Rangiroa, the largest atoll in the Tuamotu archipelago, has a lagoon that is so big, it's like a sea within the Pacific Ocean. Photo / Graeme Lay Graeme Lay braves high seas to get a local's ...

RANGIROA, French Polynesia — Among the Islands of Tahiti, Rangiroa is in a class all its own. 50 miles from end to end, this ring of islands is the second-largest atoll in the world. Captain Noho ...

But I didn't expect to experience walking on the moon. Diving off Rangiroa, an oval-shaped necklace of atolls with a vast lagoon as its centrepiece, was scuba nirvana. The giants of the sea were ...

Twice a day the tide changes on this South Seas atoll, and when it does, 8- to 12-foot-tall waves churn through Tiputa Pass, creating a thunder of clashing water, riptides and whirlpools that can kill ...