Satawal
Micronesia · Yap · 2 m
Description
Satawal is a single coral island at the eastern end of Yap State and one of the few places on earth where open ocean navigation without instruments is still practised rather than remembered. Mau Piailug was born here. Chosen as a child by his grandfather, initiated through the pwo ceremony, he read stars, swells, clouds and birds, and in 1976 he navigated the canoe Hokulea from Hawaii to Tahiti without instruments, then taught Nainoa Thompson so the knowledge would not die with him. There is no airstrip and no anchorage for a larger boat, so the field trip ship stands off and lands people by canoe.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 2 to 6 days (optimal 3 days)
Travel season
Best time to visit: January – April
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- The home island of the navigator Mau Piailug
- Carolinian navigation still in active use
- The pwo ceremony that initiates a master navigator
- Reading stars, swells, clouds and birds instead of instruments
- Where the Hokulea voyage to Tahiti began as knowledge
- Outrigger canoes still built and sailed
- The easternmost island of Yap State
- Landing by canoe from a ship standing offshore
- Reefs almost nobody has dived
- Snorkelling off an island without a hotel
- Beaches on a single coral island
- Seabirds and reef life undisturbed
- Life at the pace of the ship's timetable
Getting there
- Nearest airports:
- YAP