Tahanea, French Polynesia, 4/9/2019, National Geographic Orion
Aboard the
National Geographic Orion
French Polynesia & Pacific Islands
This voyage had some of the best offerings that travelers and wildlife seekers could hope for: superb Pacific weather, warm and gorgeous waters, along with company equally as charming. Our visit to Tahanea was no exception to any of these. Here are five photographs to give a viewing sense of the local marine life we had the good fortune of encountering.
A self confessed “animal nerd,” Chris falls under many titles: marine biologist, marine interpreter, dive master, science communicator, and naturalist. Chris was lucky enough to grow up on the East Coast of Australia, where there are no shortage of d...
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Today is the day that everyone dreads, the last sea day of the voyage as National Geographic Resolution powers her way towards the island of Rapanui. We experienced so many memories and powerful moments throughout this voyage. The early morning began with an art tour that highlighted the exhibits on the ship. Ably led by cultural specialist Jennifer Kingsley, guests were captivated by her interpretations of the art as she shared about the artists’ visions and ideas. National Geographic photographer Susan Seubert led a workshop on the workflow associated with digital photography. Afterwards, we began preparing for tonight’s slideshow by gathering the photos that will remind us of each day of this voyage. Mid-afternoon, expedition leader Alex Searle, an expert on Rapanui, began to prepare us for what awaits with a presentation about the island. Teatime was a special wine tasting event, and we ended the day with our Captain’s Farewell cocktail party. Captain Heidi Norling gave a heartfelt recap of the entire voyage, and we completed the day with an auction of some very special items. Kenneth Valdueza, a member of our deck team, illustrated a gorgeous chart of the region we have travelled. With fabulous, intricate pencil drawings, he brought the undersea world to life with representations of a blacktip reef shark, a spotted eagle ray, a sea turtle, and various creatures from the reef. Guests were blown away by his artwork, and two of our guests made a generous donation to the crew fund for the opportunity to take this beautiful artwork home with them. Cheers, everyone.
Today we find ourselves in the middle of the Pacific Ocean on a trek east. From Pitcairn Island to Rapanui, it is well over 1,000 nautical miles. On this stint of our journey, it’s a lovely time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the amenities of our beautiful home, National Geographic Resolution … We all participated in a multitude of activities today. After a morning stretch class and breakfast, we had a photo workshop conducted by Certified Photo Instructor Jose Calvo and National Geographic photographer Susan Seubert. Tips and tricks were all well received. After lunch, we enjoyed a very special activity: the ship’s very first art tour, conducted by Jennifer Kingsley, cultural specialist. Art lover or not, it was the talk of the afternoon. Walking down corridors of the ship has a new meaning for many guests, as they now have a newfound appreciation of the pieces that line the interior. One of the pieces was inspired by polar bear hair, and it lives at the head of the main stairway on each floor. That means it spans from deck 3 all the way up to deck 8! Blown and twisted glass sits against a black backdrop, representing the translucent, hollow fur and black skin of a polar bear. We had a special teatime with fresh sushi and sashimi. Following dinner, the crew showcased some of their talent via a crew show. Amazing is an understatement! Singers and dancers got our guests moving, and we carried the party on and on! Text by Michael Desiderio
After our experience on Pitcairn Island yesterday, we sailed ahead with a much better idea of how isolated we are out here in the South Pacific. During the night, we were treated to views of the constellation Maui’s Hook, also known as Scorpio. As the sun rose, we could see nothing but ocean in all directions. We passed the morning at sea with presentations by two of our naturalists. Cristian Moreno talked about coral restoration, and Margrit Ulrich shared stories about protected areas and the role of UNESCO. By lunchtime, we could see the low profile of Ducie Atoll, the southernmost coral atoll in the Pacific and the last one we will see on this voyage. It is very difficult to make a landing here, but the scouting party found a narrow passage between the rocks and the swell. With the help of our shore team—up to their armpits in water—we got everyone ashore who wanted to experience this unusual place. The island is a critical breeding area for Murphy’s petrels. We also saw herald petrels, white terns, red-footed boobies, and red-tailed tropicbirds. This island has no rats or cats, so ground nesters are prolific. The thick tournefortia bushes had many fluffy chicks beneath their branches. The thick brush and vulnerable birds made it impossible to cross the island, so we wandered along the coral beach as birds swooped overhead. The water was so clear that we could see reef fish from the shore. Farther out, we observed a humpback whale come very close to our dive boat. After Ducie Atoll, we won’t see any land until we reach Rapanui three days from now. This voyage is giving us all a sense of how enormous the Pacific Ocean really is.
