Laderan Tangke Nature Trail

We decide to make another crack at conquering Laderan Tanhke Nature Trail without getting lost, which is still out of our reach after several attempts in the past. With only Handy, Cutie, and Capt. Charlie available to hike, it is fairly easy to organize and begin the hike promptly at 5:50. It is a familiar start at the trail head which is on the way to Radar Hill. At the start of the trail there is sign board. We study the information on the board to confirm that the circular trail is listed as only 1.8 miles. 
Under the canopy of thick growths, we begin the hike into the forest.

This trail is full of ribbons of red, orange, and green, which is the reason why we have become lost so many times. Today, however, we find a new ribbon of blue and white. It stands out very well in the boonie surrounding. We decide to follow this new lead.

This tree wraps its base around the rock, swallowing it whole, slowly.

Handy discovers one of those hiker signs on a fallen tree trunk, and decides to remove it.

Imagine our surprise when we encounter this bright orange marker. We have seen markers on this trail before, but never this bright and new looking. We become a bit excited about seeing not only the blue and white ribbon but also this new sign, a discovery that indicates recent trail renovation work has been done.

Beautiful silhouette of Cutie on top of a ledge overlooking the ocean beyond. We are still walking on pretty flat terrain, and feeling the hike so far has been easy. The forest is delightfully cool and dry, with many singing birds keeping us entertained. We continue to see the orange signs in sequence.

Handy's turn to take a look at the ocean, which shows clearly below the ledge.

One of the hiker signs being slowly covered by the bark.

Impressive rock formations along the trail, some have small caves, and most of them have roots draping down from trees growing on top. As we continue to follow the ribbons and the orange signs, descending toward east, we begin to hear the ocean waves more clearly. Soon we are able to have a peek-a-boo view of Bird Island. Oh no, we fear that we are heading to Bird Island, the wrong way on the trail. We start to make plans of calling for a ride if we did end up there.

But soon we begin to climb, away from the ocean. We feel relieved. We soon find ourselves going up and down these rocky slopes many more times.

A very strange looking tree trunk. 

One of many hiker signs, similar to the one Handy finds on the fallen tree trunk. We want to find out where we can buy them.

Handy standing under a large trunk. This trail has many huge trees that have weathered many storms.

Finally. End of the boonie trail. We are overjoyed. The blue and white ribbons are the winners as trail guides, and the orange markers are definitely a beautiful sight each time we see one. Now we continue on the road back to the beginning.

One unusual encounter on the hike is the swarming of these moths. They begin to appear toward the end of the hike, first up high on the rocky hills, then a large group is on the road way toward the trail head. There are "millions" of them. We have to keep our mouths closed as we forge ahead through clouds of these fluttering flying objects.

Just as we come close to the trail head, we take a very short detour and come upon this monitor lizard. It scampers away quickly, but not before stopping for a moment to give us the eye and a "what for".  It measures a little over 3 feet.

The nice sign at the trail head, indicating that the whole trail measures 1.8 miles. It doesn't specify that a good part of it is up and down rocky slopes.

The loop. There is a blog posted by two hikers that describes the trail as an "easy" hike, and that they hike it in flip flops. It is a little hard to imagine how this trail, though not difficult, can be easily hiked in flip flops, given the terrain of sharp coral rocks up and down steep slopes. We enjoy the two hours and 30 minute hike, and definitely feel an accomplishment of some sort.

It's a Five-Sneaker Hike!