| Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 | |
RE: Upper Sepik River - Adventure Off the Tourist TrackCountry forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea / Papua New Guinea | ||
Fantastic stuff Wantok! Skerah | ||
My girlfriend and I traveled to PNG in October 2011 and had an amazing off-the-beaten-track adventure on the Upper Sepik River that I thought worthy of sharing. If you are looking for a place where in many instances, you will be one of the first white people that many of the villagers have ever seen (the further up river you go), but don't require comfort or any easy ride, read on: We originally planned on two trips in PNG - one involving a trip down the Middle/Lower Sepik River plus another hiking through the mountains around Simbai (Madang Province). We were fortunate to contact Joseph Kone, a well-known Sepik River guide (recommended in the LP book) who sounded out our underlying interests (get away from tourists, do something physical and see some 'real' PNG) and suggested that we could combine all of these interests by travelling the Upper Sepik River, versus the more common (and more tourist-influenced Middle/Lower Sepik). We agreed on a price for the two of us for 12 days which included everything for the river trip plus our food and accommodations in Wewak on arrival and departure and were on our way. 12 October - shopped for supplies in Wewak (we arranged the trip with only 2 days notice so were able to participate in some of the background details), then an interesting and comfortable 5 hour mini-van drive to Pagwi. There we met some of the crew of our 40 foot dugout canoe (with 40 hp outboard motor), loaded up the supplies and were on our way up river to Ambunti, arriving about 2 hours later. We spent the night at the Catholic Mission guest house, and enjoyed meeting several of Joseph's family and the rest of our crew (there were 6 crew on the trip, required to portage all of our gear over various terrain). 13 October - up early for a walk to and browse of the Ambunti Market (an interesting mix of river people and mountain people trading/selling their wares), then a 'sing-sing' put on by the mountain village nearby, a quick and interesting visit/meeting with the Ambunti public school principle, then helped to load the canoe (while we never had to, we enjoyed loading, unloading and carrying the supplies with the crew throughout the trip), and off for a 5 hour boat ride to Sagwup. We stayed overnight in a guest house there, sleeping on the floor on mattresses under mosquito netting (as we did every night up and down the river), and getting our first exposure to the Sepik River realities of no electricity, sanitation or fresh water (exactly what we expected). 14 October - up early and a visit to the Sagwup 'boy's house' where all the the young men go for spiritual, cultural, craft and skills education (they live there, away from their homes from puberty until marriage). The people of Sagwup have avoided the missionary influence so prevalent in PNG and we were able to get a brief glimpse of their 'insect cult' beliefs through some of their amazing insect carvings. Then, into the canoe and a 6 hour ride to the Tauri area, staying in a forest house along the river. All of the places we stayed as we traveled the river were rough huts on stilts, many of which we shared with the resident family. In this case though, the hut was built for communal use by river travelers and forest hunters. 15 October - an 8 hour ride passing by the mouth of the Freda River (lots of concerns over potentially serious pollution issues from the gold mining occurring upstream in the Freda River and the resultant impact on villagers in the area and downstream), into the May River and stopping at another forest house in the Waniap area due to thunderstorms. 16 October - a 3 hour ride to Nakwi where we decided to leave the canoe (with 2 crew members) due to the increasingly difficult upstream travel (this was the dry season and the lack of rain and resultant low water levels required frequent stops, getting out and pushing, etc). Then a 3 hour hike through thick rainforest (and lots of knee deep mud notwithstanding the lack of rain!) to arrive at Itali. We stayed in the hut of one of the residents, getting to bed early as we were pretty tired from past few day's exertions. 17 October - we originally planned on continuing inland from here, crossing over the mountains to the village of Paru where we understood the village was virtually untouched by western influences but instead we decided to enjoy a few days in Itali before returning down river. We began the day going to the church service (we are not religious but wanted to experience their spirituality). Although the missionaries left this village over 10 years ago, they still practice a christian-style religion. Afterwards we spent the day meeting the villagers (actually we seemed to be the main attraction rather than the other way around - we had at least 10 visitors in the hut for every meal, simply watching the 'white man' eat!) and relaxing. The villagers were very friendly, and proud to show off their culture, wares, etc. with absolutely no pressure on us at all. 18 October - up early for a 2 hour hike (actually ended up being over 5 hours - seems the people have very little sense of time up-river) to search out some birds of paradise. Regrettably, although we heard a few in the distance, we were never able to see any. Still, a very interesting hike (and difficult due to climbing/scrambling over the mountain, mud, creeks, etc in extremely hot and humid conditions), where we were introduced to various plants and trees used by the natives for food and/or medical purposes. When we returned to the village, some of our crew ventured off to build a raft for our use to proceed down river the following day. 19 October - after loading up the raft and putting just 3 of us on it, we realized that the river was far too shallow to take the weight/depth of the raft so a few of the crew push/pulled (and floated where possible) the raft and our supplies down river while the rest of us hiked back through the jungle to Nakwi where we all met up with the canoe crew, loaded it and proceeded down river for a few hours to a village (Pekwe??) and overnighted with Joseph's sister's daughter's family. 20 October - an 8 hour ride to Kubkain, where we stayed at the home of Joseph's mother. Certainly the prettiest (and apparently one of the most prosperous) of the villages we visited on the trip. Unfortunately, it appears that the villagers lifestyles are about to be seriously impacted by the development of a mining access road which will require the relocation of the whole village! Such a shame! 21 October - 7 hour ride back to Ambunti, whereupon we stopped at the Ambunti Lodge for a well-deserved beer. Unfortunately, the Lodge had none but we were able to purchase some a few miles back up river at some kind of local 'outlet' (not quite sure if it was legal, but at that point I was NOT arguing!). Stayed the night at the Mission House again. 22 October - 2 hour boat ride back to Pagwi where we said goodbye to the crew and took the awaiting mini-van back to Wewak and our hotel. Throughout the trip, our guide Joseph was amazing. His knowledge of the river (which changes constantly with the variation in water levels), of the river people and their cultures (which varies as much as their dialects), his interesting stories (of his life, creation myths, etc), and his constant attention to our needs made what could have been a very difficult and uncomfortable trip a fantastic one. If you are planning a trip on the Sepik, whether it be the more standard middle/lower Sepik River or the far more adventurous (and difficult) upper Sepik, I highly recommend using Joseph Kone. You will not be disappointed. But remember to "expect the unexpected", especially when it comes to travel times (delays) and that a trip like this (where there are only 2 people) does not come cheap! You will quickly see that the up-river people continue to maintain strong family/village bonds,are truly beautiful and have managed in large part to maintain their culture. But don't wait - the culture and people are becoming increasingly at risk due to resource mining (good for the economy - bad for the people??). If you want to see some pix of our trip, go to our FLICKR site www.flickr.com/photos/steveandfrance/sets/ Joseph's coordinates are: joseph.kone6@gmail.com Feel free to contact me if you would like any more details | 1 | |
yeah wild stuff,have done some of the trip you did,it is a great part of the planet,well reported,as it is a very hard trek,i bet that warm sp beer tasted great? | 2 | |
nothing like warm SP beer after 2 weeks upriver!!! LOL | 3 | |
We unfortunately had a very bad experience with Joseph Kone, and met other tourists who said the same. I wish someone had warned us. Seems like only those with positive experiences post here on Thorn Tree. :( | 4 | |
Faeifuwill, I would like to hear more about your experience as I am considering booking this same trip. Please message me. Thank you, | 5 | |
Hi, Am pasting in some info I posted on a similar thread: Unfortunately we had booked our trip through another guide - who turned out to be really really awful in many different ways - who had contracted Johannes (who is amazing). Johannes made a very positive and professional impression on us. The cost - including transportation, accommodation, food, village visits & fees, 2 litres of water per day etc - was 500 PGK per day. However, prices can go up quickly in PNG (which is sooo expensive) so don't be worried if the price quoted is higher. One village to stay in is Wombun. Supercute, nice market, really friendly people, lovely guesthouse. | 6 | |