Given My Fear Of Heights,

this is one island I will not be visiting,

Minami-daitojima, is a small Japanese island surrounded by raised coral reef, it has no beaches or docks, so the only way for people or boats to make it on the island is to be lifted through the air by large industrial cranes,

as it happens it looks like an interesting place to visit, because it has no beaches and is surrounded 360 degrees by cliffs, the island is inhabited by many unique species that remain unaffected by non-native species,

because of the coral reefs surrounding it, ships can only moor up to 4 to 6 meters away, so this method is the safest and fastest to reach or leave the island. Boats are secures with straps and chains, while people have to get in an elevator-like cage,

Daito Kaiun, the company in charge of operating the crane, apparently inherited this ingenious method from another company that went bankrupt decades ago. Mr. Tomonori Miura, who runs operations on Daito Island, told Japanese website J-Town that building a sturdy dock would be expensive and difficult, so this unusual method is preferable, Miura said that his company uses two types of cages to hoist people on and off the island – one without a roof for fair weather, and a completely closed one for rainy and stormy days, “I was surprised that the speed was faster than I expected. I had more fun than fear, but I think people who are not good at high places would be pretty scared,” Mr. Tanuki Neko, who recently went to Daito, told J-Town, as it happens you can fly to the island, Minami-daitojima is also accessible by plane, although only 1-2 flights are usually available per week, due to unpredictable weather, so there is hope for us to visit!