Saturday, September 22, 2007 - Off-road Island Tour
22 September 2007 | Nieafu, Tonga
Don
This morning a group of 13 cruisers including myself rented "off-road go-karts" and went on a guided tour of the island of Vava'u. We drove through jungle, swamp, and plantations and ascended to a couple of high mountain lookouts. The views were absolutely breathtaking with 1000 foot cliffs and whales breaching below. Off in the distance was the Tonga Trench, the second deepest water in the world at about 30,000 ft. We also saw a colony of large fruit bats hanging from tree branches. When we approached they took to flight, being quite impressive with a wingspan of 3-4 feet. All of this sightseeing was very "touristy" but worth it just the same.
Tomorrow the tourism continues when I join a whale watching group to "swim with the whales". Can't wait.
All else is well onboard. Old friends continue to arrive and depart.