11 Mar - Six Waterfalls Hike Pohnpei

Since arriving on Pohnpei we have been hearing about the Six Waterfalls hike. We have been saying, yeah yeah, we'll get to that. Well with our time quickly running out on Pohnpei it is time to kick the 'bucket list' items into touch. Grouper dive last weekend, Six Waterfalls this weekend. With the kids safe and sound with their favourite babysitters off we went with a group of about 15 others. It was dry when we started, but not for long. That's life in Pohnpei..... Here we are at Waterfall Number One. A welcome sight after about an hours bashing through the bush.

Our friend Jamie and her Dad (visiting from the US of A) joined us as well. As with most things we do on Pohnpei it ends up being with people you mostly know. It's a small island.

Waterfall Number Two.

Nic arms out in the middle of the photo. There was no where to hide from the rain. At least it wasn't cold.

Waterfall Number Three. Just a little wet and I hadn't even been swimming yet.

In between the waterfalls there were plenty of really pretty sections of the river system.

Waterfall Number Four.

Waterfall Number Five.

Lets just call this the 'before' photo. Remember this one as you'll find yourself scrolling back up the blog in a second or two.

The last waterfall was a swim up entry were you waded out to the centre of the river first. Quite the adventure.

Glenn was up ahead of most of us. This photo shows him swimming back from the waterfall.

Once you swam through the section in the previous photo this is where you came out. Needless to say it was a pretty hard swim just to make it through the gap.

The rapids feeding into the photo above.

Waterfall Number Six.

This if Waterfall Number Five on the way out. It had been raining for about three hours and what a difference a short amount of time makes. In the half an hour we were at the last waterfall the river came up about a foot and all the waterfalls had at least double the water flowing over them compared to when we went part them the first time.

Glenn and Steve had finished up at the last waterfall before everyone else and positioned themselves on the side of the river we walked in on. Little did they know that we were leaving via the mountain on the opposite side. There is no comfortable or safe way across that river boys.

This is the 'after' shot that is linked to the photo above. The river changed from pretty much benign to a torrent in half an hour.

Our local Pohnpean guides had their work cut out for them getting Glenn and Steve back to the group. One of the young lads swam across the torrent (read gradually making it across while being swept a hundred metres downstream and not impaling himself on a river rock) with the safety line and one at a time escorted the lads across.

Slightly damper (if that's possible) than the rest of us but safe and sound.

After a great adventure at the waters edge it was another hours hike out back to the cars. Nothing hard about the day, slow and steady and it was great fun. No doubt if the river had of been high at the start we wouldn't have seen Waterfalls Four, Five and Six but luckily the rain didn't really affect the day too much. Glenn and Steve may disagree.

Another great day on Pohnpei. Enough of this hiking and diving. Time to kill some fish...... That's next weekend, maybe, hopefully.....