Things to do in United States Minor Outlying Islands

25 things to do in United States Minor Outlying Islands

Listed in full below. The running order is set by votes and loads with the page.

• Witness the Laysan Albatross Colony at Midway Atoll

  Over a million Laysan albatrosses nest on Sand Island each winter, filling the air with their honking courtship dances. Known as 'gooney birds,' these massive seabirds blanket every spare patch of ground, making Midway one of the largest albatross colonies on Earth.

  Midway Atoll, Sand Island

• Explore the Battle of Midway National Memorial

  Scattered across Sand and Eastern Islands sit rusting Quonset huts, gun emplacements, and an airstrip from the June 1942 naval battle that turned the Pacific War. Interpretive signs and the memorial honor the American and Japanese sailors lost in the decisive engagement.

  Midway Atoll, Sand Island

• Dive the Pristine Coral Walls of Kingman Reef

  Virtually untouched by human activity, Kingman Reef's steep coral walls drop into crystalline blue water teeming with gray reef sharks, manta rays, and massive schools of jacks. It is considered one of the most pristine coral reef ecosystems remaining in the world.

  Kingman Reef

• Follow Amelia Earhart's Final Route to Howland Island

  This flat, uninhabited coral island was the intended destination of Amelia Earhart's 1937 round-the-world flight. A small stone memorial and the overgrown remains of the flight's preparation camp stand as haunting reminders of aviation's most famous disappearance.

  Howland Island

• Snorkel the Crystal Lagoon of Palmyra Atoll

  Palmyra's interconnected lagoons shelter some of the healthiest coral reefs in the central Pacific, with over 130 species of coral and 400 species of fish. The calm, gin-clear water inside the atoll offers world-class snorkeling amid blacktip reef sharks and giant clams.

  Palmyra Atoll

• Dive the Sunken WWII Tugboat at Palmyra Atoll

  A World War II tugboat lies upright in shallow water inside Palmyra's lagoon, encrusted with colorful corals and sponges. Schools of surgeonfish and parrotfish circle the wreck, and occasional white-tip reef sharks rest in its shadow.

  Palmyra Atoll

• Observe Red-Footed Boobies Nesting on Baker Island

  Baker Island supports one of the largest red-footed booby colonies in the central Pacific, with thousands of pairs nesting in low scrub near the old World War II runway. Great frigatebirds and sooty terns fill the skies alongside them in a cacophony of calls.

  Baker Island

• Walk the Abandoned WWII Airstrip on Jarvis Island

  A deteriorating coral airstrip built by the U.S. military during World War II cuts across Jarvis Island's flat, barren landscape. With no fresh water and no shade, this remote speck of land feels like the edge of the world, surrounded by pounding surf.

  Jarvis Island

• Visit the Green Sea Turtle Nesting Beaches of Midway

  Hawaiian green sea turtles haul themselves onto Midway's white sand beaches between May and October to lay eggs. North Beach is a critical nesting site where researchers monitor the turtles, and visitors can witness hatchlings scrambling toward the surf.

  Midway Atoll, Sand Island

• Explore the Cold War Chemical Weapons Infrastructure on Johnston Atoll

  Johnston Atoll served as a storage and incineration site for chemical munitions from the 1970s through 2000. Crumbling concrete bunkers, the massive incinerator facility, and restricted-zone fencing create an eerie industrial landscape on a tiny tropical atoll.

  Johnston Atoll

• Kayak the Interior Lagoons of Palmyra Atoll

  Palmyra's labyrinthine network of lagoons, sandbars, and mangrove-lined channels can be explored by kayak at slack tide. Paddling through the warm, still water reveals reef sharks, rays, and nesting boobies in a landscape barely changed in centuries.

  Palmyra Atoll

• Visit the Guano Mining Ruins on Navassa Island

  Crumbling stone walls, rusted rail tracks, and cisterns left by 19th-century guano mining companies dot Navassa's steep limestone cliffs. The island's remote Caribbean location and sheer bluffs make it one of the most inaccessible and unusual historical sites under U.S. jurisdiction.

  Navassa Island

• Photograph the Endangered Laysan Duck at Midway Atoll

  The Laysan duck, one of the world's rarest ducks with a wild population of under 1,000, was introduced to Midway to safeguard the species. These small, dark ducks waddle fearlessly along ponds and runways on Sand Island, offering extraordinary close-up encounters.

  Midway Atoll, Sand Island

• Dive with Gray Reef Sharks at Kingman Reef

  Schools of dozens of gray reef sharks patrol the outer reef walls of Kingman in some of the clearest water on Earth. The sheer biomass of apex predators here indicates a functioning, unexploited reef ecosystem that scientists use as a baseline for Pacific ocean health.

  Kingman Reef

• Explore the Coconut Crab Population on Palmyra Atoll

  Palmyra hosts one of the healthiest remaining populations of coconut crabs, the world's largest land arthropod that can grow to over three feet in leg span. These enormous, rust-colored crabs emerge at dusk to climb trees and crack coconuts with their powerful claws.

  Palmyra Atoll

• See the Abandoned Military Bunkers on Wake Island

  Concrete gun emplacements, bombed-out hangars, and the remains of a Japanese-held garrison dot Wake Island's three islets. The island was the site of a fierce battle in December 1941 and subsequent forced-labor camps, leaving a landscape scarred by conflict.

  Wake Island

• Snorkel the Shallow Reef Flat at Baker Island

  The fringing reef around Baker Island drops off into turquoise shallows populated by reef fish, giant clams, and occasional green sea turtles. With no human visitation for months at a time, the marine life shows virtually no fear of snorkelers.

  Baker Island

• Witness the Magnificent Frigatebird Colony on Baker Island

  Male magnificent frigatebirds inflate their brilliant red throat pouches to attract mates in a spectacular courtship display. Baker Island's roosting trees host large colonies alongside brown boobies and noddies in one of the Pacific's least-disturbed seabird rookeries.

  Baker Island

• Visit the Earhart Light Navigation Beacon Ruins on Howland Island

  A small stone and concrete navigational beacon called 'Earhart Light' was constructed to guide Amelia Earhart to Howland Island in 1937. Now crumbling and partially reclaimed by vegetation, it stands as a poignant monument to an unfinished flight.

  Howland Island

• Study the Invasive Species Removal Program at Palmyra Atoll

  The Nature Conservancy has spent years removing invasive coconut palms and restoring native Pisonia forest on Palmyra. Scientists and volunteers work to understand how the native ecosystem recovers, offering a rare front-row seat to island ecological restoration.

  Palmyra Atoll

• Watch the Surf Crash Against Navassa's Sheer Cliffs

  Navassa Island rises abruptly from the Caribbean Sea with near-vertical 100-foot limestone cliffs battered by heavy swells. The dramatic coastline, inaccessible from the water, supports nesting seabirds and offers one of the most rugged coastal landscapes in the Caribbean.

  Navassa Island

• Explore the World War II Runway Ruins on Eastern Island, Midway

  Eastern Island's overgrown runways and scattered aircraft revetments recall Midway's role as a critical forward airbase. Concrete bunkers, rusting fuel drums, and foxholes remain half-hidden in the low vegetation nearly 80 years after the war.

  Midway Atoll, Eastern Island

• Observe Hawaiian Monk Seals Resting on Midway's Beaches

  The critically endangered Hawaiian monk seal, with a population of only about 1,400, regularly hauls out on Midway's sand beaches. These ancient pinnipeds, sometimes called 'living fossils,' bask undisturbed, offering rare wildlife encounters.

  Midway Atoll, Sand Island

• Snorkel the Outer Reef Drop-Off at Palmyra Atoll

  Beyond the lagoon, Palmyra's outer reef wall plunges thousands of feet into the open Pacific. Snorkeling along this vertical coral face reveals massive Napoleon wrasse, scalloped hammerheads, and pristine hard-coral formations in exceptional visibility.

  Palmyra Atoll

• Visit the Biological Field Station on Palmyra Atoll

  The Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium operates a field station supporting studies on climate change, coral health, and island ecology. Visiting scientists live in repurposed WWII-era structures, and the station represents one of the most remote active research outposts in the Pacific.

  Palmyra Atoll, Cooper Island