NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

So far this year Independent Guåhan has organized two Hale'-ta Hikes; the first to Laso' Fouha or Fouha Rock, and the second to Hila'an. Our third hike is set for later this month to Pågat. I have written in several articles recently about how important this type of outreach has been in terms of developing community resistance to US military plans in Guam. Taking people into the areas that may be affected, contaminated or closed off to the public, and allowing them to forge their own personal and eventually, hopefully, political connections was essential, especially in the case of Pågat. This is one reason why things have been different recently with regards to Litekyan. The fact that when you take people on hikes there, you are walking not through "public" or "local" lands, but instead federal property makes it difficult for people to imagine a strong connection to the lands and their meaning. Instead it feels like more of the stolen lands, stolen

  Seven years ago this article was featured in the Stars and Stripes, a feature about Ritidian and its beauty. It was a piece meant to inform the military on island about the special qualities of the place, encouraging them to visit. An interesting contrast between then and now. The ginefpago of the place remains the same, although the strategic interests change. I wonder if the Stars and Stripes ever had an article about Pagat and how special it is encouraging people to go and visit.   ******************** Ritidian Point: A gorgeous slice of tropical Guam

Sumahi has been to Pagat several times at different points in her life. She first went there as a small baby who was carried most of the time and didn't really do much on the hike except be carried. She later went as a still small child who walked a little bit, but was still carried quite a bit. The last time she went, she walked most of it, but was carried over the limestone rope path. By the time she got to the cliffs though she was tired and not really into the hike anymore and just wanted to go home. This weekend however, she was for the first time truly into the hike. She walked the entire way and did not fuss or complain even though it was raining at the beginning. As you can see in the picture, she got to wear a trash bag rain coat and that was pretty fun for her. She arrived at the cliffs and for the first time was amazed at the ocean. She stared excitedly as the waves crashed and kept talking about them and asking about them. The high point was the cave.

Over the past few years I have been on many hikes here on Guam. I have seen so many beautiful things on these hikes. I have found artifacts that hundreds had probably walked by, but never noticed before. I have found latte stones that may have gone unseen for centuries before I stumbled upon them, literally. I have seen sunsets sitting on rocks that seemed to be created strictly for the purpose of allowing ones eyes to swallow the sky in massive gulps. I have seen the ocean in so many types of blue at a given moment that it both looks like one massive solid color and a multitude of disagreeing blues at the same time. Throughout these hikes the history and beauty of Guam has come alive in so many ways. I feel not only a stronger connection to the present day Guam, but also to so many versions of its throughout the past. Walking amongst latte stones where Chamorros walked hundreds of years before. Exploring caves where Chamorros and Japanese soldiers huddled hiding from American bo

I've been successful this summer in going on a hike at least every two weeks. I've been referring to these as my "Secret Hikes" Here are some pictures of the last four:

I've been so out of shape this past year, I'm committed to going hiking at least every other week this summer. In order to fulfill this promise, I'm coordinating Miget's Secret Summer Hikes, that will take place at random intervals this summer. There is no schedule for the hikes. There is no real order. It is a mixture of places I love to visit and new places that people are introducing me to. The only place I really post info about them is on Facebook. If you aren't a friend of mine on Facebook then you won't be able to learn much about them. Asi'i yu'. Here is a pick of where I went to today.

For the past week I've been pasting pictures of my many hikes to the Pagat area of northern Guam. In a one year period I hiked down there 14 times, and in the process exploring so many different areas there and finding lots of cool things. I don't have thousands of pictures of my trip, since more than once I lost a camera down there. But I do have enough to show different aspects of the Pagat area, most of which people don't really know. Pagat proper is the trail that takes you to the freshwater cave and then through a trail of lusong, past a single latte house, to get to the natural arch and the cliffs. Pagat is so much more than this, and I've been blessed to be able to explore and see so much more. On the Pagat loop trail you can see the limestone wall there which no one seems to be able to explain how it was made (but there are many fun theories). At Pagat point you can see two massive limestone rocks known as Chelef's Hands, named after a 17th century C