Tonga: Vava'u Landscape Photography — Part Two: Jungle

Mangrove Jungle at Low Tide:  a transient photo opportunity

This post we're leaving the beautiful beaches and diving headlong into the jungles of Vava'u.  Plenty of photo opportunities with natural and cultural charm await the jungle trekker.

Hunga is a dirt-poor island with very nice residents who wave, smile, come out and talk and make a wonderful friendly impression.  We stayed in the inner bay of Hunga one rainy night  At low tide, the mangrove jungle becomes walkable.  I sauntered in and around many jungle plants looking for the right composition.  Here are two of my favorites.

Mangrove branches reach out like a parasite!

Inland on Hunga we had a wonderful time with the people but I also enjoyed photographing all the pigs here.  They wander openly around.  Most pigs on other islands are wary of people but the Hunga pigs seem to not fear or flee.

Pigs of Hunga, Tonga

Kenutu is a fantastic anchorage with a legitimate jungle to explore.  Hiking from the western bay to the other side of the island takes about 10 or 15 minutes.  The path is strewn with plenty of branches but nothing too much to duck under or step over.  On the eastern side are the jagged volcanic cliffs and the open Pacific Ocean.  It's spectacular to see!

Typical trail conditions on Kenutu:  those long green leaves
have small points on them that scratched my legs up a bit.

Kenutu Eastern Cliffs:  Big Cliffs and Sharp Rocks.  There is a trail
running around to the far side of this bay.  

I call this the Bonsai Tree and it was on the eastern cliffs of Kenutu.

Detail/Macro shots are available here in this remote Eden.
Here I found the various shades of green quite beautiful.

Another twisted tree in Tonga.

One of the absolutely weirdest things I saw in Tonga is this tower of sticks and poles located here.  It's been around a long time (because it's been reported to exist in other internet accounts of this hike) and I don't know its' origin.  It's pretty unstable but my wife climbed up a bit in it.  Here's a panorama shot that shows how it stands over the cliffs and how spectacular the view really is!

Kenutu Cliffs and House of Sticks!  The views are epic!

Tonga is a place where the ocean literally meets the jungle.