EM9a – CLIMB MT ALBERT EDWARD PACKAGE FOR INDEPENDENT TRAVELLERS 7 nights ex-Port Moresby Itinerary may commence any Wednesday or Saturday. The mountainous Goilala District in Central Province can only be reached by air and is dotted with scary ridgetop airstrips. The terrain alternates between thick forest and open grasslands and the villages are linked by mule trails established by early missionaries. This expeditionary trek features village to village hiking to the base of Mt Albert Edward then an overnight climb up the western slopes, returning by a different route with a final overnight at Woitape Lodge. The trekking route passes through many small hamlets, vegetable gardens and freshwater streams, with magnificent mountain scenery and chance encounters with local mountain people. Be prepared for wet weather at any time of the year, but most rainfall is at night and generally the days are clear and sunny with very cold nights. You will be accompanied on the trek by one guide and enough porters to carry camping equipment food supplies. You should plan to carry your own personal backpack with your clothes and toiletries (10kg maximum recommended weight) or you can pay an extra K300 for a personal porter to carry your personal pack. To see prices, trip notes and detailed list of inclusions, click here to download the itinerary for EM9A in Acrobat (PDF) format. GENERIC ITINERARY
Reputer station at Mt Albert Edward Front view of woitape lodge Yongai Guest house.	DAY 1: HIKE FROM WOITAPE AIRSTRIP TO KOSIPE MISSION 5.30am check in at the old Airlines PNG terminal (Terminal 2) for your Twin Otter flight scheduled for 0630am departure. Ecotourism Melanesia staff will be at the airport to assist you with check-in. Note that Woitape flights are designated as “freight and fares” rather than “RPT – regular passenger transport” and therefore the advertised departure time may not eventuate if the Airline decides to reorganise the day’s flights to fit in with charter requirements etc. Therefore, be prepared for a delayed departure of up to several hours even though you have checked in early. The flight to Woitape takes only thirty minutes. On arrival, you will kit up and start walking with your guide along the missionary mule trail to Kosipe, about 6 hours easy walk through forest and open grasslands, with many creek crossings. Bring a pair of sandals or quick-dry canvas tennis shoes sneakers to wear for water crossings and then dry off your feet with a small towel and change back into your hiking boots and hang the wet shoes on the back of your pack to dry (?). Along the way to Kosipe you will pass through small hamlets and meet local people going to and from their gardens. You will also pass many locals walking the other way to Woitape as this is a commonly used walking track. If time allows in the afternoon, and if the weather is warm, enjoy a swim in the Ivani River just a few minutes walk from the guest house. Your guide will introduce you to the local people living at Kosipe village and show you the place where a primitive stone axe was found, indicating very old settlement in this area. Accommodation at Kosipe is at the mission guest house, originally built by French catholic missionaries in the 1950s. For meals today a packed lunch and snacks are provided. Dinner is catered by Kosipe mission guest house, based on local vegetables and some tinned protein. Rug up for a cold night.
Hiking to Niume	DAY 2: HIKE FROM KOSIPE MISSION TO NIUME CAMPSITE Hot tea and scones for breakfast. Kosipe is normally covered in thick mist every morning until about 9am and it is advisable to wait for the fog to clear before moving off on today’s walking. Today’s hiking is about 6 hours and the route passes through thick forest and there is a lot of flora and fauna along the way including wild orchids, tree kangaroos, wild pigs, cuscus and various bird species. About halfway along today’s trekking route you will come to the site of a crashed American aircraft from 1942. Mid afternoon, arrive at Niume, an abandoned village site high on the western approach to Mt Albert Edward. Set up camp and enjoy the mountain scenery as the sun goes down. Hot camp food for dinner and rug up for another cold night.
Bush orcids at Niume camp hut	EDWARD, OVERNIGHT MOUNTAIN HUT Depending on the weather and how well you are walking, you may gain the summit of Mt Albert Edward (13,400 feet or 3990 metres) late toDAY 3: CLIMB MT ALBERTday and overnight at the summit or you might overnight short of the summit and go up to the summit early in the morning. There are huts in various locations on the mountainside that can be used for campsites. The best views from the summit are early in the morning and you will be able to see from coast to coast. The summit is leased from the local landowners by the Civil Aviation Authority and has a number of radio towers and radio huts erected there but nobody lives there. Temperatures are just below freezing at night and snowfall has been recorded on the summit. Overnight on Mt Albert Edward
Near the forest camp	DAY 4: DESCEND FROM MT ALBERT EDWARD, OVERNIGHT FOREST CAMP Pop a bottle of bubbly this morning to celebrate conquering PNG’s second highest mountain (gawd knows what bubbly will do to your brain at this altitude…). Commence your descent down the eastern slopes of Mt Albert Edward. Overnight forest camp.
Yongai station	DAY 5: ARRIVE YONGAI MISSION Continue down the eastern approach of Mt Albert Edward, passing through several small villages and arriving at Yongai mission for overnight at Yongai Guest House.
Crossing the Sauwo river	DAY 6: HIKE FROM YONGAI MISSION TO SAUWO RIVER CAMPSITE Pleasant day hike from Yongai mission to the midway point between Yongai and Woitape which is at Sauwo River. Overnight riverside camp or village hut.
Relaxing at woitape lodge	DAY 7: HIKE FROM SAUWO RIVER TO WOITAPE, OVERNIGHT WOITAPE LODGE Final half-day hiking from Sauwo River to Woitape government station, arriving in time for lunch. Relax at the lodge and enjoy the log fireplace in the lounge. Overnight Woitape Lodge (Owen Stanley Lodge), double room with shared bathroom. You will probably be the only guests staying as most visitors only come up on weekends. Your guide and porters will have lunch with you and then go home to Kosipe.
Airlines PNG at Fane airstrip Woitape rest hut	DAY 8: FLY TO PORT MORESBY Morning flight from Woitape to Port Moresby. Anticipated departure time anywhere between 7.30am and 11.00am. The Lodge is right next to the airstrip so you can wait in comfort for the aircraft to arrive. Ecotourism Melanesia vehicle will be waiting for you on arrival in Port Moresby to collect the camping equipment and drop you off at your hotel or home.