Tinian Blowhole

On Tinian's eastern coast the Pacific has cut a channel under the raised coral shelf that comes up through a hole in the rock, and when the swell is right it fires a column of spray several metres into the air on a rhythm set by the sets coming in. The shelf around is bare limestone with the ocean working at it. There is nothing built at the site.

What you'll find

• The blowhole - the spray column firing through the rock shelf.
• The rhythm - the firing set by the sets of swell coming in.
• The coral shelf - the bare raised limestone the hole is cut through.
• The open Pacific - the ocean arriving with nothing to stop it.

When to go

December to June is the drier season; the blowhole needs swell to work. Big swell makes the shelf dangerous. Typhoon season runs July to November.

Practical notes

The blowhole only fires with the right swell and can do nothing at all. The shelf is sharp and genuinely dangerous when the sea is up. There is no barrier and no facilities.

Nearby

San Jose is southwest, and the northern airfields are north.