Well No Roads has just completed another successful crossing of the Owen Stanleys in PNG. With 9 trekkers, 15 Porters and an Australian Guide in Training (GIT), our small group of 26 took our first steps of the 96km Kokoda Track on September 13 2014 and for the next 8 days we copped the quintessential Kokoda experience with hot and steamy mornings, beautiful lunch time weather and rain bordering on torrential every afternoon - just before we reached camp - which of course meant plenty of Kokoda mud!
Our trekking group ranged in age from 22 to 60, a GIT from Bendigo, a father/son from Melbourne, another father/son from Warragul, 2 brothers from QLD - a soldier and an accountant, a 22 year old personal trainer from Sydney and a super mum with dodgy knees (Fil) whose stories would make a truckie blush - and he was a Kiwi!! Diverse groups like this makes for an entertaining trek and with 8 days and 96kms of blood, sweat and tears, we had plenty of laughs around the nightly fires - how can one guy know so many jokes?
As always our porter team was exceptional - lead by our local guide Nelson (2013 Porter of the Year), our lead guide Jack who maintained the pace and a special mention to our Master Chef Ben whose "tuna and noodle" sausage rolls were to die for, or was the Indonesian Sweet Potato Curry with cous cous the meal of the trip? Our personal porters were great managing to prevent most slips and trips along with our general porters who would seemingly come out of no where to help us across the creeks and rivers, through the mud and over the rocks yet still be way ahead of us to have our tents up and fires going well before the time we got to camp. Nelson's nightly talks on anything and everything from local PNG life to how he hooked up with his wife were both informative and hilarious.
So before we knew it, we'd negotiated the last of the ankle deep mud only to be confronted by our last crossing of the Goldie River which was at chest/neck height and flowing swiftly. The porters and the safety ropes got us across safely which only left the last 35 minute climb up to Ower's Corner and the famous Kokoda Arches - the finish line. We all made it safely through managing to complete one of the world's greatest treks and arguably Australia's greatest pilgrimage. People visit Gallipoli, but we "did Kokoda" - another 9 Australians who can be justifiably proud of their achievement!
Our trekking group ranged in age from 22 to 60, a GIT from Bendigo, a father/son from Melbourne, another father/son from Warragul, 2 brothers from QLD - a soldier and an accountant, a 22 year old personal trainer from Sydney and a super mum with dodgy knees (Fil) whose stories would make a truckie blush - and he was a Kiwi!! Diverse groups like this makes for an entertaining trek and with 8 days and 96kms of blood, sweat and tears, we had plenty of laughs around the nightly fires - how can one guy know so many jokes?
As always our porter team was exceptional - lead by our local guide Nelson (2013 Porter of the Year), our lead guide Jack who maintained the pace and a special mention to our Master Chef Ben whose "tuna and noodle" sausage rolls were to die for, or was the Indonesian Sweet Potato Curry with cous cous the meal of the trip? Our personal porters were great managing to prevent most slips and trips along with our general porters who would seemingly come out of no where to help us across the creeks and rivers, through the mud and over the rocks yet still be way ahead of us to have our tents up and fires going well before the time we got to camp. Nelson's nightly talks on anything and everything from local PNG life to how he hooked up with his wife were both informative and hilarious.
So before we knew it, we'd negotiated the last of the ankle deep mud only to be confronted by our last crossing of the Goldie River which was at chest/neck height and flowing swiftly. The porters and the safety ropes got us across safely which only left the last 35 minute climb up to Ower's Corner and the famous Kokoda Arches - the finish line. We all made it safely through managing to complete one of the world's greatest treks and arguably Australia's greatest pilgrimage. People visit Gallipoli, but we "did Kokoda" - another 9 Australians who can be justifiably proud of their achievement!
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