21. C.I. Day 2: 4WD and more, different crabs!

           We set out at 8:30 this morning to go to Dolly Beach by taking the long route through the Christmas Island National Forest. This protected land accounts for >60% of the island's area and includes a lot of primary forest. Getting there we passed by multiple active phosphate mines and unattractive industrial sites, but the contrast is another feature of the island that makes it so fascinating. It was solidly raining from 8 am until 1 pm, so we primary stayed in the car and hopped out to take photos, but seeing the crab bridge was getting a little wet. 

 CRAB BRIDGE

Starting to gather for their march to the sea.

TAOIST TEMPLES ON THE SOUTH COAST

Soon Tien Kong Temple

LUNCH AT THE MALAY CLUB IN FLYING FISH COVE

Shoo, flies!

C.I. Mosque

Mom outside Idah's Cafe at the Malay Club

Mural of frigate bird and robber crab painted on the side of the marina

Flying Fish Cove and Jetty

       In the afternoon, we decided to go see two more beaches on the island. I don't think either knew what we were getting into when we started the journey through the jungle/forest. It started out fine, but the paved road gave way to packed dirt and then crevassed and uneven rocks and gravel. After 20 minutes of inching down the road and stopping to take photos, a sign appeared that warned only 4WD vehicles were permitted beyond that point. There is no cell service in most places on the island and we hadn't been able to pick up a personal safety transponder from the police over the weekend. Therefore, we were anxious on the way down, worried that something would happen to us and we wouldn't be able to get help. We were relieved to see cars at the bottom at the parking area for Greta Beach and then even further down the road at the parking area for Dolly Beach. We just needed to make sure that we weren't the last to leave. That way there would be someone behind us if we needed help. 

      Greta Beach was our first stop, although we did not climb all the way down. We took photos and talked about the global plastics crisis. Greta Beach has been in the Australian news several times for massive efforts undertaken by volunteers to clean up plastic from the beach (example article). In 2022, 3 tons of trashed were removed in a multi-day effort. Despite Christmas Island's remote location, it is  located in the middle of  the Indonesian Throughflow Current, which carries a constant stream of trash into the Indian Ocean. The beach that we saw was nothing like the photos from 2021 and 2022, but there was still a significant amount of plastic washed up on the beach. Bottle caps, toothbrushes, disintegrated plastic kitchenware were on display, most likely blown from the coast of Java, Indonesia. As we were leaving, we met a local couple who were coming down to the beach to spend their Sunday afternoon picking up "rubbish". I admired them for it.

     The next to see was Dolly Beach, which involved another 5 minutes in the car further down towards the shoreline and then a 2 km walk across dirt, leaf litter, and raised grids made from recycled plastic. We did the walk each way in 40 minutes, 20 minutes less than what the sign suggested and 15 minutes more than what I thought it would take. As we descended the final staircase to the white sand beach, the last of the other groups was leaving and we had the beach to ourselves. We had left our bathing suits in the car, but we still decided that we needed a dip in the crystal blue tide pool created two opposing rock formations and the rising tide. It was a good thing that no one else showed up until we were leaving!    

4x4 TO GRETA & DOLLY BEACHES

Beginning the drive to the beaches - easy peasy

Uplifted limestone rocks pierced by tree roots

Mom taking photos

Mom's photo of a blue crab

Less common purple crab on CI, a.k.a. Little Nipper

Karst rock in the jungle

Final pathway to Greta Island overlook and stairs

Greta Beach

On path to Dolly Beach

Dolly Beach overlook

Robber crab (a.k.a Coconut crab) on Dolly Beach

Hey! What's going on here?

Endemic Christmas Island Emerald Dove - Incredible plumage

          With 4WD engaged and the transmission in a low gear, we managed to get back to the main road without incident. We stopped by the Grotto, one of Christmas Island's many caves. It’s a small, picturesque cave with a pool fed by both fresh water and seawater. The beautiful crystal-clear pool popular and is very accessible from the main road. It's slightly less accessible for a 79-year-old with a hip replacement who wants to make it to C.I. Day 3 :). We snapped some photos, and headed back to the Settlement. 

"The Grotto" soaking pool.
(If you needed a rope to get down or up, we thought it might be better not to have a dip tonight)

     We stayed in for the night and picked through our collection of snacks for dinner. Once again, it was lights out by 10 pm, since we needed to return the snorkel gear to the Visitor's Center before our 9 am tour started in the morning and I still hadn't gotten a snorkelling session in. I'm really enjoying the early to bed, early to rise rhythm of the days that we spend in natural locations such as Borneo and Christmas Island. I'm less keen on the late to bed, early to rise days that involve taxis and airplanes, but that's the price for to have all these amazing experiences.

      More to come tomorrow. It will be Monday, our last full day on the island before moving east to islands on the other side of the Australian continent.