Sunday, January 6, 2008

Destinations - Onna coast


















Location: off the 58; for the southern parts turn left after Onna elementary school (if traveling north it is not long after the 88), for the northern parts use the Cape Manzamo turnoff
Cape Manzamo is discussed under "cheesy tourist attractions"
The whole coast south of Manzamo is a series of interesting rocky outcroppings and small white sand/coral/rocky beaches. Surely the rockiness of the coastline has spared the area (so far) from the resort development plaguing the rest of this area. To explore the area you need a sturdy car that can get dirty, hiking sandals or boots, and hydration.
Turning left after the elementary school, the road quickly becomes rough and leads past a construction area (looks like another resort). Heading straight, you run into some guy's farm, and a trail off to the left leads to a little beach, large enough only for one family. From there, at low tide, you can walk across the water to the island off shore. If instead of going straight, you turn right at a yellow gate, this takes you into an overgrown field with a lot of muddy tracks. People dirt bike here, even kids as young as five were seen scooting around on motorcycles. A rough road swerving off to the left leads to a place where people park for beach access. A sign here indicates that water activities may be dangerous, which basically means this is a dive site. There is a clearing in the reef that makes it easier to swim out to the reef edge. The coral is not in great shape here, but there are lots of fish, some so large you can't believe they haven't already been taken by the persistent Japanese fisherman. Walking along this beach takes you to past of rocky outcroppings, stone arches, and cave areas. The biggest rock arch area has a cave pool inside it which is great to explore at low to medium tide. There are paths through the bush which lead back to roads that come down from the other direction. A couple roads run north-south in this area, the one closest to the cliff edge has some areas of parking and trails heading down to the shore.
Approaching the area from the Manzamo turnoff, you'll have to judge your parking based on the tourist traffic at the time. There is a network of trails through the woods just south of Manzamo, which take you to various cliff side viewpoints. If you drive almost into Manzamo, but turn left just after the vending machines, this poor-quality road takes you, via a parking area (with access to trails), to a cliff-top observation area marked with a sign and a covered picnic table. From here, a track north leads to the Toilet Bowl divesite. A track south leads through the bush to another small beach. Parking here gets a bit tight as you share it with Japanese fishermen, beachgoers, divers, and view-seekers.