A Tour of Pohnpei

By Ben Cook, co-author of Micronesia and Palau

Pohnpei is truly unique among Pacific islands. As you wander through Pohnpei’s lush rainforest, gaze through the mist of waterfalls at its soaring mountain peaks, and explore the mysterious ruins of Nan Madol, it is easy to forget which century you are in. Though it is considered to be the most Westernized island in Micronesia, Pohnpei retains a strong a connection to the past.

Kolonia Town, the largest population center and only town on Pohnpei, sits on a peninsula in the north of Pohnpei. It is hard to romanticize Kolonia, a sprawling, somewhat dirty town. When Oliver Sacks visited Pohnpei in 1994, he described Kolonia as “charming” and “sleepy,” but development has continued apace, and on weekdays the town can seem a bustling boom town compared to the rest of quiet Pohnpei.

First-time visitors to Pohnpei are often surprised by the mixture of old and new found in Kolonia Town. On Kolonia’s main road, small stalls where locals sell local food sit in the shadow of the FSM Telecommunications Corporation’s huge satellite dishes. On the waterfront, one can see fishermen paddling canoes through the mangroves while commercial jetliners thunder overhead several times every day. These juxtapositions are a defining part of the Pohnpei experience.

The Spanish Wall, one of very few remnants from the days of Spanish control, is located at the north end of the main road. The wall now serves as the outfield wall for a baseball field, but the wall is interesting as perhaps the oldest relic of colonialism in Pohnpei. Nearby is a German bell tower, part of a church constructed in the early 20th century. From the top of the tower, you can get a good view of sprawling Kolonia Town.

Scattered throughout Pohnpei are many relics of World War II, including a large gun on Sokehs ridge and the Japanese sugar mill, clearly visible at the top of a hill along the main road in Madolenihmw. Almost all of these Japanese relics are covered in rust and lack any markers or signposts whatsoever, but a Japanese tank parked near the tourism office in Kolonia is in reasonably good condition and is worth seeing.

Follow the road out of town to west, and you will reach Sokehs municipality, which includes both Sokehs Island and the northwest sector of Pohnpei. Sokehs Island sits across Kolonia Harbor from town and is topped by the distinctive Sokehs Rock, one of the most memorable features of Pohnpei’s physical landscape and the first that most visitors to Pohnpei see. This mountain is emblazoned on many souvenir T-shirts and coffee mugs sold in town.

Continuing on the road from Kolonia will lead into Kitti. Soon after entering Kitti, one passes Pwisehn Malek, a steep mountain resembling its namesake (for a laugh, ask a tour guide or cab driver to translate pwisehn malek). Further south, a road splits off toward the dock for Nahlap Island Resort. Beside the road to the dock is a statue of Henry Nanpei, an extremely wealthy and influential Pohnpeian businessman. As the main road continues toward Madolenihmw, it passes a truly magnificent section of Pohnpei’s mangrove forest and coast.

The road passes next into Madolenihmw, the poorest section of Pohnpei but also the highest ranking in traditional hierarchies. Madolenihmw is important on Pohnpei as the location of Nan Madol, an absolute must-see for any visitor to Pohnpei. A collection of impressive stone structures resembling log cabins linked by a network of canals, Nan Madol is believed to have been the cultural and political center of Pohnpei from the 12th to the 17th century AD. The highest chief in Pohnpei’s traditional title system still resides nearby. Locals treat the ruins with a kind of reverential awe and say that magic brought the unique basalt stones from around Pohnpei to the site of the ruins. A short trail leads from the road to Nan Madol; take a taxi from Kolonia to the trailhead or hire a boat to approach the ruins at high tide.

Nan Madol has impressed visitors to Pohnpei for centuries. The earliest visitors to Pohnpei suspected that the ruins were as old as the Egyptian pyramids. Indeed, the construction of the approximately 100 artificial islets of the ancient city with huge basalt logs quarried on the opposite side of the island is a feat rivaling the construction of the pyramids. It is so incredible that most locals believe only magic could have transported the stones to the site of the ruins.

Nan Madol was completed by a dynasty of chiefs called the Saudeleurs in the 11th or 12th century. The Saudeleurs, who imposed a harsh tribute on the rest of Pohnpei, wished to keep a close eye of the activities of local chieftains, and thus they invited all the chiefs of the island to live with them at Nan Madol. Eventually, the Saudeleurs’ rule became too harsh, and Isohkelekel, a legendary figure allegedly descended from a god on the island of Kosrae, led the Pohnpeians in revolt. Defeated, the Saudeleurs acquiesced to a new political organization for Pohnpei, based on rule by the Nahnmwarkis. For a time, the Nahnmwarkis resided at Nan Madol, but due to a famine, typhoon, or other unknown cause, the city was abandoned about 400 years ago.

Not far from Kepirohi falls is the Chinese pilot farm, reached via a dirt road beside Madolenihmw High School. The farm was established by the Chinese embassy ostensibly to demonstrate the cultivation of indigenous and imported crops to Pohnpeian farmers. In reality, the farm exists largely to sell produce to Chinese and other ex-patriots. Still, it is possible to see numerous varieties of banana and taro here, some of which are labeled. The operators of the farm, when they are present, are nice enough and will show you around if you ask them.

The main road around Pohnpei finally passes through U, the smallest of Pohnpei’s five municipalities. Along the road you will see numerous sakau bars and many of Pohnpei’s most beautiful vistas, especially in the village of Awak, before arriving back in Kolonia.