KapaKapa Trail experiences are memories of endurance and determination

I did not know of such a difficult trail that exists in my own country until I tried it with the group of enthusiastic trekkers from USA and Australia.  I'm proud to have conquered the challenging and difficult track as a first Public Servant from PNG to complete the whole length of the 2000km. 

It was on April 20018, I was requested by my boss (Heni Dembis) to accompany Peter Gamgee of Get Away Trekking and author of Ghost Mountain, James Campbell on the trip proposed for August to September. 

I was having confidence to myself as a native PNG, thinking I have the strength and stamina to complete the track. Little did I knew later was, walking 4-9km each day for 20days of the track that was described by Peter Gamgee as; ''what was, One Green Hell on the jungles on 1942 is today merely a Tough Walk in Paradise''.   

While having the combination of youngest being the girl, Rachel Campbell at 15 and Kevin Wainwright at 67, we had a broad combination of trekking experts. It was second time for James Campbell and couple of times for Peter Gamgee. In total there were eight (8) of the trekkers who are from overseas and I was among them with our PNG guides and carriers ranging from eldest to youngest. The youngest ones have accompanied their elders or father who were our porters and guides. One of those notable ones was the singing little James from Loronu village and he was 7years of age. 

We had boys from Central side and Northern side as porters and guides. The Central sides were led by Burdy Walbino a local from Loronu and who have been working closely with James Campbell and Peter Gamegee for the past few years to scope and revamp the Kapakapa Trail. The Northern side boys were led by Peter Bonga who is a regular trekking guide with Buna Trek and Tours. He has done guiding work on Kapakapa Track couple of times with trekkers and does routinely trekking business on Kokoda Track. He has trekking experiences with Mt. Wilhelm which is also on his list of trekking experiences in PNG's difficult terrains and rough mountains.   

The first day trip was not that really difficult with aluminum dinghy rides up the Kemp Welsh River. Since it was a dry season and water levels at some areas were shallow, we had more pushing upstream and arrived late at Sirimu village and overnight camps were setup. There we had a first game of Frisbee in the afternoon with village kids. Thanks to Rachael for introducing the Frisbee to the village children which also attracted few more elders and some began to be the expert on Frisbee. Each Frisbee was donated to the respective villages along with few other stationary and gifts for the school and village from the trekkers. 

Rachel has a special kind of attention from the kids whenever we arrived into a village. There were at times, every village kid who could yell and call for Rachel to go and play with them. Our local trekking team have names for her too for local synonymous reasons and at times we have to make her a crown-like headband from ferns and made her look like a jungle queen. Some guides even called her ''stongpela meri' (strong lady) or whenever we introduced her in the village welcome gatherings as one of the youngest among the trekkers, they will refer her as 'strongpela meri'. 

Among the ladies we have were two elders and one of them was the grand-daughter of Corporal Carl Stenberg, Donna Wilson. Corporal Stenberg, fought alongside the 2nd Battalion of the US 126th Infantry Division of the 32nd 'Red Arrows' and battled their way through to what ended in Buna as the Bloody Buna. The other one is; Julie Ardoin who is married to Joe Deutsch whom we trekked together. The couple are from USA and keen trekkers who have enjoyed trekking the rough terrains of Kapakapa without any issues despite its their first time to PNG.

Not forgetting Stephen from Australia who have been enjoying the local dishes and fruits at every villages that we passed through or stayed overnight. On the track, he has been the cameraman and the photographer for all kinds of mouse-rooms found along the track. He loves nature and keeps looking for things that always awes him and takes photos of them. He surely made alot of memories on the track with the nature, people, local dishes and fresh fruits.

If I could remembered one of his remarks during the lunch stop at Ghost Mountain while he was lying down with face up watching the fog covered sky, he said; 'Oh it feels great to be closer to god'. I could imagine the atmosphere and the attitude at 2000 meters above sea level. It was a fine weather but clouds could never allow us to see through to Buna's seafront from there.

It is believed that Major General Harding or Lt Gen Eichelberger led the 126th Infantry Division purposely over to Ghost Mountain for the soldiers to see Buna seafront from there. 

In reference to Rachael, she has a lot more experiences of the grueling Kapakapa Trail which are her memories of endurance and self determination she will never forget in her lifetime. While reading through here gritty bliss before writing up this, she has a love for PNG like his dad James Campbell used to say; ''there's nowhere in the world I could ever find a place like PNG.''  

More will be posted once we will collaborate to write few more stories of Kapakapa Trail.
The nightmares are not yet over for some of us after the 20days of continuous trekking from Gabagaba in Central Province to Buna in the Oro Province in 2018. 

Follow Rachel's gritty bliss on this link; https://grittybliss.com/2019/01/23/triage-on-the-trail/ 

Group Photo at New Suwari Village after the welcome. Rachel is second in the front row from Left.
*New Suwari is the first village on the Northern side of the Kapakapa track 

A retired soldier makes Manubada Island home

I wanted to live here because every day out here is paradise to me and the nights overlooking the sea towards Port Moresby’s Toguba Hill and vicinity gives me a feeling of renewal and serenity, Mr. Heau Solien.

Mr. Heau Solien, a retired soldier in his early 50s is a local from Vabukori and he owns part of the beach front on Manubada island through his mother and father’s side.   

After spending 16years in PNG Defense force, he resigned to live in the village with his three (3) daughters, two (2) boys and his beautiful wife whom he met at Aiyura National High School days.

Living on an island within the city of Port Moresby sounds exciting but isolated from electricity and water supply systems of Port Moresby city is one of the biggest challenge Mr. Solien and his family has to face each day. His elder son has become a good fisherman and he manages to catch fish each day for the family while his two daughters works in the city and the other one is still in school. The family live an isolated life on the island but self-sustaining.

The Mr. Solien family fetch water from the mainland and bring to the island on a family owned dinghy for their needs. A 20 minute of commuting between the mainland and island is costly but the family have no regrets and manages to live there for nearly two years. Mr. Solien regrets of never saving enough money to develop the area to attract tourist interest but he is always on the island to accommodate needs for picnic or camping out on the island. The bigger picture is of potential in tourism is there on the island but Mr. Solien is starting the tourism business in a small way. It will be a hotspot tourism hub within the city after the installation of the necessary tourism amenities on the island and change the idea of isolated island to island of tranquility and fun for those who need a break out of the city.

When asked of why he made the decision to live on the island; Mr. Solien says, ‘’I wanted to protect my island’s land which some people think its there without anyone’s ownership. I’m scared of the land grabbing trend in Port Moresby so I have settled here to protect my land which I own through my mother and father’s side.’’ I might not have the money to pay for my children’s school fee but I have the land here that my children will settle and live here with their families when Im gone. I want to teach them and show them the importance of living on our own land.

Despite the hurdles in life each day on the island, the family lives a content life on the island with natural see breezes providing coolest atmosphere by the local winds known to the Motuans as Laurabada (South-East) and Lahara (North-West) . The winds sometimes appear bad for the island which is also same to the coastal Motuan villages but at times it brings firewood to the shores and fish as well.  The Solien family have been surviving the two winds on the little bay under their makeshifts and adapted to the island life despite either wind being test to their lives.

Manubada Island is a rocky island and located few miles away from Ela Beach or Vabukori with a little impressive bay which has a white sandy shoreline frequent by Port Moresby local residents on weekends for a day’s picnic.

I was invited to attend a colleague’s son’s birthday and had a chance to met with Mr. Solien who is calm and never speaks a lot but always have something funny to share. Whilst looking around, the island exists within the fringes of Port Moresby but most of the people do not know how to get there and who to inquire before going there. The Yacht Club, individuals and other business houses in Port Moresby which owns boats do go there on their boats and anchors near the shore to use the beach but that has damaged the coral and the reefs which is the biggest concern for Mr. Solien and he wanted to have a jetty installed on the island before boats can be allowed to the island.

Anyone interested to visit Manubada Island or to help Mr. Solien to install tourism amenities on the island then call Mr. Solien on Phone 76762250;

Contact Nathan for further information

nathan.lati@papuanewguinea.travel

Pictures;

1.(L-R) Mrs. Solien and Mr. Solien and Nathan Lati on Manubada Island Beachfront  

2. Children on Manunada Island Beachfront

Get into Port Moresby, Roll over to Hood Lagoon

Get into Port Moresby and get out of Port Moresby is a reality for adventurers to PNG because of the reality of tourism products in the rural areas of PNG.

The city of Port Moresby has boundaries and outside of Port Moresby still exists the rural village life setting with modern touches on the living standards. Over the years the livelihood of the most communities have been improved with agriculture, tourism and other economic turnovers in the rural areas. 

Keapara Village on the Hood Lagoon Point in Rigo District in the Central Province is only 130km from Port Moresby by 4WD vehicles during the wet seasons after the Kupiano turn-off.

The village is first to host the European missionaries in the Papuan Region dating back to 1800s and the then South Seas or LMS missionaries HQ was built there before being shifted to Hula where it is now. The pioneer missionaries in the likes of Dr. Los and James Chalmers were based there before Chalmers met his fate in the hands of Iokea people in Mouru Bay (Kerema).

Dr. Los returned to Britain and the family legacy lives on with possibilities of pilgrimage activities beforehand when tourism development advances in Keapara.

Hood Lagoon itself has its own unique features in terms of marine biodiversity and geographical importance of how the lagoon was formed. For the interest of tourism; the lagoon is best place for kayaking, bird-watching within the waterways of the aged old mangroves, dolphin watching and game fishing are some of which are feasible.

Not far from the lagoon and between Hula point is a long stretch of reef that starts with sea-grass that appears like a garlic garden on a white sand just covered by over flooded sea and colored with different types of starfish. The undersea garden connects to the seaweed of greenish and brownish origin which becomes the colonies for small and colourful school of fish. The garden connects with coral and reef which is geologically connected to Great Barrier Reef between Australia and southern coastlines of PNG.

For the comfort of the visitors who need a weekend our of Port Moresby or holiday in a village setting holiday, the Hood Lagoon Resort is being developed for convenience and ready to be opened early next year. The resort has a 30 meters long jetty built into to the Hood Lagoon and has a bar access to either sides of the deck.
Never forget that, in the afternoon, its the sunset that should cost millions of dollars to be there on the jetty to get a glimpse when it wades off Hula point and horizon.

The resort when opened will comfortably fit 8pax at one time but there is always reserved beds and spaces available for camping in the village or coastline beaches of Keapara village 

For more information and updates follow #raonraonpng 
Photos by:  Wilfred Paka and Stanley Relson (PNGTPA Tourism Product Development Team) 

Sunset view from Keapara Resort Jetty 

Dolphins playing in the Hood Lagoon  in the morning- on the foreground is the Keapara Village 

The Jetty of Hood Lagoon Resort at Keapara Village

PNGTPA to showcase PNG’s Diverse Culture to the world leaders during APEC

Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority (PNGTPA) in conjunction with PNG APEC Authority is showcasing Papua New Guinea’s Cultural Diversity to the world for a half a day at National Football Stadium (NFS) in Port Moresby on Friday.  

Under the theme, “Blending PNG’s Cultural Diversity with the World’’, The PNG Tourism Promotion Authority is anticipating to showcase the PNG’s cultural diversity in a mini cultural show fashion to the world when the APEC leaders meet in Port Moresby. This Friday will be the day when the world will have a glimpse of Papua New Guinea’s cultural diversity at once place.

The Mini Cultural Show is intended to showcase PNG’s diverse culture by staging the performance of cultural groups from PNG’s 22 Provinces.   

The event will feature cultural performances from more than 800 different language groups in Papua New Guinea that are regionally represented as Highlands, Momase, New Guinea Islands and Southern Region.

 Apart from the regional dances, the arts and crafts making, traditional cooking, face painting, basket weaving, local bamboo band which forms the part of PNGTPA’s campaign for Million Different Journey experience in Papua New Guinea. This Mini Cultural Show will feature the cultural aspects of PNG’s Cultural Diversity.

The PNG Mini Cultural Show is centralized in one area to have sufficient time for interaction between the local and the APEC delegates with the objectives being;

• Give greater exposure of our culture and traditions to our international visitors
• Create greater awareness of Papua New Guinea as a culturally diverse tourist destination in the region and get inspired to visit

Hosting a Mini Cultural Show will inspire more travelers to visit Papua New Guinea and for the delegates to participate and share their experiences. This opportunity will enable PNGTPA to engage visitors directly through various social media marketing channels and other media outlets to maximize exposure.

This is the only opportunity where our APEC delegates to PNG will get to see, touch and feel the diversity of Papua New Guinea in a day, so brace yourself for the unexpected and be prepared to meet the beautiful people of Papua New Guinea at the PNG Mini Cultural Show.

Apart from the 22 Cultural groups from the respective provinces in PNG which are confirmed to showcase and perform various cultural dances, there are eight (8) of the PNG’s own contemporary genre to sentimental, alternate rock and all-time classical musicians will perform onstage. The old-time favorites like Basil Greg, Laimaka, Robert Okea, Gedix Atage will bring back some memories of the past decades whilst PNG Music Foundation will highlight the importance of contemporary music.  The latest in the PNG music scene and big-name artists like Daniel Bilip and DPJ will also be performing.

A Revisit to Hanza Bay, Bogia (Madang Province) on Tourism Product Scoping Mission

I visited, Bogia's Hanza Bay nearly  Seven (7) years ago when I was working for World Vision. I did not know of the cultural and historical significance the area holds, until the locals invited me for a Tourism Product Scoping as part of my work with PNG Tourism Promotion Authority 

While working with World Vision on Community Projects, we delivered the community oriented projects from WASH to Literacy and Healthcare. Little did I know of was the historical significance the areas holds for tourism. The early European explorers and traders settlement in the area with the establishment of coca and copra plantations which later turned into battle field and Japanese strategic location on the north coast.

This time I  was on a mission for Tourism Product Scoping but was unable to complete the full mission due to severe fever relating to Malaria which caused me to retreat back to Madang and then onward to Port Moresby.

The Hanza Bay in particular holds much of the the WWII relics which are now part of their cultural heritage within some unique cultures and traditions of unexplored Bogia.

The tourism integration is just a trigger into many countless options and opportunities the people are looking forward to harness with the support of a local and community-based NGO.

I was invited to scope the area for tourism product development and had the opportunity to visit many of the sites they have identified for tourism interests.

Cultures are unique to the people of Hanza Bay and the Tumbuan Mask is one of those sacred cultures and it takes three (3) months for the families or tribe to prepare the mask for celebration and cultural show staging. Locally, the event usually hosted when the gardens, food and houses are all ready to celebrate with feast and showcase in the festival like event.

The Tumbuan Mask culture is not merely practiced and displayed like other cultural and traditional shows but it has got its own rules and sacred traditions which the Tumbuan Mask custodian has to comply and follow in order for safe keeping and put out the mask into show during a cultural parade.

These times the Tumbuan Mask culture is slowly fading due to many people in the village have migrated into the cities and towns for job, education and better life but few people in the village still value the cultures and traditions relating to Tumbuan Mask.

Maintaining and safekeeping their culture helps them shaped their life and plays some significant roles to be a good citizen in the community. They know the value that the Tumbuan Mask culture holds and its importance in their lives.

Jeffery Nambia, in his mid 60s  is one of the Tumbuan mask keepers of Numbia village and he was willing to continue from where his parents have left because he says; he has seen great things in life out of the Tumbuan Mask culture and tradition. 'There is discipline, unity, order and respect in the community if you value Tumbuan Mask and participate or keep it', said Jeffry when I approached him at his house where he used to keep one of the tribe's Tumbuan Mask.

The last participation and showcasing of Tumbuan Mask dates back to 2012 when there was a bridge being commissioned and opened by the local Member of Parliament in Bogia area.

Now they are looking forward to host a specific festival within the Hanza Bay of Bogia to showcase the Tumbuan Mask and other cultures and traditions that are well kept by the people. They have the bamboo music similar to didgeridoo, fighting swords made of coconuts, stone axes seems to be from meteoroids comes down with striking lights and many others mystic cultures and stories.

The community of Numbia have been performing in other events in Madang and Highlands which were highlights of the events and they have won several prizes out of their performances.

The communities are willingly planning for varieties of products to showcase while cultural event will be the major event that will attract tourists to Hanza Bay.

The intention for the people of Hanza Bay is to have tourism products that are tourism friendly (soft adventure) so that tourists will have much more time to see what is within the Hanza Bay area (both sea and land).

The curiosity can  form a different view when you hear from other people, the perception can deceive you when you read but when you visit and see it for yourself to experience, it is totally different from the curiosity and perception.

The Hanza Bay has an array of existing plantations like Numbia which dates back to 1900s with German administration and management. Most of the coconuts still survives to this days which is unbelievable but only radiocarbon dating and other scientific tests can prove your own doubts.

PNGTPA Officer , Nathan LATI on Leng Island Beach

 

A girl and a boy from Numbia Village near one of the Tumbuan Masks at Awar Village

Read more soon on #raonraonpng @raonraonpng #madangtourism #bogia #hanzabay #pngtravel  #pngjourneys #pngtourism #mvcb #madangprovince