Solomon Islands
Ranongga Island
An earthquake lifted this reef clear of the sea, and it never went back.
The old reef stands in the sun, coral heads bleached white and tide pools stranded a full storey above the sea. Everything about this shoreline says it used to be underwater.
When the earthquake struck in April 2007 it pushed Ranongga's whole coastline upward, and the reef came with it. The lift was uneven, about 3.6 metres at the southern end and less further north. What is exposed now is both a geological record and an ecological loss, and it changed springs, shoreline and fishing access for the people who live with it. A guide who was here in 2007 is what turns a walk along dead coral into that story.
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Solo
Walking a shoreline that used to be underwater needs a guide who was here in 2007, and that conversation happens more easily one to one.
Couple
A day walking exposed reef with someone explaining what each part used to be is quiet, strange, and not like anywhere else in the country.
Friends
The walking is easy and the talking is the point, which suits a group wanting a day that is not diving.
- The April 2007 earthquake lifted Ranongga's coastline, leaving living reef stranded above the tide.
- Uplift was uneven and reached about 3.6 metres in the south.
- The change altered coastal ecology and local access, not just the look of the shoreline.
- A community guide connects the raised reef to what it did to people here, instead of turning it into a spectacle.
The village guesthouse cooks what the day's catch and the garden give, and there is no second option.
Bananas and pineapple from Gizo's market for the crossing over.
Abaiang
Kiribati
At high tide the sea surrounds Tebunginako's church; the village choir times services around it.
Abbotsbury
England
A swannery where six hundred mute swans nest in reed beds behind the Chesil Bank.
Abel Tasman National Park
New Zealand
Golden bays between forested headlands, reached only on foot, by kayak or water taxi.
Aberdaron
Wales
A church on the sand where pilgrims ate their last meal before the island crossing.
Anuta
Solomon Islands
Three hundred people, one mile of island, and a supply ship once or twice a year.
Are'are Coast
Solomon Islands
Bamboo pipes in their dozens weave a melody that no single player is carrying.
Arnavon Islands
Solomon Islands
Hawksbill turtles nest on beaches three communities agreed to stop hunting.
Bellona Island
Solomon Islands
Everything arrives thrown through the surf at a cleft in the cliffs; Bellona has no harbour.