The Marquesas Islands lie between 400 and 600 miles south of the equator and
approximately 1,000 miles northeast of Tahiti. With a combined area of some 807
square miles, the Marquesas are among the largest island groups of French Polynesia.
The islands are of volcanic origin, the eroded and partially submerged peaks of extinct
submarine volcanoes. Craggy mounts and peaks transverse the interior with jagged spurs and
spines rising to over 4,000 feet. The Marquesan coast has no fringing reef or coral-clad
lagoons, and the sea, although rich in resources, yields its bounty unwillingly. The climate
of the Marquesas is subtropical and much affected by the prevailing winds and vagaries of
seasons. Moisture-laden clouds carried by the southeast winds water the coasts on the south and east sides of the islands, nurturing a dense mantle of exotic
vegetation. The northwest coasts are relatively arid.
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