The arresting, tall, narrow, crooked pines called “Araucaria Columnaris” are endemic to Ile des Pins in New Caledonia.  These quirky pines grow rather fast and can reach heights of up to 60 meters (196′).

This unusual tree has many names including: the Cook Pine, Columnar Pine, Coral Reef Araucaria, New Caledonia Pine, Columnar Araucaria, and Cook Araucaria. 

I was on a mission to see these interesting trees up close and personal.  We came to shore and started on a loop walk along the “Sentier” path.  It is an easy, flat walk of about 3.5 miles around two bays.

The path is very well kept with some areas walking across wood planks and dirt paths.  

The entire way weaves you through the forest, mangroves, and magnificent pine trees along the coastline.

The pines here in Isle des Pins have short, mostly horizontal branches that grow in circles around a narrow trunk.

The branches are long and skinny with a triangle, scale like needles.

The female cones are 6″ long while the mail pollen cone are only 2″ long.  It was super odd that we could only find 2 cones on 4 walks over 4 days!

These are baby Columnar Pines.

Unusual Characteristics

One of the most unusual things about the Columnar Pines is that they grow crooked.  Their crooked nature and soft wood leaves them to be undesirable to loggers.  However, they are perfect for pirogues or dugout canoes that the locals use. 

Another unusual trait is the paper-like bark that peels away from the trunk in small thin sheets.

It’s like it sheds its skin over time exposing fresh new bark.

The Ile des Pins are truly beautiful and breathtaking.  

The lucky pigs that get to live in the beautiful forest.

Our blog posts run 7-8 weeks behind actual live events.  We were in Ile des Pins toward the end of June 2026.

Find Ile des Pins on No Foreign Land.

What made Captain Cook stop and stare?  Find out in our last blog post.