Beaver Falls

Oh what a day! I have been flying nearly all day up and down the country. The highlight of the trip definitely has been circling around the Beaver Falls which are kind of a Papuan version of the Niagara Falls except that they are only visible by air. They are not usually part of any touristical itinerary for this very reason. The views over the huge Lake Kitubu were also quite rewarding.

Air Niugini

Today I am off to Papua New Guinea again for a few days. As long as they are short trips (shorter than a week) I do not mind really. But I cannot say that I was thrilled by the idea of flying with Air Niugini. But in the end it was an uneventfull and even an interesting flight.

Kokoda Trail

If I had not been to Papua New Guinea some long years back and was not living in Australia I might not have heard of the Kokoda Trail. It runs nearly a 100 kilometres overland through the Owen Stanley Range. The track is the most famous in PNG and is renowned as the location of the World War II battle between Japanese and Australian forces in 1942. The track ends here (or starts depending on how you want to walk it) at Owers Corner in Central Province, 50 kilometres east of Port Moresby, after having crossed rugged and isolated terrain culminating over 2000 metres high. It is constently ran by mobs of Australians but it does not have a reputation as being an easy track. High humidity, mud, insects, heavy rainfalls, cold nights make the task difficult and the track is rarely crossed in less than five days (it usually averages 10) except by the locals who are known to do it in less than three days. I would not mind giving it a try but it is unfortunately not the reason why I am here today so I have to satisfy myself with the memorial located here and the sign showing me the direction to follow...

Port Moresby

Today I left the fine coastline of Queensland to fly up to Port Moresby for a few meetings. Last time I went there was 17 years ago on a stopover to the Huli tribes of the Highlands and the river villages of the Sepik. A wild and exotic experience. Unfortunately, the capital city is not as attractive as the rest of the country and there is not much to see and do. Still, you can enjoy the view of the stilt villages spread all around and you can have an idea from the picture above of how tiny the city is laying at the head of the point. I wish I could go back and explore some of the remote places of Papua instead of having to stay in the city.