Welcome to day two recapping the Aitutaki lagoon tour with Kia Orana cruise! (Day one can be found here.) Today we’ll visit the crown jewel of the Cook Islands — One Foot Island. Parts of the reality TV show Survivor: Cook Islands were shot here. If it weren’t for the humidity, sunburns, and occasional bug eating (or whatever gross challenge du jour offered to the contestants), that would be a pretty sweet gig.

Just check out that ombre water shifting from crystal clear to turquoise.

I am in my happy place.

The water swirls at ankle level for long stretches of sand. If I had the whole day here I’d walk it for miles.

Here’s a literal photograph — my singular footsteps in front of One Foot Island.

A man from our boat tour notices my outstretched arm trying to take a selfie. Ah, the pitfalls of solo travel. He very kindly offers to take my picture.

The water looks so inviting…

Captain Fantastic suggests we swim across to One Foot Island and he’ll meet us there with the boat.

Bishops Cruises (one of the larger tour boats) stops by but there are no passengers on board, only locals getting dropped off to prepare for a wedding that will take place later that afternoon. He begins to build an archway of palm branches and boldly colored flowers as we walk around the island.

A few months prior several leaders and prime ministers of the Oceania region met on One Foot Island and left these white plaques to mark each of their island nations.

I wish I could go back in time and tell the girl below to put on more sunscreen. I’m still paying for it three days later!

Check out this guy fishing in the water. I’m not sure if he’s bonefishing or regular fishing, but bonefishing is a popular and difficult sport in the Cook Islands. My bungalow neighbor Dave went on a half-day tour on the morning of his wedding for $400! Apparently there’s only a handful of bone fisherman on the island skilled at seeing these particular fish deep in the water and reeling them in.

We reluctantly pull away from One Foot Island.

I am so thrilled to experience the pure beauty of this place. And I’m amazed at how untouched these islands are — there is not a resort or restaurant in sight! I hope the Cook Islands government continues to protect this land for future generations.

One Foot Island is not easily reached, but it’s well worth the effort. To get here from any international destination, fly into Rarotonga (there’s direct flights from Los Angeles and New Zealand several times a week) and then take a smaller plane to Aitutaki. From there you can take a boat tour of the lagoon for about $85-$99, OR a water taxi direct to One Foot Island for around $60 per person round-trip. It’s also worth pointing out that you can stay in Rarotonga for the duration of your Cook Islands trip and visit Aitutaki’s lagoon as a day tour. It’s offered by Air Rarotonga for around $400 and includes the round-trip flight to Aitutaki plus the lagoon cruise. The price drops drastically the week prior to departure, if you feel comfortable waiting that long (I booked my Aitutaki flights three days before travel at $99 there and $169 return, which is about half the usual price).