Go to PNG Trekking * Niugini Adventure Tours * No Roads Expeditions * Kokoda Trekking 

PAPUA NEW GUINEA TREKKING ADVENTURES Enquire HERE

The two principals Pam Christie and Mark Hitchcock will lead the tours which will be supplemented with local guides and porters. Pam and Mark have lived in Papua New Guinea based in Port Moresby for 13 years which gives them a wide knowledge and understanding of local conditions, customs and traditions.

PNG Trekking Adventures (PNGTA) approaches adventures in PNG on a personal level, focusing on the individual experience for our guests. Treks are limited to six people so you enjoy a more exclusive journey where you are an individual and not just part of a large group. Our focus is on active adventure travel, getting out there and experiencing the “Land of the Unexpected” and most importantly of all having fun.Our treks suit active open minded people of all ages who have a flexible approach to travel. None of our treks are marathon events, they are rewarding holidays. Of course, as with all outdoor activities, the fitter you are and the more you take your time, the more you will enjoy the experience.

Our trip dates are not set in stone. We are flexible and will do our very best to work with you so you are able to join us on one of our treks.Safety is a primary concern this is why we use local guides and porters, some of whom are reserve policeman. Our training and experience in trekking and alpine climbing along with our understanding of local conditions ensures that safety is up most priority at all times.

The Kokoda Trail is by far the most popular trek in Papua New Guinea and takes between 6-9 days. It is a challenge and the difficulty of the track should not be underestimated.PNG Trekking Adventures approaches adventures in PNG on a personal level, focusing on the individual experience for our guests. Treks are limited to 8 people so you enjoy a more exclusive journey where you are an individual and not just part of a large group. Our focus on the Kokoda is getting out there and experiencing all the delights that the trail has to offer and most importantly of all having fun.

The long days include river crossings, steep and gradual ascents and descents. The 96 kilometre trek is predominately through rain forest. Usually conditions are wet and slippery as rain can be expected on most days. Temperatures range from 24-30 degrees celcius during the day and 16-24 degrees celcius at night.This trail was made famous during WWII and still bears the scars of the fierce campaign. For those of you who had loved ones fighting in PNG during WWII, this walk can be a very spiritual and emotional experience. Trekking in mud up to your knees and tricky river crossing replicates exactly the conditions under which our diggers fought.

People embarking on this Kokoda adventure will be assured of the most spectacular scenery and have an unforgettable experience. The local people are Koiaris who are friendly and generous.

BLACK CAT TRACK/SKINDIWAI

TREKKING FROM WAU TO SALAMAUA, MOROBE PROVINCE

This track is not for the faint hearted, nor for the inexperienced bush walker. For those of you who have done the Kokoda Trail it makes that trek seem like a stroll in the park.The track is still in a very raw state. It is leech and snake-infested jungle, moss covered rocks and fallen tree stumps, precarious cliff crossings and potentially dangerous river crossings. This makes the Black Cat arguably one of the toughest treks in Papua New Guinea. Some Australian soldiers have described the Black Cat as the hardest walk they’ve ever done. The Lonely Planet guidebook quotes a local expatriate, as saying the Black Cat is “suitable only for masochists and Israeli Paras”

There is so much WWII history attached to the “Black Cat”. Some of the bloodiest battles were fought here. 63 years ago in 1942 Salamaua was recaptured from the Japanese. We saw many war relics. Munitions pits, guns, clothing, a cargo plane wreck and huge bomb craters now full of water. The villagers went out and collected guns and live mortars for us to look at. They were everywhere and easily accessed.This is a 4-5 day trek starting at the small hamlet of Wau. We meander our way round steep ridges and overnight in extremely isolated villages. The track will throw everything at you from torrential rain to the blazing sun. But for all the punishment our bodies endure we are rewarded with some of the most awesome and exciting terrain that you will ever trek through.The animals and birds of the jungle are prolific, magnificent flora and fauna. You will see Birds of Paradise bathing in rivers. You may have to negotiate round huge mounds of leaves where a Niugini Fowl may have decided to build its nest right in the middle of the track. The Flame of the Forest tree may be in full bloom. What a beautiful sight that is, seeing streaks of red splashed through the jungle. Wild orchids are everywhere and butterflies flit around your hat as you walk.

Best of all on this track though are the people. The villages we stay in very seldom get to see westerners. The first time we did this trek, the current generation of woman and children in one particular village had never seen a white woman. The children were absolutely terrified of my red hair as they thought my head was on fire. It took some encouraging to get them to come back and visit me. We cannot speak the language but the hand of friendship is the same all over the world. These people have nothing and will give you everything. It is grueling 8-9 hour days but well worth the effort when you were greeted with such kindness and hospitality at the end of it.On the last day after a 5 hour leisurely walk down to the San Francisco River we organize the village on the river to build us rafts which we then use to float out to Salamaua. This takes about 4 hours. The bird life along the river is prolific.

Salamaua has to be one of the best kept secrets in this world and one of the most idyllic places you will ever go to. I will say no more, except it is a great way to end a hard 4 day trek through the jungle.There is so much more I we could say about this trek but feel that some secrets should be kept for people to experience for themselves. If you have a sense of adventure running through your veins give this a go. For those of you who just want to step out of the box and have a have a go experience of a lifetime,

back to top

NIUGINI ADVENTURE TOURS Enquire HERE Our vision is to share the beauty, the emotion and the unique history that is Kokoda, and the best that PNG has to offer, and to strive to preserve and enhance the track and its environs, the peoples and to develop the local economies. Niugini Adventure Tours is an innovative, new adventure tour operator independently owned and operated by PNG and Kokoda locals. We invite you to experience Papua New Guinea: The Land of the Unexpected, and take away memories of a unique adventure that you will treasure forever.

 

NO ROADS EXPEDITIONS Enquire HERE

No Roads Expeditions offers guided Kokoda Track expeditions which can be booked for any week of the year for any group size from 1 upwards. We also have scheduled departures that anyone is welcome to join. All food, equipment and guides (including an Australian guide) are provided. You only need to bring your personal gear and bedding. We take a slightly different approach from some other trek operators who camp out every night of the trek and fly all food and drink in for the occasion, thus almost needing a camel train to carry all their supplies. We engage village guest houses along the Track to supply accommodation and some meals for our trekkers and porters, thus not only reducing the amount of food and equipment carried by the trekking party, but also injecting greater economic benefits into the micro-economies of the village communities along the Track. Our food includes coconut milk curries, vegetarian pastas, fried rice, prawn crackers, damper etc. We use no rehydratable vegetables and we don’t supply baked beans, just delicious and nutritious meals. No Roads also supplies a portable shower tent so you can either wash in the rivers without soap or in our shower with soap which is kept away from water courses. We supply the soap. We can even provide a hot shower anywhere along the Track. Our Porters are well paid, well fed and motivated to provide you with a great experience. They set up tents, boil water, help you along the Track and at night, sing songs. On our trek you will sleep in village guest houses for half the nights along the Track. The other nights involve camping in locations where there are no villages (bush camps).

ITINERARY

Day 01:
Arrive Port Moresby and transfer to Hotel. Free time to yourself.

Day 02:
Depart Port Moresby 0630am on Airlines PNG flight to Kokoda.

Day 03:
After a billy tea breakfast with fruit and scones at Isurava village you will hike 30 minutes to the Isurava ANZAC war memorial.

Day 04:
Camp breakfast. Hike from Iora Creek to Bella – long ascents and descents with swampy sections today. Camp lunch. Overnight camping at Bella. Camp dinner.

Day 05:
Camp breakfast, camp lunch. Hike from Bella to Kagi. Today you will ascend Mt Bellamy, the highest point of the Kokoda Track. Good views at the Kokoda Gap Lookout. Descend to Kagi village and airstrip. Overnight at our purpose built No Roads guest house.

Day 06:
Today you will hike from Kagi to Menari village. During the morning you will climb Brigade Hill and then begin a long steep descent to Menari village which will weary your feet and legs. You will sleep well tonight. Overnight village guest house.

Day 07:
Hike from Menari to Naoro village. After climbing a steep saddle you will descend and pass through a number of river crossings to Naoro village. Overnight village guest house. Dinner provided by Naoro guest house.

Day 08:
Hike from Naoro to Wa-ule Creek. Climbing through open grasslands you will mount the Maguli Range and take a long steep descent to Ofi Creek and Wa-ule Creek campsite. Overnight camping. Camp dinner.

Day 09:
Camp breakfast. Hike from Wa-ule to Ower’s Corner. You will arrive at Owers Corner in the early afternoon and will be met by a 4WD vehicle with a picnic lunch you will be driven down the picturesque Sogeri Gorge via the Bomana War Cemetry to Port Moresby and dropped off at your accommodation.

Day 10:
After breakfast, transfer to airport for your next destination.

PRICE

2008
AUD$2290 ex Port Moresby

Please note: All prices are ex Port Moresby. Maximum scheduled group size is 15. Price increase in 2007 due to higher fuel costs, Track fees etc.

back to top

 KOKODA TREKKING Enquire HERE

The Kokoda Trail is one of the world's great treks, linking the southern and northern coast of Papua New Guinea, it is a challenge to be enjoyed by the fit bushwalker. The Kokoda Trail and Sogeri area have a history of bitter fighting between Australian and Japanese armies during the early days of the war in the Pacific in World War II. The 96 km Kokoda trail passes through rugged mountainous country of rainforest, jungles of fern, orchids, birds and clean mountain streams which tumble into steep valleys. The unspoilt villages throughout the Kokoda Track will welcome you and the Koiari and Orokaiva people will greet you with smiles and tempt you with seasonal fruit and vegetables. Visit Kokoda and enjoy the adventure of your lifetime.

Accommodation will be in villages along the track as well as open – air camping. There is accommodation in the villages of Hoi, Isurava, Kagi, Naduri, Efogi, Menari, and Naoro. Accommodation comes as part of the pre–paid package which also includes track pass, airline ticket to Kokoda, food, and food porter. There is open air camping space at Templeton’s Crossing and Ua–Ule Creek. Other open–air camping sites can be made by clearing the bushes.

Food is included in the tour package cost. The ration packs are carried by our food porters and handed out to trekkers in the group on a daily basis. The ration pack is then carried by the individual trekkers. Please visit www.Food4Treks.com.au to learn more about the ration packs and their content.

The Ration Packs contain Breakfast, Morning Tea, Lunch, Afternoon Tea and dinner. depending on your daily food intake requirements, you may want to take other food along with you as well, such as muesli bars, chocolate, soup, lollies, biscuits, and other favorites. Please ensure that you do not add too much weight to your backpack though. The trek can be very draining on energy reserves so any supplements will come in handy.

Fresh fruit such as oranges, mandarins, bananas, pineapples, sugar fruit (a kind of passion fruit), and others are sold by villagers along the track so be sure to have some small change (K2, K5, K10) to buy these.

Local food is available upon request from the villages. These include kaukau (sweet potato), potatoes, bananas, taro, corn, choko leaves (which abound along the track), cabbages, tomatoes, and others. These vegetables can be supplemented by a village chicken. If trekkers would like a pig at the half way point of Efogi, they need to inform their guide and he will make contact by radio. Villagers will then try and catch a wild pig which can be purchased and cooked.

Trekkers generally contribute K20 - K40 each and pool for such purchases and enjoy as a group. Trekkers who are from the city areas and not rural areas have informed us, this is also an added experience they obtain from walking the Kokoda Trail and watching the locals prepare such meals.

Accommodation:	Local Village Huts & Outdoor Camping	WHAT TO BRING
Meals:	24 hr Ration Packs & Food Porter	1 pair walking boots, 1 pair of joggers,1 pair of thongs	1 pair ankle covers to keep mud off socks and ankles
Airfares:	Cairns - Port Moresby - Kokoda – Cairns	1 sweatband to prevent sweat in your eyes	1 pair track suit pants for night time use
Trek Permit	Traditional Oro Province Welcome	1 pullover for warmth in high country	2 cotton tee shirts with collars
		3 pair knee length shorts	1 pair swimmers
		1 sarong for women when washing	1 poncho or rain jacket
		5 pair socks & 4 pairs underwear	1 hat or cap for sun or rain

back to top