two metal beams on the ship. I thought it was a great idea, and very slowly swam towards the camera, but didn’t think about my buoyancy as much and whacked the top of my tank on the top beam; it wasn’t such great footage after that!
Million Dollar Point was also incredible, with a really cool back story to explain all the different vehicle and ship wrecks, which you should definitely Google to have a read!
We set course overnight to head to our last stop in Vanuatu. By the early afternoon on day 5 we had anchored just off Tanna Island, Vanuatu. The divers snuck in a quick dive before joining the remaining explorers on shore. We didn’t expect to see very much, as this area was heavily affected by a large cyclone in recent years, but it was very surprising to see the amount of regrowth that had occurred after such a catastrophic natural event. Once ashore, we jumped in the back of a Ute for an adventurous and bumpy ride up to Mount Yasur volcano. I really didn’t know what to expect, visiting an active volcano. I was in absolute awe as soon as we arrived. The feel of the shockwave after an eruption is impossible to describe, and then to stand up and look into the pit and see cracks of lightening forming from the incredible energy within the volcano was unforgettable. I’m a firm believer that when you’re experiencing something as incredible as this, there is always time for a quick selfie!
Our next day was spent at sea as we headed towards Fiji, with Beqa Island as our first stop. Upon arrival on day 7 we were able to head out for another beautiful dive to a site the locals called ‘Twin Sisters”. It was two pockets of reef, each the shape and size of about half a football field just sat next to each other, with a beautiful wall that surrounded each of these. We had fantastic visibility, and the coral abundance & diversity was amazing.
In the evening we joined the other guests on Beqa Island for a traditional fire walk. The villagers on Beqa Island are well known for their ability to ‘walk on fire’, and they demonstrated in an encapsulating performance. Others (including us) were invited to participate as they had the ability to temporarily gift us with the ability to walk on the hot stones. No one from the expedition was game, including me!
Our last 2 days was spent just off Taveuni Island, Fiji. As divers we spent both of these days in the water as much as possible, and we seen some pretty amazing things. Beautiful clownfish, lionfish, nudibranchs, ells, crayfish and so much more!
We had such an incredible voyage, and we were so privileged to be able to observe such an experienced and knowledgeable expedition team. I definitely learned a lot from them!
