A glimpse of Eden
Since our arrival Timei has been telling us about the camping trip he’s planned for us on the other side of the island. We’re off for one magical week, on an arm of sand, under the shade of a coconut plantation. On one side the sand stretches out about 50 meters away from the coast to create an idyllic channel for smooth paddling. On the other side, the reef ends right in front of our camp, letting a right-hander unfold in the lagoon. A few hundred meters further down the beach, another pass offers a long right and a shorter but hollower left. As if it wasn’t already perfect, half a mile offshore, Cook Island is a true bird sanctuary. They come here from as far as Alaska to reproduce. A long left-hander peels in the middle of the bay. At sunset, thousands of silhouettes flit around in the incandescent red light of the sky. Needless to say that there is no one around, for miles.
Timei came with the whole family: wife, daughters, cousins, to share this 5 star camping trip. It took two boat trips to get everything here. Lou and Shadé are learning to weave mats out of coconut leaves. The biggest ones are used as tablecloths, for an afternoon nap or as a mat at the entrance of our tents. Smaller models are used as plates. The young kids climb up to fetch some coconuts. Nothing beats this delicious water to quench everyone’s thirst. We drink huge amounts of it. We become aware of the important role the coconut tree plays on this island. It really is the tree of life.
“ We knew roughly where the ship was, but in the vast wilderness I couldn’t help but think of all of the stories of small planes going down never to be heard of again… ”
