Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Beqa and around
If not shrouded by clouds, the roughly contoured profile of
BEQA
(pronounced “Mbenga”)
can be seen clearly from Suva. It's closer still to Pacific Harbour, from where small boats
bump across 12km of open sea to reach it. The island is roughly circular in shape, with steep
forest-clad mountains rising sharply from a meandering coastline. Its large lagoon, protected
by a 30km-long barrier reef, is renowned for
shark dives
and deep-sea game fishing, as well
as the famous
surfing break
of Frigates Passage opposite the small island of
Yanuca
; most
diving and
game fishing
trips leave from Pacific Harbour and are covered in Chapter Three.
Beqa's most distinctive feature is its
fire walkers
.
You can often see them perform on Viti
Levu, especially at the
Arts Village
in Pacific Harbour, but nothing beats witnessing the real
thing on home soil - Rukua, Naceva and Dakuibeqa on the southeastern side are the main
fire-walking villages.
The island's 1400 inhabitants live in nine coastal villages. There are no roads on the island
but several
walking tracks
between villages make for pleasant exploring. The easiest route
runs from Waisomo on the northern tip of the island to Rukua along the west coast. You can
also hike to one of the island's
three mountains
- Korolevu (439m), towering over Lalati
Village on the north coast, is the most challenging and highest. The best way to sample the
coastline is from a kayak and
Lalati Resort
runs a delightful kayaking trip to tranquil Malumu
Bay, which bites deep into the west coast, almost severing it from the main bulk of Beqa.
