See
our 13-nights NORTH-SOUTH "Full Kokoda" package |
See
our Kokoda Track 2012 trek dates See 10 good reasons to trek with us See our booking information for Kokoda treks |
Been
there done that? Kokoda is a walk in the park compared to
the BULLDOG
TRACK. |
|
SMALL
GROUP TREKKING
Our environmentally friendly, historically
inspiring and culturally stimulating small-group Kokoda walks are a low-key
alternative to the large military-style groups of up to 100 trekkers and
porters (carriers) that some commercial trekking companies take crashing
along the Track.
Our small group treks appeal to discerning walkers who are seeking
a more personal interaction with the local people and a greater understanding
of the significance of the Kokoda Track that can only come with a slower
paced, smell-the-roses type of trekking experience. We are particularly
experienced in catering for the 40+ age group and we host
a
high proportion
of female trekkers.
Our
trek packages in 2012 all include two nights hotel accommodation in Port Moresby
and
10kg of porterage
(ie one of our porters will carry 10kg of your personal gear as part
of your trek package, leaving you to carry only a small day pack for
your camera, hankies and Minties) so you will not have to
pay extra for a personal porter if you pack prudently. Please take hotel
accommodation and porterage into account when comparing our trek
packages with
other trekking companies - other operators charge up to $600
extra for a personal porter and may not include all transit accommodation
in Port Moresby. We also supply sleeping bags and tents on the trek while
other companies may ask you to bring your own which is a hidden extra
cost
if you don't
already have your own camping gear.
We are also
proud to say that we are one of the few trek providers that do NOT feed
you on military-style ration packs imported from Australia. In line with
our responsible
tourism policy, all food on our
treks is locally sourced,
with preference given to PNG made products. Where possible food is freshly
prepared by our trek guides and village guest house cooks en route.
WHAT
IS THE KOKODA TRACK?
The 96km Kokoda Track is a rough,
unmade pathway between Kokoda and Sogeri, two little townships on either
side of the rugged Owen Stanley Ranges, a mountain chain running down
the
spine
of
New Guinea.
The Track was first used in the late 1800s
by mail runners, miners and planters - connecting Kokoda with the
fledgling
colonial town of Port Moresby.
The Track - and the prized airstrip at
Kokoda - was the scene of bitter fighting in 1942 as
the Japanese advanced towards Port Moresby. They were later
pushed
back
to the beach
heads
at
Buna, Gona and Sanananda. Over 600 Australian soldiers and thousands
of Japanese died along the Kokoda Track (both in battle and from malaria
and infection). Many more were lost at the beach heads. Most
of the Australian casualties of the Kokoda Campaign now lie buried in
Bomana
War Cemetery outside
Port
Moresby (see left) where almost 4000 Commonwealth
war heroes are laid to rest.
In 2002 Australian Prime Minister John Howard opened a new memorial at Isurava (see below left) to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the most fierce of the battles along the Kokoda Track, the Battle of Isurava 26-29 August 1942. Private Bruce Kingsbury was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for heroic action during this battle. (Isurava Day is commemorated on 29 August and is included in some of our treks.)
Each year thousands of Australians are following in the footsteps of our courageous diggers and walking the Kokoda Track. Some do the walk for the physical challenge but an increasing number are taking time out to do the walk as a rite of passage in the quest for cultural identity. Kokoda stands firmly alongside Gallipoli as an icon of Australia's modern history.
TRACK
OR TRAIL ?
You
may have noticed both names Kokoda Track and Kokoda Trail in
common use. We prefer to use the term Kokoda Track because campaign veterans
that we have spoken to are adamant that in 1942 they always called it "the
Track".
In 2006 we hosted two veterans who have been mates for 60 years: Ron Phillips and George Gwilliam (see left, being welcomed at Kokoda). They were gunners at Owers Corner in 1942. "We pumped 700 rounds into the Japanese position at Ioribaiwa Ridge until they retreated", they say. Historians put it that the Japanese had run out of supplies which made them "advance to the rear" but Ron and George reckon their shelling had a bit to do with it. They say they never heard it called it anything else but the Kokoda Track during their tour of duty in 1942. However over the years the term Kokoda Trail has also come into common use. The memorial gate at Owers Corner uses both.
A field gun identical to the one used by George and Ron is now on display at Owers Corner (see left). Another of these was in the process of being dragged up Imita Ridge by a hardy gun crew in September 1942 to get a better shot at Ioribaiwa Ridge when it was discovered that the Japanese had retreated from that position. The gun is believed to have been dismantled and buried somewhere at the base of Imita Ridge near the old Uberi village site.
THE
WALK
The
Kokoda Track can be traversed commencing from Kokoda
at the northern end, or from Owers
Corner
at the southern end. Kokoda is a 30 minute flight from Port moresby while
Owers Corner is about 2 hours drive.
Walking the Kokoda Track takes between 5 and 10 days depending on walking speed, although marathon runners have done it in less than 24 hours non-stop. The trek is physically demanding but aesthetically rewarding. Magnificent mountain landscapes are visible from vantage points along the Track. There is great plant diversity although not much obvious animal life within 200 metres of the main Track due to frequent human presence.
The walking distance is almost 100 km including a side trip to the Myola grasslands and much of this is steep climbs and descents which are punishing on the ankles and calf muscles going up, and tough on the knees coming down. The south-north walk beginning at Owers Corner is more challenging as the climb gradients are significantly steeper in this direction.
During wet weather the Track is muddy and slippery. Flash flooding can make river crossings tricky. Guides use axes and machetes to cut logs from the undergrowth and tie these together with ropes to make a crude bridge. Then of course after crossing the torrent you have to dismantle your log bridge so that the next group of walkers is not denied the experience :)
Most
of the heavy rainfall is in the wet season from December to March, but
here in the tropics there is regular rain throughout the year so there
is no month when it can be guaranteed to be dry. In June 2004 which was
supposed to be the middle of the dry season, there was a week of heaviest
rain on the Kokoda Track in 50 years. One of our trekking groups was
out there in the middle of it and they said it was very exciting (hmmm...)
Those who have walked the Track during wet weather often say they found it
more meaningful as they were able to empathise with the young Aussie diggers
who trudged through the same mud in very trying circumstances in 1942.
\
TREKKING WITH
ECOTOURISM MELANESIA
Unlike
some gung-ho trekking groups that you will meet on the Track who seem
to think it is some kind of race, Ecotourism Melanesia operates moderately-paced
treks
suitable
for physically fit mums, dads and grannies. This means our treks are
a day
or two longer than trips offered by some other trek operators but,
we think, much more enjoyable. Our oldest trekkers so
far were Rosalyn Hadley who turned 71 at Alola village
in June 2008 and Malcolm and Rosemary Hay, both a sprite 74, who walked
the Track in August 2008 leaving their porters eating dust.
(All three were from Perth, we might add - must be something in
the water...)
Our standard treks are based
on only 6 hours walking a day, plus stops, and at this pace it takes
8 days to walk from north
to south and
9 days
to
walk south
to
north (plus overnights in Port Moresby before and after). The south
to north trek starting at Owers Corner has steeper climb gradients
and
takes
an extra
day.
Our trek leader sets a steady, sustainable pace that walkers with
good physical fitness
who have done their training can maintain without
getting
into
difficulties. His "deputy" (the head porter) always walks
at the back with the "rear
guard" - the slow-pokes - and everybody always
makes it to that day's destination by late afternoon at the latest.
Nobody walks in the dark on
our treks so leave your miner's head-lamp at home.
We find that our slower, "smell-the-roses" approach appeals to trekkers with a deeper interest in the Kokoda campaign and therefore our north-south package also features pre-trek battlefields tours around Buna, Gona, Popondetta and Kokoda. See our Kokoda Track 2012 open trek dates
OUR COMMUNITY-BASED
TOURISM FOCUS
Ecotourism Melanesia
is a privately
owned company founded by Aaron Hayes, an Australian teacher and psychologist
who came to PNG in 1997 to work with the Education department. Aaron
developed an interest in village tourism and saw its potential
for putting cash into the pockets of the local people and diverting
them from
environmentally damaging forms of income such as opening their land to
logging and mining. In 2003 Aaron left the education
sector to establish his
own ecotourism company
that aims to channel
more
visitors into rural
areas of
Papua
New
Guinea. Since then Ecotourism Melanesia has developed a wide
range of soft adventure tours all over PNG that have a strong village
tourism focus.
Aaron' s interest in village tourism also led him to establish the Community-Based Toursim Foundation of Papua New Guinea (CBTF) in 2005. This non-profit organisation provides training and support to villagers all over Papua New Guinea seeking to develop small sustainable tourism enterprises in their village areas including guest houses, cultural entertainment, nature reserves, bushwalking routes, bird watching trails, picnic spots and even volcano climbs. The work of CBTF has a wide impact across rural Papua New Guinea including the Kokoda Track corridor. Contact us if you would like to help.
It is our company policy to support sustainable community-based ecotourism by not only "treading softly" on the environment and local culture, but also by creating employment and supporting local enterprise. We began operating small-group Kokoda treks in 2004 in response to requests from under-employed porters in Kokoda and under-patronised village guest houses along the Track. Previously most trekking companies launched their treks from Owers Corner, hired their porters from Sogeri, and tended to carry tents instead of sleeping in village guest houses. Over the last 6 years we have given preference to engaging porters from the Kokoda area and each year we design our trekking itineraries to maximise our patronage of the village guest houses, trekkers huts and private war relics collections ("museums") operated by locals along the Track.
In recent years the
commercial trekking industry along the Kokoda Track has become almost
cynical with some companies
operating
huge
treks comprising 50 trekkers
and
over 100
porters,
crashing
through
the jungle like a herd of elephants and flattening large areas of vegetation
where they camp. Participants on these military-style operations are
given imported 24-hour ration packs to eat every day, trekkers and porters
walk and
camp separately
and hardly talk to each other, and the whole experience is quite mechanical
and
anonymous. So many times our small-group trekkers have overheard the
same complaint from people walking with these larger trekking groups:
"they told me I would
be walking with a small group
of
10 people
but when I
arrived
I
found
that my "platoon" was actually part of a much larger "battalion"
that camped together every night. I felt like I was just a serial number
at a boot camp."
In contrast, Ecotourism Melanesia takes a low-key approach, leading smaller groups that have less physical impact on the environment and place less pressure on the resources of the local villages. Our limit of 12 trekkers per open trek facilitates a more intimate and personal experience of the Kokoda Track and our trek groups are always warmly welcomed in the villages that we pass through. We are small and innocuous, we pay cash to the village people for the accommodation and food they provide to our groups ... and we clean up after ourselves. All our hard rubbish is carried out and not dumped in village garbage pits.
ACCOMMODATION
AND FOOD ON OUR TREKS
Instead of camping in tents, wherever possible our trek parties
sleep in the trekkers huts and village guest houses operated
by local people along the Track. This makes a big contribution
to the village micro-economy because the guest house operators
in turn spend money within the village on labour, bush materials
for building, and fresh
garden food to feed their guests.
Instead of taking the easy way out and doling out 24-hour ration packs, we engage village guest house operators to supply and cook local food for dinner, which we supplement with our own customised menu of camp food. Many of our trekkers say the village food is the high point of each walking day. We aim to provide a variety of tropical fruit and vegetables cooked in local style, with some savoury pasta, spicy noodles or tinned meat or fish on the side. Eggs are sometimes available in the villages and we have even been known to surprise our trekking groups with an esky of fresh food droppped in from Port Moresby if we hear of any small planes making a trip down the Kokoda Track airstrips.
When overnighting at bush campsites our porters prepare camp food such as tinned curry with fresh boiled coconut rice, spaghetti bolognese, fried tinned ham with dried peas and carrots and Deb powdered potato, and so on depending on what is available in Port Moresby supermarkets. The porters also cook porridge, damper or pancakes for breakfast which is washed down with good old smoky billy tea. Trekkers often join in the meal preparation which makes for great social interaction with the porters.
For lunch we provide individually packaged foods like crackers, tinned tuna or salmon or ham, cheese, dried fruit and a perhaps bit of beef jerky to keep the carnivores happy. The porters prefer to eat their local-style food so don't be surprised if you see them tucking in to coconut rice instead of porridge at breakfast time, but everyone in the trek party is well fed and you won't need to bring your own food except for your favourite munchies for between meals. Fresh fruit is often available from little village markets as you walk along as well.
Trekkers with special dietary requirements can be catered for. We'll either supply special food items for you or modify the whole trek menu to avoid your vices. Previously we have modified trek menus to accommodate vegetarians, diabetics and people with food allergies.
EQUIPMENT
AND PORTERAGE
We provide an experienced local guide to lead each trek group,
and a team of porters to carry the food and equipment that we supply - which
includes
tarpaulins, ropes, machetes, lanterns, cooking gear, camp cutlery, crockery,
two-way radio, satellite phone and tropical first aid kit. We also supply
our trekkers with a tropical sleeping bag, camp pad (sleeping mat) and tents
for overnights in any locations where there is no village guest house, but
you are welcome to bring
bring
your own
sleeping
bag if you prefer, and your own inflatable
mattress if you don't think you can sleep on a camp pad. We also supply
the backpacks that our porters carry so you do not need to bring a huge backpack
with you, just a small day pack.
On the trek, each of our porters carries a backpack with a 20 kg load, comprising 10kg of food and equipment that we supply, plus 10 kg of trekker's personal gear. This 10 kg of porterage is provided free to our trekkers as part of our trek packages. If you pack frugally and plan to carry a small day pack for your water bottle, camera and Minties, you won't need to hire a personal porter to carry your gear at additional cost. However the 10 kg limit is strictly enforced and there will be a weigh-in when loading the porters backpacks.
If you do plan to carry a day pack, keep it as light as possible (up to 5 kg). It's a long hard walk and you'll enjoy it more if you're not teetering over backwards as you scramble up steep hills with a heavy pack on your back :)
OUR
GUIDES AND PORTERS
Many visitors
from Australia come to Papua New Guinea specifically to walk
the Kokoda Track, and often the guides and porters they walk with
are
the only Papua New Guineans they have the opportunity to get
to know during their visit. While walking along the Track and talking
around
the fire at night, trekkers are able to learn a lot about the
culture and lifestyle of PNG through interaction
with their guides
and porters. Time
and again our clients feed back to us that the highlight of their
trek was the camaraderie and bonding with the porters.
There are often tears at the end. Our guides and porters characterise
the Kokoda Track. Without them, it's just another bushwalk.
Our senior guide who leads most of our treks is PHILIP ARARI. Philip is a high school graduate, speaks fluent English and is trained in first aid and radio procedures. He has a good knowledge of the history of the Track and is able to explain what-happened-where as you walk along. Philip makes daily radio contact with Ecotourism Melanesia's office in Port Moresby while on-trek. Philip's wife and children stay home at Kokoda while he is away trekking, but they also keep in touch via radio messages.
We have a pool of 30 porters that we use for our treks in various combinations. Most of our porters are from the Kokoda area and many of them are descendents of the WW2 carriers dubbed "fuzzy wuzzy angels". They are a mixture of personalities, some quiet and some outgoing, but all exhibit the typical humility of the Kokoda people. Notwithstanding, their humorous streak brings plenty of laughs along the way and their talent for singing with the ukulele provides for great entertainment around the campfire - the porters will teach you some local songs which you'll find yourself humming away long after you return home.
Our porters all
speak and understand basic English. The main communication problem
(apart from Ocker humour which even Americans don't
understand) occurs when
we ask questions using the double negative format
or
statement-question
format. Papua New Guineans invariably
respond with what seems to be the wrong answer.
Trekker asks porter, after a meal: "You aren't still hungry,
are you?"
Porter: "Yes".
But he means no. He is agreeing with the statement "You
aren't still hungry" whereas the trekker is expecting a response
to the question "Are
you?"
It's best to ask questions directly ie "Are
you still hungry?".
Sadly, the rapid growth in employment for village men living along
the Kokoda Track has also had some detrimental effects. Alcohol
abuse in PNG is similar to that seen in aboriginal communities
in Australia (ie binge drinking by those who can least afford it)
and we have observed many Kokoda porters (not ours, cross fingers...)
spending
their
entire
wages
in Port
Moresby nightclubs
and Popondetta bottle shops. We at Ecotourism Melanesia don't like
to see our porters' hard-earned money go down the drain. We are
keen
to see them
take their wages home to their villages to support their families.
Feedback from our trekkers
indicates
that you also like to feel that your contibution as a tourist
to the local economy is benefitting the local community and
not exacerbating social problems.
Ecotourism Melanesia is dealing with this situation by (a) giving recruitment preference to porters who make a commitment not to spend their wages on alcohol (b) providing supervised accommodation at our company compound in Port Moresby during between-trek layovers, with an endless supply of Bruce Willis and Schwarzenegger videos to keep the guys occupied while they are resting up (c) applying a zero-alcohol policy for our porters before, during and immediately after our treks - to avoid generating the spark that starts the fire, so to speak.
This may sound paternalistic but when we bring rural village men into the big city we believe we have a responsibility to both them and their families to look after them and send them home with a full pay packet and without HIV. We will appreciate your support of our policies on the ground, eg please don't invite porters back to your hotel for drinks after the trek. Only a small amount of alcohol is supplied for trekkers-only at the meals we host before and after your trek.
Maclaren Hiari MBE
MILITARY
HISTORY GUIDE
Maclaren
Hiari MBE is the founder of the Kokoda-Buna Historical Foundation
and lives in Popondetta. He always accompanies all our trekking
groups to Buna, Gona, Awala and Kokoda to provide on-site briefings on
the Kokoda
campaign.
Maclaren is a retired history academic. His research has focused
on the role played by the Papuan people in the
Pacific
War,
including
the Papuan carriers (fuzzy wuzzy angels), Papuan infantrymen and Papuans
forced into the service of both the Australians and Japanese as labourers,
interpreters and informants.
Due to his age Maclaren is not able to accompany trekking
groups along the Track.
Did you know? This famous photo was not taken on the Kokoda Track but just outside Siremi village near Buna. The fuzzy wuzzy angel was Raphael Oimbari, from Buna, and he was taking Private "Dick" Whittington to a field hospital. Did you also know the soldier was not Australian but American?
HISTORICAL
INFORMATION
As you walk (or climb, struggle, wince, mince or drag yourself)
along the Track your group will become spread out. It's
single
file most of the way and the slightly faster walkers get ahead and the
slow pokes form the "rear guard". Your group may only "congeal"
a few times a day at defined rest stops or lunch break and again in the
afternoon
when you reach your overnight destination. This makes it quite difficult
for your trek leader or historical guide to brief all
the trekkers with historical information while walking along. Inevitably
the people
walking closest to the guide get all the information while the others
walking in
front
or
behind
don't
get the same benefit. Ecotourism Melanesia's answer to this
problem has been to produce a a small
booklet
called the "TREKKER'S
GUIDE
TO
THE KOKODA
CAMPAIGN".
The booklet tells
the story of Kokoda location by location as you walk along. We
have printed two versions of the booklet, one for north-south and one
for south-north.
As you walk each section of the Track and stop at each village or vantage
point,
the
booklet
provides
a few paragraphs to fill you in on what happened here, and points out
things to look for such as relics, foxholes, memorial plaques or views
of other
battle sites.
2012
TREK PACKAGES
In 2012
Ecotourism Melanesia is offering a trekking
schedule featuring open trek
dates which
anybody can sign up for.
When you sign up for
an open trek you will join other like-minded walkers (who see it as a journey
not a race) to tackle the Track in a group
of up
to 12 trekkers. If
you have your own group of 10 people you can close
off
an open
trek and make it a private trek with up to 20 walkers.
For safety and logistical reasons we only handle up to
two groups on the Track at a time.
This program includes first and last nights in Port Moresby, a pre-trek visit to the beach-head villages of Buna and Gona, and 8 nights trekking. This gives the complete picture of the Kokoda Campaign from the Japanese landings in July 1942 through to the point where they were turned back a few months later at Ioribaiwa Ridge near Owers Corner.
Day 1: arrive Port Moresby, short city tour and overnight hotel
Day 2: visit
Day 3: tour Buna, Sanananda and Gona, overnight Popondetta (hotel)
Day 5: Morning: look around Kokoda, Afternoon: hike to Deniki
Day 6: hike to isurava Memorial
Day 7: hike to Templetons Crossing
Day 8: hike to Myola Junction
Day 9: hike to Efogi
Day 10: hike to Manari
Day 11: hike to Naoro
Day 12: hike to ua-Ule Creek
Day 13: hike to Owers Corner, road transfer to Port Moresby, overnight hotel
Day 14: fly out
See full itinerary and prices for EM10A.
11-NIGHTS
SOUTH-NORTH "BASIC KOKODA" PACKAGE EM10B $3200
This itinerary involves
9 nights on the Track and 2 transit nights in Port Moresby. The
South-North trek is a bit more challenging and requires an
extra day in order
to keep the daily walking times reasonable. This
trek does not include Buna and Gona because walkers usually
find that
by
the
time they
reach Kokoda they are too tired to take in any sightseeing.
BRIEF ITINERARY:
Day 1: arrive Port Moresby, short city tour and overnight hotel
Day 2: visit
Day 3: hike to Ioribaiwa
Day 4: hike to Naoro
Day 5: hike to Manari
Day 6: hike to Efogi
Day 7: hike to Myola Junction
Day 8: hike to Templetons Crossing
Day 9: hike to Alola
Day 10: hike to Deniki
Day 11: hike to Kokoda, fly to Port Moresby and overnight hotel
Day 12: fly out
See
full itinerary and prices for EM10B. See
trek dates for 2012
7-NIGHTS "FAST
KOKODA" PACKAGE
EM10C
This itinerary can only be booked by private groups and more stringent fitness
criteria apply. The Fast Kokoda package involves 6 nights trekking in either
north-south
or
south-north
direction (your choice) plus one night in Port Moresby.
PACKAGE PRICES
Each of our standard trekking packages is based on twin-share accommodation
(or willing to share with one of your family members or friends travelling with you, or a stranger of the same sex) but also offers
a single supplement for own-room and own-tent and also gives a rate
for extra hotel nights for those who will arrive a day early
or depart late due to flight bookings.
Note
that our trek packages include almost everything at the PNG end
but do not include airfares from Australia. See the itineraries for
full lists of package inclusions. There are some very cheap fares with 32kg baggage allowance being offered ex-Brisbane by Airlines PNG (you actully fly on a Pacific Blue aircraft but with an Airlines PNG ticket) and also regular discount seats on Air Niugini out of Brisbane and Qantaslink out of Cairns.
Discounts and surcharges
Our private group discount for 10-20 pax is 10% off the published package
prices (OR group organiser goes free of charge).
Anzac Day treks attract a 20% surcharge on package prices. Any applicable
group discount applies AFTER the surcharge has been added.
For a group of 9 trekkers the standard package prices apply - no 10% discount.
For a group of 8 trekkers there is a 10% surcharge on published prices.
For a group of 7 trekkers there is a 20% surcharge on published prices.
For a group of 6 trekkers there is a 30% surcharge on published prices.
For a group of 5 trekkers there is a 40% surcharge on published prices.
NB For less than 5 trekkers charter flights are uneconomical and trek dates must
coincide with scheduled flights to/from Kokoda.
NB The above surcharges also apply to small private treks booked on
other
preferred
dates.
Booking
information for Kokoda treks
10
good reasons to trek with Ecotourism Melanesia
TAILORED PRIVATE
TREK PACKAGES
If you have a private group
that requires customised dates or special arrangements, we can handle just about
anything as long as your group members have the required fitness
for what
you
are
trying to do.
However
please note that our
treks always include guide, porters and supplies: we do
not offer "guide-only" services for walkers who want
to bring and carry their own supplies etc as we believe this
not only defeats our aim of providing employment for porters
but puts us
in an awkward
position as the
trek
"operator" if things go wrong due to D.I.Y. hikers
bringing insufficent supplies, inappropriate equipment etc or
when somebody
has an
accident and there are no porters to carry him out.
FITNESS
REQUIREMENTS
It isn't Mount Everest and you don't have to be an Olympic
athlete to walk the Kokoda Track. We've been surprised by the number
of over- and underweight people who have sailed through.
It's more about your cardiovascular fitness than your size or weight.
One very large gentleman of about 150kg who we thought would never
make it came through with flying colours. His secret? "Slow
and steady wins the race", plus eating rice with the
porters at breakfast time for extra carbohydrate.
However it certainly is a tough walk, and most trekkers say it is the hardest (but most rewarding) thing they have done in their lives. You must undertake some serious uphill/downhill hiking training for a couple of months before you attempt this walk (see trip notes at bottom of itineraries for details). Due to the increasing number of trekkers getting into difficulties on the Kokoda Track in recent times (not ours, touch wood...), we now require that trekkers pass a cardiovascular stress test and get full medical clearance from their doctor before doing the walk. We will also ask you to sign a declaration that you have done the minimum recommended number of hours of pre-trek training .
GETTING
HERE
PNG now
has several international airlines operating services to Port Moresby from
Sydney, Brisbane and Cairns. You
can find flight schedules and make online bookings for Air Niugini
at www.airniugini.com.pg
and for Airlines PNG at www.apng.com.
Some Air Niugini
services are code-shared by Qantas
Airlines
PNG international services are operated by Pacific Blue
BOOKING PROCEDURE
To secure
a place on an open trek, or to book a private trek, select your preferred
trek date from our Kokoda
trek dates 2012 page or choose your own preferred
date in the case of private treks and send us an e-mail with the names
of proposed
trekkers.
We will then send you an invoice for the trek and you will need to remit
20% of the invoiced amount as your deposit. After payment of your deposit,
your trek booking is secured. The balance of your payment is due 8 weeks
(2 calendar months) before the trek begins. Booking conditions are detailed
on our Kokoda
Track booking information page and
in our Kokoda
trekking contract which you must download, print out, sign and return
to us by fax or mail.
To discuss your plans for walking the Kokoda Track, or to request an invoice
for your trek, e-mail us: ecomel@online.net.pg
MORE
INFORMATION ON THE KOKODA TRACK
Articles
*Published in "Paradise",
the in-flight magazine of Air Niugini
Mainland Invasion (the Japanese advance in Papua)
Victory in Papua New Guinea - the story of Kokoda
Along the Kokoda Track
Recommended
books
"Kokoda Trek" by Clive Baker
This book is all about modern day trekking of the Kokoda Track rather than the military history. A useful day to day guide to what you'll see and do during the walk. First published about 15 years ago and recently updated. Available by mail order from Australian Military History Publications
13 Veronica Place, Loftus NSW 2232
e-mail warbookshop @ bigpond.com www.warbooks.com.au
Recommended
videos
"The Kokoda Challenge: A Walker's Guide to the Kokoda
Trail"
A recently produced video with footage of most sections of
the trail, track notes and map, advice on gear and getting fit. Includes
a promo for various trekking companies including Ecotourism Melanesia
at the end.
POM Productions 2007 www.kokodaguide.com.au
WANT TO SEE MORE OF PNG?
Talk to us about a few days before or after your Kokoda trek at fabulous
TUFI -
a complete PNG holiday experience in one little parcel. Stay in
a native
style hut on the beach or spend a few
nights at the boutique Tufi
Resort
which offers world class scuba diving and snorkelling. Tufi has it all
- breathtaking fjord scenery, land and sea activities, beautiful villages,
spectacular sing-sing performances featuring locals wearing their unique
tapa cloth costumes and brightly coloured bird of paradise
plumes.
See also our home page for our complete range of tour
packages all over Papua New Guinea.
CONTACT US
Ecotourism Melanesia Ltd
Lot 22 Lokua Avenue, Boroko (opposite Apex Park)
Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
(Postal address: PO Box 531 Gordons NCD)
Phone & Fax (+675) 323 4518 or 340 5066 Mobile (+675) 7686 8917 (all hours)
E-mail ecomel@online.net.pg