It was time to start exploring Easter Island. We started on the southern point, at the ruins of Orongo. Most folks think of Easter Island in terms of the stone heads, the moai, but before discovery, that was supplanted by a different religion/culture.
The culture of the Birdman was centered at the southern volcano, Rano Kau.
First, let me show you a map of Rapa Nui.
Hanga Roa, on the west side, is the main village, and where we are staying. Alan and I are in the Tupa Hotel, while Machi and his family are at a residencia a bit north of us.
Orongo is located on the southern volcano (dormant) of the island, and it is part of the Rapa Nui National Park.
There are two ways to get there. You can drive to the top (which is what Alan, Virginia, and Lucas did), or you can start at the trail at the bottom and hike up.
Guess what Machi and I did.
(“Sendero” means “trail”.)
So up we climbed. It really wasn’t that high—about 400 meters to the top. Here’s a look back at Hanga Roa from about mid-slope.
And a bit more of the bay with me in the picture.
It was a fairly easy climb—it was more the heat, sun, and wind that made it a challenge. (Rapa Nui seems to have nearly constant winds of about 20 miles per hour.)
And here’s the caldera of the volcano.
As you can see, it is filled with water, with various bog plants growing in the water. Believe it or not, this is where the whole island gets its drinking water—there just isn’t any other on the island. There are no streams since the soil is a loose volcanic ash and all the water just soaks right into it.
You can see the rim of the caldera dip where it meets the Pacific Ocean, the deeper blue behind. We’re not sure if that is purely erosive (from the waves via the Pacific) or if it is also related to how the volcano let loose in the first place. But it is a spectacular sight.
We then followed the trail that followed the ridgeline of the caldera, arriving at Orongo. Orango contains ruins related to the worship of Make-Make, which replaced the ancestor worship that created all of the moai. As resources were exhausted, the older ways fell apart, and Make-Make and the Birdman culture arose in its place. The Birdman culture had a major rite associated with the arrival of sooty terns in the spring, and their laying of their eggs on small offshore islands.
Men would camp out at the small islands (e.g., Motu Kau Kau), and the man who brought back the first egg (swimming and climbing the cliff face). The “winner” became the Birdman for the year, and was considered sacred during this time.
The village up there was made of stone houses (eerily reminiscent of pueblo ruins, but without any mortar, with just a single story). Why would you need such structures in such a mild climate? Mainly, I suspect, as protection from the constant strong winds.
Here’s a cut-away view of the construction of one of the houses.
(Photo credit: Alan Bruens)
When the men headed out to the small islands, they had a route that took them along the caldera rim to the lowest spot along the Pacific; they’d then swim to the islands.
Here’s Machi and me along the official trail.
(Photo credit: Alan Bruens)
We then hiked down and all met for a great dinner. Again, bare feet are just fine in all the restaurants (though you really don’t see very many of them at all.)
The hike up looks very nice underfoot, but that trail at the top looks gravelly and rough. Is that why you’re on the grass in the last pic?
I’m not sure how you dealt with the volcanic soil, but in El Salvador I had to resort to flips once in a while… the grit is something I’m just not used to. After a week, I was more used to it, but on a hike at the volcano at Alegria, ES, I again had to cave…
Anemone: yes, that trail has been “improved”. When I am out on gritty surfaces for too long I do get footsore (particularly since this trip has really increased my barefoot hiking mileage), so I’ll look for more forgiving surfaces, if I have a chance.
Machi, however, is incredible—he just keeps walking unconcernedly over whatever surface there is; heck, he doesn’t even look where he puts his feet. Nothing seems to faze him.
Brian: I haven’t had any problems on any of the volcanic surfaces I’ve hiked on. Admittedly, some of it was grass, but the caldera trail wasn’t, and other hikes I did later (but probably won’t blog until next week) we on the volcanic, ashy rock and I didn’t really have any trouble.
Those houses look incredible, there’s real workmanship in them. I bet if we hadn’t disturbed that tribe they would still be in use.
Robert the Bob is an excellent companion for hiking, we were joking all along, up and down the trail, and that made it very enjoyable.
He is also so much gringo that he even made it to the top singing “Yankee Doodle”
Machi
Let me just add some context here: we were joking about whether we were in any danger from NSA drones (considering the revolutionary I was hiking with), so singing “Yankee Doodle” was my attempt at repelling a drone strike. 😉