Mt Erima. Sunday 10th March 2013

On a wet Sunday, the POM Bushwalkers wandered out not far from Moresby and started an up and down walk amongst quarries and water treatment plants and the odd vegetable garden.

Basically the walk meandered along the road and then went vertical once we entered the quarry, why zig-zag up a hill when a tractor can go straight up?

Our path was clear, but the skies were overcast.  Which was a win-win, the cooling rain meant we were wet from nature and not from sweating.  The Ups were steep and the Downs were technical but all kept a reasonable footing.

I had to pull out halfway through leaving the rest for the last steep climb up Mt Erima.  I hear it went well yet some of the crew rested at 'base camp' while the others scaled the final ascent.

All in all, a great short walk, but technical and up and down.

Sunday 10th February 2013 - Taurama Barracks

Another bushwalk, another gun emplacement from World War Two.  A fair sized group of us met up and commuted casually down to Taurama Barracks.  This walk always starts off with a nasty climb high up along a spur and reaches its dizzying heights up above Pari Village.

 

The views were spectacular from on high, but the hot bright sun and the continual climbing took its toll and a few bushwalkers had  splintered off the back of the group and subsequently were reluctantly escorted back to the vehicles and back to the start.  Those that remained continued on along the undulating ridge line with each small hill and the everpresent hot february sun baking down on all.

The final destination of the Malaoro Markets were starting to look a long way off and an executive decision was made to get the remaining bushwalkers off the hill and out of the sun.  And then it became a mad scramble down the rocky hill, around a few gardens and straight through the middle of the settlement all the while listening to the fire and brimstone sermon by the Church crew in the bottom of the valley.  Pity there were no bagpipes or choral singing...

Boera Bushwalk - January 27, 2013.

Overcast conditions greeted a huge crowd of walkers and the cloud cover provided a bit of reprise from the normal January heat.  Recent rains had started to green up the area and Boera was a great choice to start a new year of walking.

Leaving the village, we headed straight away to the top of the nearby hill which holds the old gun emplacements from World War Two.  Anecdotal stories say that this was the only gun fired in anger during the conflict and the enemy in question was an island nearby... 

Since it has been some time between visits to Boera, I was shocked by the development of the LNG Project nearby.  This was just on the drawing board the last time I walked these hills so it was a little sad to see what progression had occurred.

The first two hills were okay, but then hill climbs 3 and 4 were pretty nasty as the sun was really starting to fire up.  Even my personal junior guide looked to me for some water....  

The beers back at Konebada Resort went down a treat.  Oh and so did the lobsters and prawns!  Yumyumyumyum!

Kokoda Track, Naoro, Central Province

I once walked the Kokoda Track with a wonderful group of people and I had such a fantastic experience. The majority of our Porters and Guides hailed from the Villages of Naoro 1 and Naoro 2; the first set atop a spectacular razorback ridge and the second in the valley below. As we left Naoro 1 and stood at the road junction to Naoro 2, a couple of the porters called out in the direction of Naoro 2 and someone responded. A conversation ensued and messages were passed. A point to think about is that Naoro 2 was a 20 minute walk from this junction!

I asked the Porter what it was he said down the valley towards Naoro 2 and he said he was passing a message onto his wife and family to say everything was okay and that he would be home soon.

One of the ladies who walked with me on the Track has now returned to Naoro 2 and has offered assistance to the local Porters in setting up a new Locally based Trekking Company. Please click on this link to visit their excellent website: Naoro Kokoda Treks

I wish them well in their attempt to enter a tough competitive market and I hope they find success.

Here is a picture of Lindy walking into Naoro 1.

the Last Bisianumu Bushwalk

Good times… good times.

Some time ago, I recalled sitting up on the Rock of Knowledge, a place where only men sat and drank warm Californian white wine, and dined out on 14 year old ration packs from a Gulf War between the US, Kuwait and the Kurds.

Good times… good times.

I can recall a dear friend of mine from the Southern Highlands who swam in the waterfall behind the Rock of Knowledge, he himself recalling days of yore in the mountains of New Guinea swimming in the cool water of the mountains.

Good times… good times.

And there was that moment where a good friend of mine ventured up from down Mexico way and we spent a warm Moresby morning with Wilson heading out the waterfall behind the Rock of Knowledge and we swam in its cool waters.

Good times… good times.

And then there was today. A fine group of new friends and old (ahem?) friends wandered past the croc inhabited swamp, under the boughs of the Rubber Trees, across the Marson Matting, and down to the waterfall behind the Rock of Knowledge. There we swam and relaxed and reflected and then we wandered back.

Good times… good times.

the Last Boera Bushwalk.

April 5^th will go down as the date of the last Boera Bushwalk that I participated on, and it was a great return to the original days when we didn’t mess around with trying to climb the ridge that behinds Boera. Instead we went straight along the beach front, past the old jetty that goes no where (a failed attempt at fish harvesting) and around over rocks and stones until we reached the old beach and the original location of the old village.

From here we marveled at the Wallaby Grass and the mighty Pandanus and then wandered further along the coast to the coconut grove and the Mangrove stand, in what started to become a lengthy rest stop. But then we continued on and back towards Boera via the World War Two gun emplacement, still looking as solid as ever. As someone was mentioning that they were training for Kokoda, we opted to take on one more small hill before inspecting the town’s rain water tank and then dropping in to see the local school yard.

A great walk, good fun, a good sized group with a nice bunch of crew. The local guides almost outnumbered us, but they were all keen to show us around.

I will miss Boera.

Don Bosco Hill (Pek Pek Mountain) 19th October 2008.

A good sized group showed up this morning to go walking around the local Dame Carol constituent. We drove down to the Badili Police Band Barracks (Taikone) and from here, wandered upwards passed the Old Lighthouse and over to Horse Camp village and the muddy beach where the locals were collecting pipis.

From Horse Camp we then followed around the stony beach to Vabukori Village and after chatting to the locals we then headed up Pek Pek Hill and then (for some reason) back down to Vabukori, for another chat to the local crew. We wandered through the Village and then headed back up passed the Football Field and back up to the old Lighthouse. Here, we then headed skyward in the hot sun with the temperature touching 40C, before sitting on top of “Old Baldy” Hill or Don Bosco Hill as it now appears.

A quick walk around Gabutu and past Konebadu Beach back to Taikone and then back home. A good hot walk in the sun, perhaps it is time to walk the death march again?

Taurama to Pyramid Point. 24.08.08

Yet another great walk by the POM Bushwalkers. A group of only 11 started, 10 only completed unfortunately, and we headed out from Taurama Barracks and bombed straight up and up and up until we reached the World War Two gun emplacements of Pari Village, a prime location for any ship trying to attack Port Moresby via the Basilisk Passage. Fortunately for the people of Moresby, no attack ever eventuated and the guns on top of Pari Village were never fired in anger.

From the dizzy heights of the gun emplacement looking over the late Sir Billy Skate’s old residence we continued towards the village of Taurama and the home of the Surf Club. It was an up and down wander in the sun but with a cool breeze, luckily. From the Surf Club, some of us ventured up to the top of Pyramid Point where we sat for a while, told some stories and just soaked up the view. It was peaceful up on top of this hill.

A flat road walk back saw us finally reach the end of our journey. A good hot, hard walk but full of good views of Moresby, Ela Beach, Bootless Bay and the whole Motuan coastline.

Varirata. 03.08.08

Considering the tough walk to Imita Ridge yesterday, and the fact that I am planning on walking the entire Kokoda Track soon, I decided that today would be a good measure to see how I fared with two decent hit-outs in two days. So, myself and one of my good Sogeri friends did a brisk lap of Varirata.

The overnight rain had made Varirata quite greasy and the odd tree root and rock caused the walking to be cautious in some sections of the track. We firstly walked out to the bottom lookout, and then headed in a anti-clockwise direction, we followed the boundary of the park. Upon reaching the front gate, we then ducked back into the forest and completed the circuit track. This was my first time along the circuit track and it was a great little loop despite the numerous trees which had fallen across its path.

We bombed along and covered the 10kms in 4 hours, reasonably good going considering the slipperiness of some sections where the pace dropped to a crawl. Literally.

My legs were feeling okay after the two big walks over the weekend, where I covered nearly 23kms in around 9 hours. Bring on Kokoda.

Imita Ridge 02.08.08

Some of the local crew decided it was a good time to walk to Imita Ridge and back, the weather had been kind of late and the reports coming in off the track told us that it was dry going. So DN, GF and I headed off with the local crew made up of a bunch of young Papuans and a young Jimi girl to keep GF company amongst what was a bunch of lads.

Arriving at Ower’s Corner, it was a veritable market place with the local Koiari people selling all sorts to the EE crew coming of the track. PNG Treking Adventures were down at Goldie and there were one or two teams just starting, so the grounds at Ower’s were pretty busy. One of our crew had suffered a bit with some Malaria, so he volunteered to look after the gear back at the carpark including our refreshments for our return.

I led the charge down the first steep descent from Ower’s waiting for the young lads to take over, and as soon as there was a gap they were off. You could tell that they were now Moresby Boys as their runners didn’t offer as much grip as they were going arse up on a few occasions. I think our Jimi girl was the only one to stay upright despite busting a thong on the mud of Imita.

We reached Goldie pretty quickly and thankfully I thought as my legs were not enjoying the shaking of descending for so long, give me a climb I cried. At Goldie, we waited for the Victorian Police Crew and their team who looked like they were having a good time although one or two Coppers looked worst for wear, especially the one with the broken bone in her hand. We then crossed the river and started the climb up and over to Uberi Creek.

It was a great day and the track was dry. Until we got to the slopes of the Golden Staircase and Imita Ridge, then it got muddy, slippery, sticky and a whole world of fun. The barefoot toes scraping the Red Clay of Sogeri looked more like the hands of Trekkers had clawed their way up the maddening steep slopes. The young lads in their runners, were continuing to run up each climb whilst us old guys plodded on behind. After 2H 40m, we made it to the top of Imita, we rested a while, chatted to a group of trekkers which we had passed at Uberi, and then we descended back down towards Uberi, and Goldie River.

A brief rest at Uberi, where the lads practiced their latest breakdancing moves and gymnastics, and where we made friends with “Brownie” or “Snoopsie” the Dog who decided to follow us back to Ower’s Corner, we then made our way down to the Goldie River where once the Jimi girl and GF departed for the climb back up to Ower’s, all the lads went “as nating” and had a wash in the cool mountain stream.

Meanwhile, the rest of us were starting the big push up the final climb, and the 3pm rain started to fall. Concern about getting the transport out of Ower’s when the track was wet, meant we had to hurry up a little. Soon, the freshly washed and cleaned lads raced past us and ran up to the carpark. The rest of us made our way step by step. I will admit that the last section in the Kunai grass which is normally unbearable was okay with the misty rain falling. When the sun is out, it is brutal.

What a fantastic day, around 13kms in length and about 5 hours in walking time. Good times… good times.

Mt Diamond. 27.07.08

An easy walk, with a waterhole full of clean crisp clear water and only 20 minutes from Moresby. How cool is that?

There was a two hour walk there and back in Kunai grass and lowland sclerophyll forest but this added to the enjoyment as we negotiated a few stream crossings on route to our destination. And this was despite a few issues regarding land owners and the original track we were planning on following, but a lesson learned for next time.

The young students from the local High School acted as our guides and lead us into temptation before negotiations lead us away from the Lion’s Den and onto a path more prosperous. The amount of trekkers was huge with over 30 of us in total (including guides) trekking to our final destination; the Kiri kati falls. What a gorgeous location so close to town and really should be zoned as a National Park by the powers that be, if only such infrastructure existed…

Those of us with new walking boots for the Kokoda Track were able to test out the waterproofness, those of us with new digital cameras were able to test out their new equipment. Especially with the bird life on route to the waterfall and certainly the butterflies that flew around the falls themselves.

A great, easy day out.

Varirata. In July 2008.

The First Journey.

The POM bushwalkers arrived at Varirata on a pleasant Sunday morning with some cloud cover and cool temperatures. The freshly conceived plan was to circumnavigate the Park in a clockwise direction. We started out all keen as Mustard as we left the Park in order to find the re-entry point to our lap.

It wasn’t long into the walk where it was discovered that footwear was important as was trekking fitness, yet we all supported each other and survived to tell the tale. The first leg of the journey is a comfortable descent to a creek in which we rested up briefly. The dry season was well underway and the track surface was relatively dry.

From the creek, we headed up into the clouds and discovered a bit of rock scaling and a fairly steep technical ascent, before heading ever upwards towards Gare’s Lookout. From here it was decided to break up the group as one team would continue along the Boundary track and the others would descend back down to the team vehicles.

I chose to guide the crew back to the cars and it was here that we would head along the flatter part of the course to head off the rest of the walkers. We rejoined all together again, and returned to the cars.

About 7-8kms in travel meant for a good hit out for all concerned.

The Second Journey

A week later, around lunchtime, it was decided that a small group of Kokoda aspirees would head back to Varirata for a quick lap of the lookouts. Hastily we gathered up everything and headed east into the Sogeri plateau. At Varirata, we motored around the lookouts, firstly heading along the 30minute then left up to Gare’s and then back down to the vehicles.

The track was dry, yet there proliferated many fungi and again the cloud was heavy in the air.

A quick 6km loop of the track was a good tonic for a lazy Sunday arvo.

The Third Journey; Remembrance Day.

Remembrance Day fell on the happiest Wednesday of them all this year, and it was decided to honour the diggers by recreating our own little Kokoda by traversing the mud of the nearby Owen Stanleys and what better place then Varirata.

The Rangers of the Park must have known that a PNG MP was visiting on this day as they left the gatepost abandoned and were busy on brushcutters cleaning up the bottom lookout. They did a good job of it, long overdue but the outcome was decent. Not quite Bomana standard, but who am I to judge.

Anywho, the walk was fantastic, we left the carpark, headed for the bottom lookout, and then followed the track all the way around the boundary back to the Park entrance some 7kms away. We then turned around and retraced our steps making for a 15km total with some seriously technical climbing and descending. The Eastern side of the Park was considerably slipperier and tougher than the usual lookout loop.

After 6 hours of bashing around, a few moments chatting to aforementioned MP, a discovery that another POM bushwalker had been spotted in the park and admiring the longevity of the POM twitchers we left the Park satisfulled of a good decent walk.

And we spotted a few more fungi.

Bomana to Mt Erima. Another Reconnaissance. 6.7.8

Upon return from cooler climes down south, I awoke on a bright sunny warm Moresby winter's day and contacted a friend who I was hoping would get me up the western face of Mt. Erima, as I have previously (with the POM Bushwalkers) walked up the Northern steps and was keen to see if it could be done. At the end of the day, I am sure you can walk up the western face but my guide today decided we would stick to the track and circumnavigate the large rocky outcrop not far from Moresby.

We departed Bomana and straight away, the track went uphill, along a dusty and often ash covered rocky escarpment. Up and down we trekked and slowly got closer to the base of Erima. The ash and dust was sticking to the sweat and sunscreen on our exposed skin, and the sun was in its normal Moresby mood, sending down its bright hot rays. The shade of Mt Erima was a welcome respite.

But then, instead of making our way up the western face as I had hoped, we followed a small track around the base which ended up along the water treatment fenceline where once I have trekked before from PAU. So, we then trudged up the sunbaked track slaloming around the steel posts which lead to the beacon on top of the rock. On the top, we all stopped and rested, before heading back down to the road and then back to the Bomana community.

Only 2.5hours in length, but it could be lengthened to make a decent walk for the POM bushwalkers, or could be used on those days when people need to return to Moresby early???

Hombrum's Bluff. A reconnaissance. 22.06.08

A trio of intrepid trekkers wandered out on an unofficial POM Bushwalk to scope new terrain for future treks. Our journey would start at 15 mile at the small village on the other side of the Laloki River near the Bluff Inn. The villagers assured us that it would be okay to drive our vehicles across an old World War 2 Marston matting bridge, but we preferred to leave the cars on the same side that the road was on. With car guards in place, we headed across the Laloki and up towards Hombrum's Bluff.

Our guides from the Village outnumbered us and this didn't include the kids who came along for the walk. Many of the kids had never climbed the mountain before and they were keen to see what the view was like, so they ran up the ever steepening slope. Unlike the kids, we took our time. Resting frequently to catch our breath, we would often turn around and admire the view as it was a clear morning with little high level cloud. We saw Wallabies and a Bandicoot and this increased the excitement with the kids, as the area we walked through was the local hunting ground and the men of the village hunted in much smaller groups then the one we were amongst.

Our original plan was to walk up to the top and then return in the same manner, but we were soon to discover that this was perhaps a one way track with a descent thwart with danger. The grass was very tall and feeling your way with your boots was a recipe for a trip and a fall on the way down. So it was decided to continue across the top of the ridge until we reached the Sogeri Junction, this added another two hours or so to the two hours of climbing.

After negotiating a ride back to the Bluff Inn and back to our cars, we were able to head home, tired, bleeding and sore. But a good walk, and a good challenge. Special thanks go to the "Queen" of the walk who was very supportive.

A tough start with a super steep two hours up hill followed by a lengthy undulating 12kms back to Sogeri. Will investigate another spur which may prove to be a safer descent and therefore making a good loop instead of walking to Sogeri...

Bisianumu Bushwalk. 15 June 2008

It was a pleasant day for a stroll around the topside of Sogeri, overcast and not too hot. A good sized group of us headed out from the old Rubber Farm and wandered off past the puk puk inhabited swamp and into the sclerophyll forest. It was dry and dusty.

After a good descent we found ourselves on the edge of a ledge overlooking the Goldie and beyond to Kokoda and the Owen Stanleys. We made her way to a waterhole below and rested up for a spell. Some of us indulged with a short swim in the fresh mountain stream, plunging our heads under the invigorating waterfall.

It was a good walk back up to the old plantation, a good steady, consistent walk, up a good steady, consistent grade.

Perhaps we will work out a way to put the waterfall at the end of the walk, not two thirds of the way through…

Seeya CB, thanks for all the walks. Cheers!

Bisianumu Water Fall. This Sunday June 15th.

See this Bisianumu Review for a report of the last time we walked out to Bisianumu Falls.

This is a "Go Pinis" walk for one of the original crew who was on that first bushwalk of the reincarnated POM Bushwalkers and we all had a great time. I seem to recall spending more time relaxing on the rock then walking to and from.

This time we will hopefully walk it in the opposite direction to the link above, and save the shorter of the two legs for the return, after we have had our swim.

Varirata. June 8th 2008

Unfortunately, Imita Ridge didn't happen today. We didn't have enough 4wds to get us to Ower's Corner so we opted for an extended loop of Varirata. I haven't done the longer loop before and I am now kicking myself, because it was fantastic, a mixture of up and down muddy slopes with the odd technical descent or climb combined with bird songs, overcast conditions and the cool jungle surrounds.

It was just over 3 hours in length and opened up a whole new part of the Park and gave us some good ideas for future walks, everyone had a good time and no one was really exhausted by the morning's effort, although there were some sleepy heads on the way back down from Sogeri.

There were some spectacular scenery from gorgeous wildflowers to interesting insects, a small water course and some massive tall trees. Good fun. Everyone stayed upright, everyone stradled a large tree trunk and everyone held hands when it came to some of the trickier spots.

Rumours abound that next week there will be a walk to one of our favourite waterholes?

Bushwalk from Isurava 25th May 2008.

The descent back down to Kokoda is nearly all downhill and also makes you feel that maybe the climb up wasn’t as hard as you originally thought. 5 hours will get you back to Kokoda and you’ll feel good for the workout. The hardest part is keeping your toes in one piece as blisters and bashed toe nails ensue.

If you start out early enough, then you will have some time to relax and get a few photos of the scenery, and you may even see the Cassowary at Hoy on the way down. Refuse a lift from your porter on the last creek, and remove your boots one last time. The cool water is bliss on your tired, weary feet.

Some 66 years ago, this section of the Kokoda Track saw some bloody fighting where many young Australian and Japanese Men lost their lives, to know that even on the 25^th of May 2008, the life of another young Australian was stolen in the Owen Stanleys is a sober reminder of the role that nature plays out.

Vale.

Bushwalk to Isurava. 23rd May 2008.

I was hoping to walk up to Isurava from Kokoda in two days, resting overnight in Deniki but thanks to Airlines PNG, I started off from Kokoda one day behind schedule, but with enough time to get to Isurava in one attempt.

I left the airport at 0920 and headed to the Asian Stoa which is located near Muddy Creek (a misnomer if ever I heard one) and my porters and guides picked up some food for the few days we were to be in the Owen Stanley Ranges. I bought some water and some brown fizzy drink and was set. Immediately leaving the Stoa there is a climb up to the Kokoda Memorial and Museum, from here you head due South past the Hospital and along a Tractor Track towards Kovello. This is a flat start to what soon becomes the up and down savagery of the Kokoda Track.

Soon after Kovello, you get to the small Village of Hoy, look out for a Cassowary who is penned up on your left, and also the stream here is deep enough that you should remove your boots. You do not want wet feet in only the first hour of walking.

After Hoy, the track weaves through Chokko fields and heads skywards up to Deniki, where there is a good rest stop and hopefully a 5 Kina brown fizzy drink to get you the caffeine you need for the rest of the day. Because from here, it is up, up and up to Isurava, through tree roots and mud and stones and small streams, the track continues its brutal climb.

And it gets darker and darker… and as the clouds lift up the Yodda Valley, the humidity reaches saturation and everything gets wet. But by a few minutes before 1700 you reach the Isurava Village, there are guesthouses here and at the Memorial Site and the people who live in the clouds are warm in heart but cool to touch; the children loved holding on to my warm hands after my big walk and their hands were so cold to touch. It was an emotional welcome after such a climb.

Alotau town water supply. 19th May 2008

I asked my friend Tom if he could help me out and walk to one of the Waterfalls that you can see in and amongst the surrounding Mountains of Alotau. He told me of a good one that was only one hour away, and was the source of the town’s water. It also passed through a settlement which was full of Trobriand Islanders and this suited Tom as these were his wantoks. Some of the other waterfalls with settlements were not so well known by Tom and he didn’t recommend that just the two of us should wander there by ourselves.

So, off we went acknowledging Tom’s wantoks with a casual “Beuna Kwaiai”; the Kiriwina phrase for “Good Afternoon”. Some of Tom’s female wantoks wanted to know where Tom was taking their “husband” and we all had a jolly good laugh…

Naturally, a waterfall is part of a water course so we followed a small stream up into the shade of the mountains, which was a welcome relief from the afternoon sun soaked Kunai grass fields where the track started. We crossed the stream continuously as we passed into cool jungle and the filter point of the town’s water supply. Some young workmen were repairing the filter inlet after recent flooding had closed the pick up point. We continued on up into the mountains.

By this stage we were walking in the creek/stream and our feet were wet yet cool. Eventually we made it to a waterfall which consisted of a tree that had fallen over and a small trickle of water. Anyway, the stream was fantastic to look at and it was a cool, peaceful location for a rest. Tom was right with the time to get there, just over the hour.

We then walked back down from where we came, our boots and feet getting wetter and wetter and we stopped to chat to some gardeners tending their crops and also join in a quick game of street soccer.

An enjoyable way to spend an evening.