Max group size: 110

Itinerary

Thursday & Friday, August 26 & 27

USA / Honolulu, Hawaii / Guam

Depart on your independent flight to Guam via Honolulu. Day lost crossing the International Date Line. Arrive in Guam the evening of August 27th. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.

Saturday, August 28

Guam / Embark Clipper Odyssey

The morning is at leisure before lunch at our hotel. We have a short tour of this fascinating island before boarding the Clipper Odyssey in the late afternoon.

Sunday, August 29

Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Our lecturers introduce us to the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), formerly the Caroline Islands, whose long colonial history includes administration by the U.S. after WWII. Many of the islands of Yap State are so remote that the traditional villages are nearly untouched by tourism.

Monday, August 30

Yap, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)

Today experience the many facets of Yap Island. Explore its villages via motorcoach with our lecturers and a local guide. Walk along ancient stone pathways, past fields of taro, and through dense forests to observe stone foundations from previous cultures. Visit a pebai, community house; view wunbey, the flat stone platforms where the elder men of the village hold meetings; and photograph Yap’s famed stone money, the biggest and heaviest money in the world. Or, choose to take a kayaking tour and explore the inner reefs and mangroves of the island, or dive the wondrous reefs of Yap.

In the afternoon we hope to snorkel and dive at close range with manta rays. Magnificent leviathans with wingspans 7 – 14 feet across, the mantas are in Yap daily to feed and have their gills groomed by cleaner wrasses.

Tuesday, August 31

Sorol Island

This morning watch for green turtles as our Zodiacs zigzag through coral reefs and shallow sandbars to land on a white sand beach. On this tiny uninhabited island, groves of coconut palms adorn the lagoon shore as sooty terns and white-tailed tropicbirds soar overhead. Snorkel over a coral drop-off or enjoy a dive in deeper waters populated by large pelagic fish. We spend the afternoon cruising the Pacific Ocean and enjoying the many amenities the Clipper Odyssey has to offer.

Wednesday, September 1

Ifalik Atoll

We may spot common bottlenose dolphins playing in our wake as we approach Ifalik. This classic tiny circular atoll, with only three islets, represents the most authentic aspects of Micronesia’s traditional state, Yap. The chiefs are intent upon maintaining cultural integrity—motor-powered boats are banned within the lagoon, as are televisions in the village. Our expedition leader goes ashore to sit in the large A-frame men’s house with the village elders to respectfully request their permission for our visit. Ashore, the islanders show us their thatched-roofed houses set under shady trees. After lyrical dances by grass-skirted women, we are free to wander and admire the island handicrafts, including unique fish hooks fashioned from golden-lipped pearl shells. In the afternoon choose to snorkel, dive, sail in one of the handsome outrigger canoes, or go birding with our ornithologist. We may spot a large monitor lizard hiding in the coconut palm fronds, a Micronesian starling or wandering tattler, or come face-to-face underwater with a goldring surgeonfish or the giant green Napoleon wrasse.

Thursday, September 2

Lamotrek Atoll

Be on deck as we enter the large, stunning lagoon of Lamotrek Atoll. Once ashore local dancers perform a welcome ceremony and share faluvwa, a local coconut wine that is enjoyed widely in Micronesia. In the afternoon we snorkel from the beach over stunning coral gardens full of colorful reef fish including lionfish, pipefish, and moray eels. Divers venture via Zodiac to the edges of the reef, keeping an eye out for black-tipped reef sharks and other pelagics.

Friday, September 3

Satawal Island

Our captain expertly guides the ship near the reef and waits as we join our historian and ornithologist for walks on shore. The village maidens, adorned in lava-lava skirts, their skin tinted by turmeric, present welcoming dances. Meet the exuberant young boys of the island, whose skills in tropical waters are so fine-tuned that they seem “half-fish.” The men of Satawal, famed for their mastery of ocean navigation without the use of instruments, still voyage between the islands of Micronesia in outrigger canoes, steering by the sun, stars, and swells.

Saturday, September 4

Pulap Atoll

Both Pulap village and Tamatam village are known for their skilled navigators, whose expertise also shines in the construction of long canoes made of breadfruit wood. Older canoes are hand-sewn with traditional sennit, and may feature the silhouette of a black frigatebird on the bow. With the chief’s permission, wander at leisure through this traditional village; locals may be pleased to give us a ride in an outrigger sailing canoe. Snorkel, dive, beachcomb, or sit under a palm tree to enjoy the afternoon on a perfect islet with a shallow aquamarine lagoon to our right and the deep indigo Pacific to our left.

Sunday, September 5

Chuuk (Truk) Island

This spectacular and enormous coral- fringed lagoon shelters 15 high islands of volcanic origin. The dramatic scenery ranges from lush rain forests and waterfalls, to deserted beaches and small villages. Chuuk’s lagoon is a world-renowned paradise for wreck divers. In 1944, American bombers sunk 60 Japanese Imperial Navy vessels and aircraft which sheltered here—the armada visible today in an intriguing and vast museum-like underwater environment of unparalleled mystery. Nature has transformed these wrecks into a wonderland, colonized by a mosaic of corals, sponges, anemones, and sea fans, which are the playground of fish by the thousands and can be explored by both divers and snorkelers. Zodiacs whisk us to idyllic white sandy shores and dazzling coral reefs teeming with life, while birders search the palm-laden islets for seabirds in this lagoon of astonishing variety and extravagant natural beauty.

Monday, September 6

Oroluk Atoll

This classic atoll’s ring of coral has only a few islets around its perimeter, and is inhabited by a family of eight who show us their gardens of hibiscus, banana, and sweet potato. A short forest walk takes us past taro to a copra processing area. Beachcomb along the lovely shoreline keeping an eye out for hawksbill and Pacific green sea turtle nests, while birders look for ruddy turnstones, black noddies, white-tailed tropicbirds, and Micronesian starlings. Snorkeling and diving are superb, with the chance to spot black-tipped reef sharks and coral trout.

Tuesday, September 7

Pohnpei

Pohnpei is a high volcanic island, with dense rain forests filled with towering trees, elegant ferns, tumbling waterfalls, and luxuriant mosses. Choose to visit the extensive WWII ruins on Lenger Island with our historian, with time to snorkel along rich reefs or to spot the Pacific golden-plover and Pacific reef heron. Or, hike along an upland nature trail where we glimpse the Pohnpei lory, Micronesian pigeon, and Pohnpei flycatcher. Another option is a full-day tour to Pohnpei’s famed archeological site, Nan Madol, a National Historic Landmark. We explore the 92 megalithic man-made islands, once the residence of the royalty and priests of the Saudeleurs from about the 12th to the 15th centuries.

Wednesday, September 8

Pohnpei / Honolulu, Hawaii, USA / Homeward

After breakfast disembark the Clipper Odyssey and transfer to the airport for your independent flights homeward. Gain a day by crossing the International Date Line; arrive in Honolulu after midnight on September 8th. Transfer to an airport hotel for a rest before morning flights, arrive home on the 8th.

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