PAPUA NEW GUINEA#4 : The forgotten atolls ! - Report -

During the winter of 2010, I cast Aurora's anchor to Nuguria Island, one of those "forgotten" atolls that do not have air connexion with the major economic centers of the great land. Here, the visit of a cargo ship is the only monthly meeting connecting the islanders to urban life. This is an opportunity not to miss to retrieve and send his mail, replenish the clinic drugs, sell the copra and shark fins, get some gas at prices abusive, buy some food products from base, or embark for a long stay in Grande Terre. The sea being the only link to the outside, the arrival of my sailboat Aurora, still creates a mini emotion in the village.

Left to their own devices, the locals have been able to cultivate a smile and an incredible sense of hospitality. Daily life is focused on fishing and garden cultivation. The only means of communication with the main town is the SSB radio. It is by radio that the drugs are ordered and the cargo ships inform of their arrival. These atolls are true tropical paradises. Deserted islands with arched coconut palms, islands of white sand, a dazzling coral reef, everything is grouped to fantasize lovers of postcards. If isolation imposes slow motion as the speed of development for these corners of paradise, it is also the main factor of preservation. Far from the excesses of modernity and mass tourism, the traveler-host relationship has kept a sincerity that the relationship to money has disappeared in many other paradises around the globe.

I travel to dive, and in Melanesia a dive begins with obtaining permission from the customary chief. Because here, the sea is a private property and to present itself before the customary authorities will be a sign of politeness very appreciated which will open many doors. My nautical chart is unfolded in front of Bill and Ryat, two fishermen from Nuguria Island, one of those atolls forgotten by the Papuan authorities since the events of Bougainville. Opinions fuse, fingers crush in turn on the piece of paper indicating a drop, a pass, a coral potato, and finally the choice is made, go tomorrow at dawn for the exploration of the exit of the Akani pass. The Nuguria Reef Slope is typical of those islands in the region that emerge from the deep sea. Between 60 and 80m of a first verticality, giving way to a small ledge on a second wall that we consider as definitive ... There is no need to have a lot of scuba divers here! Suffice to say that a first meeting with a "bubble diver" will not leave without reaction the fish of the corner! This results is escape, curiosity or unreasonable approaches, but never indifference. Some even forget that they could be, in other conditions, prey and predators. Thus a stingray and a gray shark share in front of me a piece of road together within a few centimeters of each other. Too busy with the diver's presence to get in trouble. Deeper, giant sea fans and soft coral take their place in these gigantic places and inspire a meditation that narcosis greatly facilitates.

Preserving their islands is also one of the concerns of the local population in Nuguria. At "Wild Life", a natural reserve, birds enjoy a totally virgin and protected airspace. Small sharks and turtles also benefit from this area protected by the locals to enjoy a space where they will not be hunted, not here ... "It is so that we remain something in the future .. "explains Bill. The reefs are also exploited and protected. Recently, a Malaysian fishing company was hunted out of the area after being surprised using toxins to help catch fish. "They did not respect our agreement and used poisonous plants to fish, that kills everything and without selection, and we chased them out of the lagoon," says Bob Poplis, the village's customary chief.

That this rhythm and these methods are good to live! Reluctantly, without remembering why, and loaded with mail to transmit, I must leave. I'm still leaving. But I still have the memory of a perfectly balanced place to this day.