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Kiritimati than on any other oceanic island—
up to 6 million during mating season.
Of the 5,100 people who reside on Kiriti-
mati, only a handful speak English. But the
immigration official who flips through my
passport looking for an empty page onwhich
to plant her entry stamp is reasonably profi-
cient. When I informher that I’mawriter here
on assignment, she says, “You need a special
permit if you’re a journalist. Can you provide
it?” I confess ignorance, so she offers a work-
around. “It’s be er just to say you are fishing
or surfing. Are you fishing or surfing?” Um,
fishing? “Welcome to Kiritimati,” she declares,
wavingme through.Watching this exchange is
a burly 6-foot-tall fellow, a uniformed customs
agent in a neatly pressed sky-blue shirt and
navy knee-length shorts. He’s standing next
inmere inches, kayaks can penetrate deep intoKiriti-
mati’s untapped trevally hot spots.
Giant trevally can exceed 5 feet in length and top
100 pounds, enough to capsize a newbie kayak angler
likeme. They are fierce fighters that ba le a set hook
savagely. OffKiritimati, they’ll dive and dart through
the bulbous coral heads until the line severs. “Once
he’s hookedhe’ll run intodeepwater or into the rocks,”
Sansano warned. Earlier, Elgas suggested I pack a
knife inmy life vest. “To be able to cut yourself free in
an emergency is good,” he said. I tapmy le hand on the zippered
pocket of the vest. Feeling the knife there is reassuring.
KIRITIMATI IS PART OF THE REPUBLIC OF KIRIBATI
(pronounced
kiribahss
), a sovereign nation of 33 islands strewn
like loose pearls over an expanse of the Pacific Ocean twice the
size of Alaska. Just a three-hour flight from Honolulu, it is the
largest coral atoll in theworld, discovered, uninhabited, onChrist-
mas Eve 1777 by Capt. James Cook. Its pincer-shaped landmass
encloses a 120-square-mile lagoon enriched by tides that flush
through a 3-mile-wide breach in the atoll’s rim. In 1975, theKiribati
government declared the entire island awildlife sanctuary, chiefly
because it’s a vital nesting and breeding habitat for at least 35
bird species. Today, aviary populations thrive here, despite U.S.
andU.K. atmospheric nuclear testing conducted above Kiritimati
in the late 1950s and early 1960s, which flash-blinded and subse-
quently killed millions of seabirds but le no residual radiation
(the Geiger counter I brought confirms this). More birds nest on
BOARDING PASS
Hawaii offers the ideal jumping-off
point for many Pacific Ocean fishing meccas—including
Kiritimati—and United can help get you there. As the
largest carrier between the mainland U.S. and Hawaii, we
serve five airports in the Aloha State and connect it with
eight mainland cities, as well as Tokyo, Guam andMajuro,
and offer nonstop service in 23 city pairs.
Go to united.com
to see flight schedules and book your trip.
CASTING CALL
Opposite, from far left, kayak anglers Allen Sansano and David Elgas ready their rides; the author takes a breather;
below, from left, the anglers’ arsenal of lures and rods; local fishing boats on the leeward side of the island
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
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