The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: September eighteenth, enjoying a mutineer's paradise.

A tiny dot of dry land in the South Pacific 930 miles east of Australia and nearly as far north of New Zealand, Norfolk Island is nothing if not isolated. Three miles by five, this peak of a subsea mountain chain is a magical little place. Black cliffs tower over ocean reefs, and huge Norfolk Pines, massive cousins of the neat branched house-plant, create a verdant, subtropical rain forest skyline.

Isolation is what the island's first settlers had in mind. Discovered by Captain Cook in 1774, Norfolk Island became a prison, a place of the severest punishment short of death for England's most incorrigible criminals. With no hope of pardon or escape, conditions in this paradise became so depraved, prisoners often murdered fellow in-mates, not out of malice, but of mercy, to spare them the living hell.

In 1855, Norfolk was abandoned as a prison, but it was re-settled two years later by descendants of the Bounty mutineers. Having outgrown Pitcairn Island, they were given Norfolk by Queen Victoria, who regarded them as an experiment in social isolation.

A visit reveals the experiment was a complete success. With just over 2000 residents, the island's vibe is so friendly and tranquil, it's hard to believe a hand was ever raised in anger here. Instead of cell phones, nightclubs and traffic, island visitors find quaint cottages, empty beaches, and clear starry nights, along with superb diving and fishing. The odd ghost still stalks crumbling graveyards where murderers and the murdered lie together for eternity. Getting to Norfolk Island still isn't easy, but now those who do never want to leave.

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