All activities / Sea Kayaking / Canoeing / Upi Bay
Sea Kayaking / Canoeing in Upi Bay
A spectacular bay on the east side of the Isle of Pines, where jagged limestone rocks topped with pines rise straight from shallow turquoise water, often compared to Ha Long Bay. Reached from Saint-Joseph Bay by traditional outrigger pirogue, it opens onto the famous natural pool at Oro Bay and shelters turtles, rays and a shark nursery.
Why here
Upi Bay is one of the great canoe journeys of the Pacific, crossed the way the Kunie people have always crossed it: by traditional outrigger sailing pirogue. From Saint-Joseph Bay a Kanak piroguer raises a small sail and glides you across water so shallow and clear that eroded limestone stacks, each crowned with pandanus and pine, seem to float like buoys, in a scene endlessly compared to Ha Long Bay. Along the way you pass over turtles, eagle rays and a natural shark nursery in the seagrass, the boat silent but for the wind and the paddle. The crossing lands you for a walk through to Oro Bay, where a channel in the reef forms a sheltered natural swimming pool of astonishing colour, fed by the tide. Doing it by pirogue rather than by motor is the point: it is slow, quiet, guided by islanders, and it connects you to a living Kanak seafaring tradition as much as to the scenery.
Best months
Upi Bay pirogue crossings run through the year, timed to the wind and the tide, which the piroguers read from long experience; mornings are usually calmest. The cooler, drier season from April to November brings the most settled conditions and comfortable walking to Oro Bay. This is guided, gentle paddling and sailing rather than a workout, suitable for beginners and families, though the walk between the bays takes forty to fifty minutes over uneven ground. Sun and water protection matter, and the natural pool is best around the incoming tide.
Getting there & around
The Isle of Pines is reached by a short Air Caledonie flight from Noumea to Vao or by the Betico fast ferry, both booked ahead. Pirogue excursions leave from Saint-Joseph Bay, and operators or your accommodation arrange the transfer there and the guide; trips are usually a half or full day and end with the walk to the Oro Bay natural pool. Bring water, sun protection, reef shoes and cash, as card payment is limited on the island. Accommodation is small gites and campgrounds, popular in the dry season, so book rooms and excursions together.
Skill levels: beginner
Schools & guides (2)
Atchu
OutfitterAtchu is a Kanak-run campground and excursion operator on the Isle of Pines, owned by Yves Kouathe, offering traditional outrigger pirogue trips through Upi Bay. From its site near the natural pool it runs half-day Upi Bay crossings and full-day bay tours out to Brosse islet, gliding between the floating limestone rocks with local piroguers who know the reef. It also serves Melanesian home cooking at the camp table and offers cases and camping by the beach.
Kou Bugny Excursions
OutfitterKou Bugny Excursions is the activity arm of the Kou-Bugny hotel on Kuto Bay, Isle of Pines, running the island's classic Upi Bay outing. Guests transfer to Saint-Joseph Bay and board a traditional sailing outrigger pirogue to cross Upi Bay, gliding between the limestone rocks that sit on the water like floating buoys, past a shark nursery, turtles and rays. The trip ends with a walk of forty to fifty minutes through to Oro Bay and its famous natural pool for a swim before the return.