To Sua Ocean Trench is basically a hole in the ground with water. In Samoan, ‘to sua’ literally means hole with water and ‘to le sua’ means hole without water - yes, there’s one of those as well. But I’m here to focus on the big one with water - the breathtaking one, the ‘pinch me, I can’t believe I’m really here’ one.
Not much competes with the experience of swimming in or floating on crystal clear water, surrounded by cliff faces covered in lush green tropical foliage. I felt like I was in a wondrous paradise. Actually, that’s exactly where I was!
To Sua has to be one of the most unusual and spectacular places to swim on the planet. It's 30 metres deep, almost symmetrical in shape and sits in the middle of a lava field in the village of Lotofaga. Apparently, it formed during an ancient lava eruption. And there’s more - it sits atop a jutting edge of spectacular coastline on the south coast of Samoa's main island of Upolo. The million dollar panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean are worth coming here alone!
It’s accessible via a sturdy wooden ladder (31 steps - I counted!). The steps lead to a small sitting/viewing platform at its base. The pool is fed through an underwater cave that leads out to the ocean just metres away. The water is crystal clear and is a beautiful turquoise colour. An array of coloured fish dart about, and the bottom – when you can reach it – is sandy.
Our first visit was on Sunday after church (where we went to hear the singing and see the locals do what they love). It seems that EVERYONE in Samoa attends a church service on Sunday. So, when in Rome . . . The day is designated as an official day of rest and nothing is open except for where we were heading. We arrived at about midday (that church service was awfully long…) on our scooter and waited, with a few others for the place to open.
The first thing we noticed were the well-manicured lawns and the beautiful tropical gardens. The whole site is owned by a local family. They have worked hard to develop the area, maintaining and highlighting the lush gardens and building several fales for families to relax in and enjoy the stunning surrounds.
Despite its amazing depth and size, To Sua is not obvious as you walk through the gardens, until you come across a blue picket fence. That very first glance over the fence is one I will never forget. Just wow! We couldn’t get down there fast enough!
The first thing that hit me as I dived into the pool (besides the water, that is) is it was fairly warm and crystal clear. Other interesting observations -
It is deep when it’s high tide and quite shallow when it’s low tide. The difference is stark. There were parts of the trench where I could stand quite comfortably, but it was mainly fairly deep throughout.
The water is very salty and it’s so easy to float. And float I did. It was so meditative to drift on the lapping water and look up through the dappled sunshine at the lush foliage, following a single leaf as it twirls its way to the waters’ edge, all the while listening to birds chirping and the distant thunder of crashing surf. Bliss!
The tidal surge is strong. In fact it's so strong, a few ropes have been suspended midway across the water hole to hold onto so you can avoid being pulled too far away.
We came back to To Sua two more times. Both times, we got there at about 8:15am and had the WHOLE place to ourselves for about 2 ½ hours. Did someone say, “naked swimming is the best” or was I dreaming?
Admission fee is 20 tālā - worth every single tala.