Kwajalein Ferry

On a weekly basis we take the Kwajalein -Ebeye Ferry.  We either go to the Kwajalein Army Base for the day, when we have been sponsored by a Kwajalein resident, or we will go over for lunch and eat  in the ferry terminal.  The ferry schedule varies depending on the day of the week, but it basically runs from morning to night.  Since we are in the Eastern Hemisphere our clocks are set a day ahead (18 hours ahead of the Mountain Time Zone).  The work week schedule on the base is Tuesday through Saturday to coincide with the Monday through Friday military work schedule in the USA.  As a result the weekend on Ebeye for most people is Sunday, Monday.  After WWII ended the Marshallese people living on Kwajalein were moved to Ebeye Island.  The people who live on Ebeye and work on Kwajalein are not allowed to spend the night on Kwajalein so they ride the ferry that is provided by the US Army.  There are two to three ferry boats, but during the middle of the day only one is running.  The exception to this is during work days in the early mornings and late afternoons when two boats are running continuously to ferry the workers from Ebeye to Kwajalein.

Waiting for the new missionaries at the dock with Sister Becker, Sister Butler and Sister Tafili.  The missionaries fly into Kwajalein since there is no room for an airport on Ebeye.

Sister Becker enjoying the ferry ride back to Ebeye.  She is standing on the upper deck on the starboard side.  Kwajalein Island is in the foreground and Little Bustard Island is in the background.

The Ebeye Dock before the new roof construction.  Kajur Power is the building in the background.  We buy our power here and then take the twenty digit number and put it into the meter located inside the apartment.  If the meter ever gets to zero the power goes off.

Ebeye dock where passengers are boarding the ferry.

Ferry docked on Ebeye Island.

Sister Becker standing next to the Kwajalein Ebeye Ferry.

Ferry leaving Ebeye and heading to Kwajalein.

Ferry arriving at the Ebeye dock.

View of Ebeye from the top deck of the ferry.

Sister Becker preparing to leave the ferry.

The ferry ride itself takes about 15 to 20 minutes and it is very relaxing and enjoyable.  There is no fee to ride the ferry and no tickets are required. There are two levels on the ferry.  The lower deck which is enclosed has seating for about 125 passengers and the upper deck which is open has room for a bout 25 passengers.  Marshallese workers that carry a C-Badge (work badge) have priority if the boat happens to fill up.  Sister Becker prefers to ride in the lower deck to get out of the sun, inclement weather, or to avoid the spray from the bow of the ship.  As for me, I love riding on the upper deck so that I can look at the islands that are located between Ebeye and Kwajalein.  There are two very small islands located between Ebeye and Kwajalein called Big Bustard and Little Bustard.  There are very few people that live on each of those islands and there is no electricity.  While riding the ferry I look in the water for sea life.  I have seen quite a bit of sea life when looking off the bow of the ship including sharks, stingrays, sea turtles and a large number of fish.  I do take my chances on the upper deck as I have gotten wet on a number of occasions.  In fact a couple of weeks ago the sea was really rough with four to five foot swells and the ocean spray from the bow of the boat had me drenched from head to foot within five minutes.  It was nice and warm and I loved it the entire time, but Sister Becker did not because I then chose to go down below.  I sat next to her and got her wet from the water dripping off of me.  Oops!

Big Bustard Island is the first island one passes when riding the ferry to Kwajalein.  Notice the outhouse on the coral to the left of the island.

Little Bustard Island is the second island one passes when riding the ferry to Kwajalein.

Big Bustard Island (left) and Little Bustard Island (right)   People do live on the two islands.  One can actually walk to these islands from Ebeye at various times during the month when the tide is very low.

Arriving at the Kwajalein dock

The Kwajalein terminal straight ahead

People filing off the ferry at Kwajalein

Elder Becker at the Kwajalein dock

Freighter on Kwajalein that is bringing fresh produce and other supplies.  The same freighter was on Ebeye the previous day delivering much needed supplies.

A shark between the ferry and the dock on Kwajalein.  Do not fall in the water when getting off the ferry!

The Kwajalein Terminal has a very nice enclosed seating area with a fast-food restaurant called the American Eatery.  They serve a variety of food including burgers, fries, sandwiches, deep fried chicken, and a few other items.  We will quite often order the chicken and bring most of it home to have for another meal later.

The Kwajalein Branch children singing songs to us when we were stuck in the terminal.  We were supposed to get on the island to watch their program for Sacrament meeting that day, but for some reason security didn't allow us on base, so they came and sang to us.  Sweet angels from Heaven!

Elder Becker standing in front of the ferry terminal on Kwajalein Army Base.  This picture is taken on the base itself after one has gone through security.

Leaving Kwaj under a beautiful sunset. 

The dock on Ebeye, where people wait for the ferry, used to have a roof at one time, but over time it gradually decayed.  Most people find shade or cover from the elements by waiting under the awnings at the Triple J Store or by the Kajur Power Office.  They began work on a new cover for the dock about a month ago and who knows when it will be finished. 

Groundbreaking ceremony for the dock roof construction.

Work in progress at the dock.

Construction sign at the Ebeye dock. :)

Water - our lifeline

When we first arrived in October it was quite common to have a good drenching with some a.maz.ing rainstorms.  When the heavens opened up and the rains came, it was instant flood!   It came down hard and fast, and then nothing.  Then it might do it all over again a few minutes or an hour later.  When the dark clouds roll in, watch out!  The rain storms are quite fun if you don't mind getting wet!  Large storage tanks are everywhere on the island that catch the fresh rain water. The toilets, however, run on a separate system as they are hooked up to the ocean's salt water.  So, if we run out of fresh water, we will still have water for the toilets.

 

Now, two months later, we are in dire straights as the fresh water is getting low in our storage tanks.  Apparently in the winter, the wind blows a lot stronger, so the clouds don't have as much of  a chance to gather, and they just roll on over the island.  The city does have extra water, but that must be collected individually by small containers or businesses can buy it and have it delivered by truck.  For several days this month we have had no running water, so we conserved and did the best we could with what little water we had for cooking, drinking and washing.  We were getting by on sponge baths, until some of the church members found out.  That night they delivered several large buckets of water to our place.  We finally took a shower that night! What angels!  I will bless them forever (that's just the kind of people they are here, so kind).  The apartments where we live get a certain allocation of water and apparently some of the tenants were using up more than their share so we were running out.  So last week, the owners decided to ration the water to all tenants.  Right now, until whenever, we have running water from 6 to 9 am and from 6 to 9 pm every day! (unless it runs out first!)  This morning we went to take our showers just after 8 am and it was already dry!  Boo!  Time for another bucket shower!  Our days are now planned around our water supply!

 

flooding right around the corner from us



plowing through the intersection right outside our place



flooding in front of the store



People lining up to fill their containers with water



heading home with his water supply



A couple of the buckets of water that were brought to us!



supply of cold filtered water in the fridge



Bucket and cup I use for my showers when the water is turned off.  I have become quite adept at taking a complete shower with only one bucket of water, equal to about 2 gallons. 

 

 Our dependence upon water is actually for everything on this island, from fishing, to entertainment (swimming and playing in the waves), to bringing us all our food and goods.  We have no airport here, so anything going in or out must come in by boat.  People, small packages and mail are flown to Kwajalein, and then transferred over on the ferry.  Everything else from cars, furniture, canned goods, produce, building supplies, and you name it, all are brought in by the big freighters.  It's a VERY welcome sight to see a big freighter come in to the dock every two weeks or so.  By the time the ship arrives we are usually in sore need of produce and other items.  Around Christmas time we ran out of eggs for two or three weeks.  It's quite common to run out of produce, eggs or other fresh items long before the next shipment comes.  We always have canned goods on the shelf, but it's so nice to have the fresh stuff!

kids swimming in the lagoon

Small boats for fishing or for trips to the outer islands



Freighter unloading

Freighter bringing all our goods

boats in the lagoon



The ferry that takes us to Kwajalein

 

 



 Almost every Saturday since we have been here they have had at least one baptism.  The service usually starts at 6 or 6:30pm where we all walk down to the lagoon where they perform the baptisms.  I don't think they realize how lucky they are to have such a killer setting for their baptism.  I don't think I will ever tire of this beautiful scene.



Amazing setting for a baptism

Baptism in the lagoon

 

 

 All uses of water on the island don't necessarily have to be functional.  There are some soothing qualities in watching the waves.  And the ocean is just fun to watch and track as the tides change.  For those of you who know Mike, he has always been mesmerized by the ocean.  He has been known to walk the beach for hours when we have visited the ocean, whether in Oregon or Mexico or New Jersey.   Here it's no different.  Whenever we walk along the ocean side of the road we always have to stop for a few minutes so he can watch the waves.  I don't think he will ever get tired of doing that. 

 

 

watching the waves with a couple of boys imitating him



Mike mesmerized by the ocean waves



great view while walking down the road



Beach Park, the cleanest beach on Ebeye, and source of a few shells

And finally, a scenic view for the sunset, on the lagoon side