Chuuk

If Pohnpei was an exercise in rolling with the punches, Chuuk State was a master class in relinquishing control.

Another hour on the Island Hopper gets you to this large atoll known for world-class wreck diving. The US sank more than 50 Japanese ships here during World War II and most remain preserved in its shallow lagoon.

None of our stops offered much tourist infrastructure, but Chuuk was the most challenging. The handful of tour companies claimed to be fully booked. The hotel had lost our reservation. We couldn't get answers to questions like "can we take this tour?" or "do you have a hotel shuttle?" Infrequent taxis stopped running at 5 pm.

I quickly realized you have to show up in person and keep asking until you get what you need. When we finally reached the Blue Lagoon Resort dive shop, the previously unavailable wreck trips were miraculously available and, it turned out, well worth the effort.

Chuuk's underwater world is simply incredible. We swam through massive schools of tropical fish to find a sunken Momi-class destroyer and coral-encrusted cargo ship.

There's plenty for non-divers to see, too, like a downed Mitsubishi Zero fighter and a 1937 coastal freighter nearly 3 meters down. We spent an afternoon on the private Jeep Island with unbelievable coral reef snorkeling and shark spotting.

The airport-adjacent L5 Hotel offers the newest accommodation, but the Blue Lagoon and Truk Stop Hotel are the best bets for arranging wreck tours.

As we boarded the plane for our final stop in Guam, sunburnt and still reeling from our adventures, my boat-flipping hysteria was a distant memory.

It was a small price to pay for an unplugged, truly unpredictable journey and a much-needed lesson in letting go.

ASSOCIATED PRESS