Yes...I know I said no more virtual adventures before 2020.
But last night I settled in with a new non-fiction Walking with The Ghosts in Papua New Guinea...and account of hiking the Kokoda Track or Trail.
My initial reaction was
"You know...I don't think I could even find PNG on a map..."
(and I was right)
After only a chapter or so in...I was hooked...and thinking
"This would make a damn fine Virtual Adventure."
Only around 6-8 days. The entire trail is barely over 60 miles. I'm committing to two weeks, so I can have time to discover/explore/learn.
I remember telling a friend years ago that if I had no obligations (...husband...parents...kids...et al) and time and money were no issue...all I would DO is travel.
Now...with virtual travel...well...let's just say last night confirmed that statement, okay?
Billed as the Last Wild Place on Earth...this is certainly not the Appalachian Trail Trek of June-Mid-October.
The above bridge is the first photo I saw of The Kokoda.
And I knew I had to check it out...virtually.
First things first...let's find New Guinea.
Right under the Equator.
Southern Hemisphere.
Warm and wet.
The primary language here is Tok Pisin...kind of a Pidgin English.
(we will explore this in more detail as we go along)
I'm going to use the book as my guide...and supplement the journey by trying local dishes...learning a bit of TOK...and seeing what The Kokoda has to offer.
Since this is Virtual we will be avoiding the injections that are a MUST before traveling to New Guinea.
Hepatitis B
Encephalitis
Malaria
Typhoid
(...remember how everything in Australia wants to kill you? Well New Guinea even has a deadly poisonous BIRD...)
Called the Hooded Pitohui
It is deemed the most deadly bird on the planet. Its skin, feathers and flesh carry large amounts of batchotoxin and affect the cardiovascular system and have a neurotoxin as well.
Pitohui is Papuian for rubbish bird since they are certainly not edible.
Fluffy...Beautiful...Toxic.
Another thing that will be different along this trek is guides. Hikers have their own packer or Porter. So the backpacks are carried along by the guides in a Sherpa fashion.
Packs must stay in the 35-40 pound weight.
From The States the flight is roughly 26 hours to Australia from LAX...then another 4 hours to Papua.
(...yes...it is a jaunt...)
The day before starting The Kokoda...the porters and hikers pack hiking packs...and enjoy the last restaurant meal they will have for a couple of weeks, together.
The daily weather in November here looks to be from 70 degrees (low) to 91 degrees. (high) Mostly staying in the 80's. November is part of the hottest, driest season. So...that's good.
According to the Port Moresby Weather the temperature currently is 72 degrees...is is 4 AM and cloudy with sunshine later.
There is a lot of history on this track. The Australians used it during WWII while fighting the Japanese.
In the 1920's-1930's an explorer of the interior found large colonies of what he termed "nearly stone age people" cut off from the world and modern inventions/society.
And headhunters/cannibals were a real danger.
Overview
Hiking The Kokoda
https://youtu.be/ufpBSBFKt-M
Until tomorrow...
