Home Early witnesses Contents Previous page Next page
Easter Island: Early Witnesses
William Thomson
450
Mohican Lieut. F. M. Symonds, with Naval Cadet C. M. McCormick as assistant, made a careful survey of the island, and their chart, herewith appended, will be found accurate and replete with interest. (Plate XII.)
SAILING DIRECTIONS.
Vessels anchoring on this unprotected coast must be guided entirely by the direction of the wind at the time. The Mohican anchored in the roadstead of Hanga Roa (Cook's Bay on the English charts) on the morning of December 19, 1886, and afterwards moved to a position on Anakena Bay (La Pérouse Bay), for convenience in shipping the Stone image, now in the National Museum.
On the south coast there are good anchorages during northerly and westerly winds, but there is usually a heavy swell from the southwest, making the boat-landings at Vaihu both difficult and dangerous. With easterly winds a good anchorage will be found just outside of Hanga Pico Bay, with sandy bottom, in about 26 fathoms of water, and the boat-landing will be found safe. The best boat-landing on the island is at Anakena Bay; the beach is comparatively free from stones, and even with northerly winds the landing would be no more difficult than is usual at Funchal.
The rise and fall of the tide at Easter Island is about 2 feet. The northerly and westerly winds do not produce a high sea, but generally bring rain, and are usually confined to the winter season. These winds are known to the natives as "papakino" (ill-force). The northeast wind is called "tongariki;" it is variable, and frequent in summer. The southeast wind, known as "anoraro" (wide expanse), is the prevailing wind in summer. The south wind, called "motu-rauri" (dark leaf rock), blows in winter. The southwest wind blows strong in winter, and brings rain and a high sea. Vaitara (cut-water) is a winter wind from the west. The prevailing winds are from an easterly direction, and all others are of short duration. Light airs that frequently shift direction are usually accompanied by rain, and are called by the natives "tepu hanga" (blows drift on shore), the reason for which is obvious.
GEOLOGICAL FEATURES.
The geological features of the island are replete with interest. The formation is purely of a volcanic character and embraces every variety pertaining to that structure. Basaltic, cellular, and tufaceous lavas abound in diversified forms. The basaltic is generally porous and scoriform, but on the slope of the hills the substrata are frequently as compact and dense as that of the coast-line. Near Anakena may be seen hills composed of scoria quite as cellular as pumice, and in close proximity compact beds having a dark blue basis, composed of crystals of glassy feldspar and olivine. The cellular formation is mixed pumice and slag, in some cases similar
450