We eventually pull into the harbor of San Juan Bautiste, the island's only settlement. Locals refer to it as Cumberland Bay. I step onto the pier and head off to my hosteria, wheeling a bag along the bumpy dirt road. A huge wooden statue of Alexander Selkirk stands in the village plaza. He looks tired.

I meet up with Pedro Niada Marín, a scuba instructor and ecotravel guide who explains a few more details about the island. There are no hospitals. There are no banks or credit cards. There is telephone service and, as luck would have it, limited Internet access, if you sign up in advance at the library (satellite Internet service was donated to the island by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation).

The island has a school, museum, ­cemetery, soccer field, tourism office, a few markets and bars, and two fuel-powered generators that provide electricity. The harbor is dotted with freshly painted green and white boats. Most people here make their living by fishing, except for the mayor, who is also the police chief. Supplies are brought in by ship from the mainland.

Beyond the Selkirk story, the Juan Fernández archipelago is ripe with history. Spanish sailor Juan Fernández discovered the group of islands by accident in 1574 while sailing between Peru and Valparaíso, a Chilean coastal town, and christened the islands with their original names. Some years later, the main island served as a legendary hideout for pirates - although to the disappointment of many, no treasure has ever been found.

Then during World War I, the German cruiser SMS Dresden was surrounded by British ships at Cumberland Bay after the Battle of the Falkland Islands. With no engines operational, and still flying the ensign flag, the commander ordered it scuttled. The wreck now sits in 200 feet of water at the harbor bottom. Divers discovered the ship's bell in February.