Many islands here are private, some were sold cheaply 200 or 100 years ago to be exploited as plantations (the islanders displaced or used as cheap labour), others were sold recently to be holiday homes or resorts for the super-rich. Dietrich Mateschitz owned one, another one belongs to Mel Gibson… We anchored close to a bird island that was bought by an Australian in 2004 to be turned into an exclusive resort, but the project never was finished and the birds were left alone for another decade. The anchorages are open and rolly, but we still spent a few days there watching birds and turtles (now is the season when the females come ashore to lay their eggs).
Wailangilala
We were happy to find one of the few remaining bird islands in the South Pacific with large colonies of boobies, noddies and terns--only to discover that it's for sale, hopefully the new owner won't ruin it... Just 3 Million USD ;-)
(32 photos)
