Half Day Airai Cave explore Tour
Today’s guests were tough, so we paddled a different schedule than usual.
After pick up, we stopped by KB Bridge Park since today was the Airai course. Soon, it will be time for the rainy season to arrive, but today’s weather was nice.
Both of today’s guests had kayaking experience and paddled smoothly, and from the start of the tour, they were paddling at a moderate pace. So I felt that the normal course might be too short.
After visiting Whitewall and a small blue cave, I asked my guests about their schedules. They had no particular plans after the tour and seemed to want to paddle more, so we changed to the long course.
We paddled through the coves of Airai, which are not usually visited, toward the open sea.
As we were making our way along the islands of Airai, “What are those artifacts?” my guest asked me. I looked carefully at the island to see what I was talking about, and sure enough, there was an artifact there.
I knew there were similar artifacts elsewhere, and upon closer inspection I knew what they were. This artifact was a watchtower built by former Japanese soldiers.
At the end of the Pacific War, in 1944, during WW2, the U.S. Navy had already taken action to suppress Palau as a foothold against Japan.
On March 31 of the same year, Japanese military facilities in Palau were bombed, and in September of the same year, the U.S. Navy, having established sea control, landed on the southern islands of Palau, Peleliu and Angaur, in a fierce battle in which many Japanese and American soldiers died.
At that time, former Japanese soldiers installed pillboxes at various locations facing the open sea where landing operations might eventually take place, and this artifact at Airai is probably one of them.
It was a meaningful time for me as well, as I gained new insights from visiting courses I would not normally visit.
As the tide rose we came to the spot of the sunken plane in the sea.You can see them from the kayak, but if you want to observe them underwater, it is recommended to come when the tide is high.
Finally, we visited the hangar cave. The name comes from the fact that a waterborne reconnaissance plane was hidden in this cave at that time.
On the other side of the cave is a mangrove forest, which is my personal favorite spot. The sunlight filtering through the jungle trees is pleasant here.
Paddling in a channel where the direction of the current changes with the tide. Today, the current was flowing in the direction we were going, so we were able to pass through easily. Today was a half-day course, but we rowed as much as a full-day course.
Thank you for participating in the tour! Also, my apologies for the delay in uploading the blog. Please feel free to contact us again when you visit Palau!
Tour Photos
Guests who participated in the tour can use the photos on this page for their own SNS. I am glad if you can tag ＃Wonderful World Palau！
