Buka Island

Buka Island is a tiny island in Bougainville's northern sector, and it is the busiest portion of the region. In fact, Buka has a tourist information office, which is about as rare as hen's teeth in Papua New Guinea. Buka Island and Bougainville are fantastic places to go swimming and fishing, and the pristine seas provide lots of possibilities for snorkeling.

Buka is a moderately flat island with a north-south axis of 52 kilometers (32 miles) and a west-east axis of up to 18 kilometers (11 miles). The Buka Passage, a small, deep, and fast-moving tidal canal roughly 200 meters (660 ft) wide, separates it from Bougainville. For the most of the year, the east coast is windward, with a coastal cliff that juts out into the sea, leaving just a small and frequently stony beach. On the east coast, which is pummeled by ocean winds and heavy waves, a coral reef surrounds the entire island; on the west coast, it expands out into lagoons.

Because to the limestone morphology, most of the islands have minimal surface water. This is an issue for the island's residents, particularly during the dry season, when the villagers rely on the "kukubui" springs at the base of the cliffs for water.

• Location: Bougainville