First Day on Midway Atoll - Oceanic Society Ecotourist Visitors

Well all 15 of us arrived on Midway Atoll at about 8:45 PM on the 13th of April. After a 4.5 hour charter flight from Honolulu we arrive at night. During the "albatross nesting season" planes are only allowed to land at night, when albatross are less likely to be flying and bird strikes are less probable. On arrival we are met by two Refuge "limo" golf carts and are whisked away to what will be our home for the next 8 days amid the whines of dancing albatross and the erratic flight paths of the thousands of swooping Bonin Petrels. Once settled in the lobby of Charlie Barracks we are given a brief orientation and allowed to head off to our rooms. Many people quickly return to the lobby eager to get outside and listen to the birds and take a long look at the amazing display of starts that being so far away from any light source allows.

In the morning we head off to breakfast at the "Clipper House" Midway's central hub and mess hall, named to honor the history of the Pam Am Clippers that used to stop here in the 1930's on their way to Asia. It was a wonderful morning and for many their first true glimpse (in the daylight) of what Midway has to offer.

New arrivals to Midway must take part in a FWS orientation as their first activity on Midway. Since we are all sharing the island with many critically endangered and threatened species this orientation is vital to the visitors ability to understand the responsibilities, and role they play while on Midway in the safe stewardship of these islands. Additionally the orientation serves to make everyone aware of the significance these atolls have played in Hawaiian cultural history as well as more recent US history. During the orientation, which is presented by FWS visitor coordinator, Tracy Ammerman, all are given a map of Sand Island. This map helps everyone to navigate on their own around the island, understanding which areas are open and have maintained trails, and what areas are closed due to conservation or safety concerns. The orientation and the lectures that will be given throughout the week help everyone to understand and appreciate why certain places on the island are left as wildlife only areas, and where viewing and access points for visitors have been established. After orientation the next order of business is for everyone to choose their own traditional Midway "horse" that will be used to get around the island over the next week. These "horses" or bikes that we have to choose from were all supplied through donations made to the Friends of Midway Atoll an organization formed to specifically support Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

Now that all the visitors have the needed knowledge to explore the island on their own and have a "horse" to navigate the paths full of albatross and chicks they are ready to enjoy the next 7 days on Midway. We are lucky to start off this week with amazing weather. One of the first places everyone wanted to go was the beach. We headed off to the cargo pier to see what we would find. On arrival we saw a Hawaiian monk seal on a nearby beach, about 16 green sea turtles sunning on an adjacent beach known oddly enough as "Turtle Beach" and then heard 7 Bristle-thighed Curlews as they flew overhead. As we looked down one side of the beach we noticed some washed up nets and marine debris that could pose a hazard to the wildlife we were seeing. The group decided to collect the various pieces of netting and line that were there. In about 10 minutes we had cleaned the beach of about 50-lbs of marine debris and taken our first action to participate in one of the missions of the Refuge, to provide a safe habitat for the wildlife that live there.














all images are © Wayne Sentman 2009

November and December on Midway Atoll

Hello there,

I just spent two wonderful weeks on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge leading two Oceanic Society ecotourist groups. We were able to see some amazing wildlife and participate in valuable projects while there. The weather at this time of year was a little blustery but overall we managed pretty well.

In 2008 Midway has again reopened to visitors after a 6-year hiatus. Oceanic Society is a marine conservation non-profit based in San Francisco that I work for. Oceanic Society organized all ecotour and volunteer research programs for visitors to the US Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) in the past (1997 - 2002). Currently we are working with the Midway Atoll refuge staff and the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument to continue in organizing naturalist led ecotours and groups interested in historic restoration now that the refuge has restarted its visitor services.

Since the formal designation of the Marine Monument in 2007 encompassing Midway and the other Northwestern Hawaiian Islands there has been renewed interest in traveling to Midway Atoll, really the only visitor accessible site for the entire monument. To learn how to pronounce the Hawaiian name of the monument click on this link, Papahanaumokuakea. The monument is the second largest fully marine protected area in the world (the largest is the Phoenix Islands Protected Area in Kiribati). It is home to the largest nesting colonies of the Laysan and Black-footed Albatross. The last refuge of the critically endangered Hawaiian Monk seal, the most endangered marine mammal found wholly within US waters. Other critters that call Midway Atoll home are the Green sea turtle and the Spinner Dolphin. 3 other species of sea turtle and 9 additional whale species that can be sighted in the protected waters surrounding the atoll.

There are 17 other seabirds that are known to nest on Midway, The "Golden Gooney" or Short-tailed Albatross can also been seen on the islands of Midway. Thanks to the establishment of a decoy plot about 8-years ago on Eastern Island (one of the 3 islands found at Midway) there is hope that the Short-tailed Albatross will again start breeding on these islands. In addition to the seabirds a duck, the critically endangered Laysan Teal was also recently reintroduced to Midway Atoll and has quite successfully re-established itself on Eastern and Sand Islands.

This year (2008) Oceanic has been able to bring out 7 different tourist groups to Midway Atoll, a little over 100 visitors in all have participated in our programs. In 2009 Oceanic Society anticipates offering 13 different program dates, I have been fortunate to lead all of our 2008 programs. Over the next few entries I will post information about what we were able to see and participate in while visiting the refuge this year. Here is a video that was taken just last week of a Laysan Albatross laying an egg to get you interested in exploring more!