Despite recent press the Kokoda track is still open! The Kokoda Trail is justly famous in Australia as a tough trekking challenge, tracing wartime route through the heart of Papua New Guinea’s jungles. Despite recent rumours that the trail may be permanently closed this is not the case and the PNG and Australian Governments are negotiating with local landowners to keep the track open for future trekkers. The Kokoda Track was the scene of bitter fighting in 1942 as the Japanese advanced towards Port Moresby. Many Japanese and Australian soldiers died along the Track, both in battle and from malaria. As interest in Australia’s cultural identity and recent history grows, walking the Kokoda Track has become a rite of passage for a new generation of Australians.
Walking the Kokoda Track involves 50 hours of hiking over 90km of steep climbs and descents. Vantage points along the Track reveal magnificent mountain landscapes, and a wide variety of flora and fauna is encountered. Trekkers pass through local villages where descendents of the wartime “fuzzy wuzzy angels” continue to live simple traditional lifestyles while providing a warm welcome to passing trekkers. Although hiking the trail has become popular with Australians as a patriotic thing to do the numbers of people are hiking recorder are still relatively small at around 7000 a year. Compare this to the Inca Trail in Peru, which attracts nearly 160,000 people a year – and that’s after a daily quota was introduced! The reality is that the Kokoda Trail is not very well known outside of Australia so most of the people you will meet there are Aussies and many of the groups tend to visit around Anzac Day and other significant times.
Aside from the obvious wartime interest the Kokoda Trail offers many other attractions as you walk through traditional villages, spend time with local people and experience walking through lush rainforest each day with many river crossings en route. The best time of the year to walk the Track is the dry season, from April to October. Walking during the wet season is also possible but is much more challenging because the Track is muddy and slippery, and river crossings may even be impassable after rain. We take a slightly different approach from some other trek operators who camp out every night of the trek and fly all food and drink in for the occasion, thus almost needing a camel train to carry all their supplies! We engage village guest houses along the Track to supply accommodation and some meals for our trekkers and porters, thus not only reducing the amount of food and equipment carried by the trekking party, but also injecting greater economic benefits into the microeconomies of the village communities along the Track. If you want to challenge yourself to do something exceptional this year and have a real adventure then the Kokoda track is for you. We have departures in July and August but book fast as these are filling up quickly! $2290 for 10 days ex- Port Moresby also available for private departures with groups of 8 + people.
March 20, 2008...3:42 am
The Kokoda track rite of passage!
Jump to Comments
