Sigatoka Sand Dunes

Fiji – May 2022

The Sigatoka Sand Dunes were the first national park to be declared in Fiji in the 1980s. The dunes are thousands of years old and are composed of fine, greyish-brown sediment rather than the traditional fine, sandy tan dunes. The dunes also have vines and shrubs covering much of them.

About a twenty-minute hike from the visitor’s center brings one to the beach, where one also comes across teepees of various sizes made from driftwood. Some are alone, others are in groups. All together they form a miniature village of temporary, cone-shaped structures made from driftwood and natural debris, built by park rangers and volunteers to help control sand erosion and stabilize the dune

The village of Volivoli has a myth about a small valley in the dunes called Nadrio, meaning “darkness.” They believe that this valley is a gateway to the underworld. The villagers of Kulukulu also claim to hear and see spirits of the villagers who were buried alive in the sand after the Snake God, Degei, was angered by them. He sent a tidal wave that hit the beach, burying the village in sand and killing all its inhabitants, giving a darker symbolism to the driftwood teepees set along the coast.