September 21, 2018

September 21, 2018

The weather has improved so we drove the twelve miles across the center of the island to Anakena on the north shore. This is the only nice sand beach on Easter Island and is where the first Rapa Nui probably landed. It has a picturesque horseshoe inlet. Because the main Ahu was buried in sand, the seven restored Moai are in great condition with most of the Topknots intact. There is another Ahu with a single fat Moai, the first to be raised in 1956 by Thor Heyerdahl of Kon-Tiki fame.

Down the road is Ovahe with its tiny hidden beach surrounded by a volcanic red cliff. Also nearby is Te Pito Kura which has the largest Moai ever erected. Its 30-foot height is hard to imagine since it remains toppled and broken into several pieces. Farther along we stop at the roadside petroglyph field of Papa Vaka. The carvings are mostly of boats, fish, and fishing hooks.

Around volcano Polke on the eastern shore is Ahu Tongariki, the most impressive Ahu on Rapa Nui. It contains fifteen huge Moai on a single platform. There may have been more as there are several heads and body parts behind it. We are awed by the size of one enormous unused Topknot. The setting of Tongariki is dramatic with its position adjacent to the tall sea cliffs of Poike.

On the opposite side sits one of a hundred small volcanoes called Rano Raraku. Almost all the Moai were quarried from this mountain and transported throughout the island. Near the end of the Moai period, there must have been a flurry of production as nearly 400 lay scattered about the periphery in various stages of production. With the onset of the civil war, work stopped suddenly freezing the Moai in place. We walk up and down the steep side of the quarry. There are several Moai at the highest points only half chiseled out of the mountain. One would have been an incredible 65-feet tall.

Many more were separated and moved down the slope ready for the finishing touches. They now lay buried by years of dirt washed down with only the head (or in one case a nose) sticking out. There are more on the flat below, perhaps in transit, or maybe abandoned because they fell and broke.

After exploring the volcano exterior slope, we hiked up into the Crater. It contains a reed-filled lake that was a major water source in Rapa Nui times. Demand for Moai at the end was so intense, there are dozens of Moai on the interior slopes too. These would have been incredibly difficult to move up and out of this bowl.

The clouds are parting giving blue skies, so I return to the exterior quarry for what I hope is my “National Geographic” shot of Easter Island.

It has been a full day so we head straight back to Hanga Roa along the coast road. It is gorgeous forcing us to stop to take pictures of the stunning blue water crashing on the black volcanic coast. Wow!

We tried a third waterfront restaurant for dinner. Another fish dinner with an equally scenic sunset view. We are mesmerized by the pounding surf.

In the late evening we went to the required Polynesian Dance Show for tourists. It was the fun experience of native outfits, banging drums, and Hula Dance. How these women can move their hips so fast is amazing. I was forced to give it a try with the prettiest dancer. None of the performers looked very native. Sadly between their civil war and western disease, the Rapa Nui were virtually wiped out compared to Tahiti and Hawaii.