Welcome to Fiji! You are standing on the largest island in the group, Viti Levu, on a beach accessible to the public. The Earthcache can only be completed during daylight hours.
Fiji is a country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean that is composed of over 333 islands and 522 smaller islets. Only about 106 of Fiji's islands are inhabited.
So where did all these islands come from?
Fiji's islands were formed when the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates converged 30-40 million years ago. Tectonic plates are pieces of the Earth's crust, and convergence happens when they move towards each other. These pieces only move a few centimetres each year, so the colisions are very slow and last millions of years. When the pieces "crash" together, interesting formations like the Fiji islands can occur.
In the case of Fiji, when the Pacific plate converged with the Australian Plate and slid under it, magma was created which formed the volcanoes that many of Fiji's islands are made of.
Fiji's islands have three different origins:
Volcanic: Create by the process described above. These islands have rocky shores and mountains in the interior parts.
Limestone: These islands are low and flat, with steep sides.
Coral: These islands are flat with white sand beaches.
The island you are currently standing on, Viti Levu, is of volcanic origin. If you look out at the ocean towards the horizon, you should be able to see several of Fiji's other islands, depending on how clear a day it is.
To log this Earthcache, please message me the answers to the following questions (do not post with your log):
1. How many islands do you see on the horizon today? (Describe the weather at the time of your viewing).
2. How many of these islands appear to be of volcanic origin, using the description of volcanic islands described above?
3. Examine the wet part of the sand close to where you are standing. It is comprised of two main colours. Describe these colours, and give a hypothesis for why you think the sand is this way on this island, based on the information you read above.
4. Face the ocean and look to your right. Describe a feature of the landscape that gives you a clue that the island you're standing on is of volcanic origin.
5. You will likely visit at least one other island while you are in Fiji (if not, use an island you have been to elsewhere in the world or use the internet to select a Fiji island). Provide a) the name of that island, b) your best guess as to whether it is of volcanic, limestone, or coral origin, c) an explanation for your answer, and d) the colour of the sand on this island.
This Earthcache was created during my visit to Fiji (I am from Toronto, Canada), so that geocachers could learn more about this area, as well as have a chance to claim a cache in Fiji that is close to the airport and doesn't necessarily require any boat travel to a small island. Visitors may log their find right away, as long as they provide the answers within one month of logging - I know how hard it can be to log finds while on vacation and without internet access on remote islands! Visits that don't send the correct answers within one month of logging will be deleted. If you are unable to log within that time period, please indicate in your log when you will be able to provide the answers. Also, just visiting the general location is not enough to give you the information to answer the questions, and logs that send the incorrect answers will also have to be deleted after being given a few tries to correct the answers. The point of an Earthcache is to learn something at the location! Happy caching and enjoy Fiji's incredible islands!