One of the most beautiful places on earth—the outer atolls of the Republic of the Marshall Islands in Micronesia.
In the travel world, these atolls rank as billion dollar destinations!
But the truth is, it’s simply not possible to put a price on what you can experience on this adventure. The untouched, natural beauty of these atolls is the setting for a multitude of offerings. Breathtaking, captivating, and ultimately priceless.
I had the opportunity recently to visit the atolls of Wotho, Lae and Namorik…
I flew from the Capital of Majuro to each of these atolls on the country’s domestic carrier, Air Marshall Islands.
It was a very comfortable ride on the 34-seat Dash8 to the atolls of Wotho & Lae. Both atolls have mostly grass runways and, much to my surprise, we had very smooth landings – which I got to experience seated in the cockpit!
To Namorik we took the 18-seat Dornier which was a small aircraft but nevertheless still provided a smooth ride..
Once in the air, the sights were so incredibly breathtaking … the islets looked like a string of pearls gently strung across the beautiful blue ocean.
On the ground, the beaches were gorgeous and absolutely stunning, with such magnetic pulls that I could not help but immerse myself in the water.
The people—warm, friendly and welcoming. In fact, it seemed like they all came out to greet us upon our arrival. It was only later that I learned that this greeting is one of their traditions. They actually closed the school so all of the kids could go to the landing area. The “tradition” being that visitors bring candy to hand out to the smiling children. Sadly, we didn’t have enough for all 100+ kids but next time, I’ll be sure to bring a couple of cases!
The food—all fresh and locally grown. The coconut crab was to die for—absolutely delicious.
Throughout all of the atolls, the primary industry is copra—dried coconut meat that is used to make refined & cold pressed coconut oil for bar soap, beauty oil, and cooking oil … for me, it was the BEST skin moisturizer and sunblock ever!
In addition to copra, the farming of black pearls on Namorik (also known as Namdrik) Atoll is yet another lucrative eco-friendly sustainable industry for the community.
According to the Marshall Islands Guide:
https://www.infomarshallislands.com/atolls-m-w/namdrik-atoll/
“The fact that Namdrik’s lagoon is enclosed, with no pass for boats, means it is pristine and perfect for growing pearls. Namdrik is the only place in the Marshall Islands where Black-lip pearl oysters are present in significant quantity, due to its enclosed pristine lagoon.”
The timing of our visit, however, was just a bit off. They had just done a harvest before we arrived at the station. Thus, all we saw was the preparation of their equipment for the next season’s hang.
If only I could have stayed a little longer, I would have discovered even more.
The Republic of the Marshall Islands—a destination that continues to impress me everytime I visit.
