Guest Post by Sara

Murray is alive. Shortly after his last post on May 29th, he came down with something. He told me he was sick, but after seeing everyone's reaction on the island of him walking around, I think it was much more than "I am sick". He required several IVs and upon my arrival in Honolulu, my voicemail had two messages from him indicating he was possibly being flown off the island. As he put it "I'm being voted off the island". But he came through it and I arrived on Friday, June 6th at approximately 9pm. Upon arriving, he greeted me at the plane in a full sweat so there was a possibility of us leaving on the flight the next day. The plane was being held overnight because of a big wig on the flight. But he made it through the night.

My post won't be as articulate as his, but I will try my best. As we drove back to the house, it was obvious there were some birds here. The next morning I found out just how many...500,000 pairs of albatrosses. That is just the adults and doesn't count the chicks and sub-adults. I watched the movie the Birds when I was way too young and so you should know how I was feeling. I have gotten over the shock, awe, and holy shitness. But still there are like a million birds (and that is just the albatrosses). AHHH!!!

I am sure Murray has told you about the island...it is 1.8 x 1.8 miles long. I still can't figure out the layout either. Honestly, it would be easy to get lost on the island. I had to laugh the first day when Murray said we would tour the town first. I figure we could tour the entire island in one day, but honestly that just isn't possible. Each day, I have had a specialized tour of either the buildings or the trails. I have added 16 birds to my geeky life bird list. I have learned a little about the history of the island. Transportation consists of golf carts, bicycles, and foot traffic. My tours have been on a bicycle, one that has a faulty chain, but otherwise it is grand. Riding is like driving through an obstacle course with all the birds.

Although the island is small, we've been busy every day with something. Some times it is a tour in the morning with a nap in the afternoon. So here is a little list of what I've gotten to do on this small island....

snorkeling, bird watching, turtle watching, seal watching, tour of a NOAA ship, walking the beach, getting to see an albatross chick puke, hanging out with National Geographic film makers (watch the NG channel for Murray and Midway), eating 3 great meals a day (evenings of Thai food), laying on the beach and getting sunburned of course, walking the beach with 12 shades of blue water, seeing buildings from all eras of Midway Island, and hanging out with Shoe.

Hopefully one day others will be able to visit this place. Besides being beautiful in so many ways, the history is amazing as well. When I return to the mainland, I will post my photos here:

Sara's Photos