Here are some information about my trip in PNG august 2008 with the LP2008 guidebook.
Sorry foir the mistake. English is not my native language
don't believe local people about time and distance walking or driving to build your trip. They always "guess"
Pt Moresby
Mapang Missionary house (LP). Very clean, and close to Borko center. 140K including breakfast. You can met there plenty of missionary and get a lot of iuseful nformation
Reservez a l'avance car toujours plein.
Country woman association (LP)
Room at 80k. basic but clean. Noisy because close to express road. They close the door at 22PM
Pub Shady rest hotel (LP)
You will the only "white people' but it's quite ok if you don't stay too late. after peolpe start to be drunk...
Taxi Ferry
If you are looking for a taxi. Very honest. You can keep him for hour and he can go with you on market. you can pay him by hour or according the number of km . Phone : 6900953.
Tari
No ATM and quite impossible to change dollars
Warili Lodge (LP) : 40K. The price is based on the face of the guest... You have to agree everything with Stephen (the owner) before The lodge is ok but quite far from the town and you will need a car. 20m walk there is a wigmen village where they can organise singsing (10K by wigmen)
Phone Stephen : 691 2063 or 6978019. hecheck hisemails twice a year...
Tari women Guesthouse (LP): 30k . Not very clean but nice people. Jack, the son of the owner can be a guide in the city and can organize singsing (spirit danse or wigmen)
Road between Tari and Mt Hagen
About 10-11 hours. Exept the first hour close to Tari, the landscape on the way is not very interesting. Even if the local told you the road is safe, be careful. I had raskols 20 km just before to arrive in Mt Hagen. You may have to change of PMV in Mendi. Even the local people are careful on Mendi market
Mt Hagen
Lutheran Guesthouse (LP): 90K. Very clean. Pim, the owner organize a festival just the day before the Mt hagen show. There are less groups but much more less tourists and the place for the show is nicer.
Poroman hotel (LP): 125K. Very clean. The satnadard room are quite the same as in the Lutheran but the place and the restaurant are nicer and the food better
Simbu region
If you are looking for a guide in this area, contact Philippe KC. Phone727 36037. You can really trust him and you can do a nice walk from is village (Kerowagi) to Mt wilhem
Trek to Mt Wilhem from Kerowagi until Brahmin (I can provide the GPS trace)
Between 5 and 9 hours fast walk every day
1st day: Kerowagi-Kangri. 9h walk through the bush and small village. Very nice walk. Night in a traditional house in Kangri village
2sd day: Kangri- Kagesuga. 5h walk plus 30 minutes PMV. night in Backpacker hotel
3rd day: Kagesuga-base camp. 3h walk. before leaving Kagesuga, check your local guide has the key of the hut (50k). Ther are mats and everything to cook but no blankets...
4th day climbing and back to Kagesuga. between 4 and 6h to be on the top for the sunrise.
5th day Kagesuga-Bundi. 9h walk. If too long you can stop in Pomio village (4h walk). The landscape is not very interesting. In Bundi, there is amissionary house but the sister who manage the bedroom key is not always there. But at least, you can have a nice hot shower.
6th day Bundi-Brahmin. 7h walk. Ask to take the shortcut through the bush. In Brahim, the catholic mission close to the main shop is open to tourist but local guide are not allowed to come in even to sit a moment....so 500m before the voillage entrance there is a kind of 'monastry' with very dirt bathroom but at least you can stay there. 40k including diner.
7th day Brahmin-Madang by PMV.
Madang
hotel Madang Lodge (LP). budget room 90k. The good thing is the swimming pool. The restaurant is expensive and the food not very good
The walk from the hotel to the center close to the sea is very nice and safe during the day
Simbai
The main contact to organize the trip are
Esron Dotch (he works in the Madang Lodge restaurant) Phone: 8523416
Dikson Kogi Phone: 675 7421
From Madang, there are dayly flights (exepts on sunday via Island air. About 650K return ticket
SiMbai is a nice place but everything will be expensive. The traditionnal singsing (300k), is very nice.
You can walk to Ayome in 2 jours (8h walk a day) with a stop in Kennenj. There, some people still dress traditionnaly and they have build a spot to see bird of paradize, Go at 7AM to see them not at 5PM, you will have the sun in yours eyes.
They can also come to pick you in Mt hagen, and it take 2-3 days walk until Simbai.
Wewak
Hotel sepik surfkit (LP) They are working to make new rooms so not a nice place at this time. The room with AC is very small and too expensive for what you get. (180k) The only good point, you are on the beach. Far from the center and very few PMV
Sepik
Very expensive because of the petrol.
A car to go there (sunday no PMV), is about 600k.
Guide : Albert, phone 6362630 or 71736192. very nice and you can trust him on all the prices. He has also a good skipper, Simon with a good boat and engine.
About 20k to sleep in a local house . 100k for a singsing
Need 50 gallons petrol (about 1200K) to go to black water, Chambri lake and go down until'a Tambanum
A Mameri, you can sleep in Benni guesthouse.
Avoid the guide Cyril Tara, if he find a better deal, he can let you in the middle of the trip with another pseudo-guide.
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