T88SM – Koror Island

Mike, JA6EGL will be T88SM again at IOTA OC-009 from Koror, Palau, January 10-16, 2025.
He will be operating on 160 – 6m, CW, SSB, digital modes.
Nearest DX Point T88SM
QSL is available directly via home call only.
Direct QSL advertising:
Mike S. Miyake, Hakata Amateur Radio Association, P.O. Box 232, Hakata-kita, Japan, tel: 812-8799.

Eight square kilometers: Koror Island

It’s amazing how many places on Earth we know next to nothing about. One of these places is Koror, a small island in the Pacific Ocean that deserves an article of its own for its beauty and uniqueness. Koror is part of the Micronesian island nation of Palau.

By the way, there used to be a city with the same name, which was the capital of Palau until 2006, when this title passed to the city of Ngerulmud: Koror is far away from the rest of the islands of the country and lacks good transport infrastructure. However, this has not prevented Koror from becoming a recognized diving center, attracting thousands of tourists from all over the world every year.

It is worth noting that the economy of this small island is still based on agriculture and fishing. Of course, tourism is gradually developing, but the locals do not want to give up what their ancestors have been doing for centuries. This quality is reflected in the culture of Koror, where there are historical and architectural monuments that are thousands of years old.

Koror Island. Author – Michio Morimoto.

A little history: cultural heritage

Palau is a unique country, with hundreds of islands spread across Micronesia. Koror Island is undoubtedly the most unique of them all. It is equidistant from Eurasia and Australia (2,500 km), covers an area of ​​only 8 square kilometers, yet has an incredibly rich culture.

The exact date of Koror’s discovery is unknown: people began to visit the island regularly from the middle of the 19th century. It was particularly popular with European traders and travelers, who stopped here to rest and replenish supplies. Since then, Koror has earned the reputation of a paradise: a peaceful and remote island, completely covered with vegetation, with a pleasant climate and crystal clear waters.

Thousands of years ago, the first settlers appeared on Koror. Their descendants still live on this island, strictly following traditions and customs. Thanks to them, we can immerse ourselves in the atmosphere of the past: there is a National Museum on the island, which houses some truly unusual artifacts.

In addition, there is a modern cultural center on Koror Island. Of particular note is the Coral Reef Research Center, which monitors water quality and maps corals. This is an open water area where some of the rarest marine creatures, such as nautilus, giant clams and golden jellyfish, live and breed.

Otherworldly Landscapes: Geography and Climate

Koror is a volcanic island, the remains of an ancient volcano covered with coral deposits. Koror has an area of ​​8 square kilometres, the entire territory (including the small atolls) is just over 9 square kilometres, and is home to nearly 13,000 people.

The climate is tropical, with a rainy season that lasts from May to November. It is worth noting that rainfall here is cyclical. The biggest danger is the strong winds, which sometimes blow off the roofs of houses – therefore, the island is unofficially closed to tourists except in the dry season.

The island is completely covered with dense tropical forest, but the flora and fauna are quite sparse: there are only a few plants, birds and small mammals. The real wealth of Koror is the underwater world.

This amazing world: underwater world

Today Koror is an international diving center. Here are the reasons: always calm and clear waters, an unspoiled underwater world, hundreds of exotic marine animals. And of course the amazing Koror coral reefs – real relics that still exist today. They were formed over thousands of years and eventually formed several deep-sea communities.

The most famous of them are the Chandelure Caves, which are tens of kilometers long. The caves are inhabited by exotic parrot fish, which are not afraid of people at all. In addition, majestic turtles and schools of jellyfish can often be seen nearby. It is worth noting that these caves are considered a protected area – to get there, you must undergo a special training course and then obtain a diving permit.

There is only one hotel on Koror, located right on the coast, and a professional diving school: there you can get the necessary equipment, get advice or book an escort. In addition, Koror has a beautiful beach, which is almost always empty – the vast majority of tourists come here to witness the amazing underwater world of Koror with their own eyes.

In short, it is an amazing place, the only downside is that it is far from civilization. To get to Koror, it may take several hours of flight and ferry, but the effort is worth it because Koror is a magical island, and there is no other island like it.

T88SM. Where is Koror Island. Map.