General Information
Maps
Unfortunately, maps are no longer produced of the area, and those that exist are up to twenty years old in their data. They are not crucial for your journey here as Wau Adventures will ensure you get to your destination in safety and comfort with experienced guides all the way. We recommend you rely upon a trained guide with you on the treks, but to make the most of your adventure, the routes, topography, history and safety aspects require a good understanding of what lays ahead.
Wau Adventures can supply some basic maps, as it is fascinating (and occasionally daunting) to see the intended routes overlaid on topographical and aerial photography base maps. Of course, there’s also the knowledge of the distances covered, times taken, and heights reached when you get back home to tell the story.
Data
Everybody likes to know where they’re going and where they’ve been, so we can provide a reference list of helpful coordinates, geographical data, and telephone numbers for relevant locations.
Pidgin
You’re obviously unlikely to master the local language on a quick trip, but most guides understand reasonable English, so there should be no problem on the trek. You never know when it might come in handy at a market, or walking through town though, so I recommend a basic phase book such as the Lonely Planet guide.
Pidgin is highly phonetic, so what you see is what you say, pronouncing every letter, and they tend to get to the point without all the ‘niceties’ of many western languages… although a ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ never went astray in any country. ‘Roll’ the R’s if you can (easier for those from the US), and keep your sense of humour.
Trek Notes
Every trek is different, for every person, every time. It is handy though to use accepted ‘track notes’ as a guide during your journey. Recent trekkers have provided their details as a guide to those who follow. Keep in mind that experience, equipment, group size, fitness, and purpose all influence your progress greatly. Keep in close communication with your guides at all times, and always plan to set camp well before nightfall, even if you have not reached your intended destination.
Click on the buttons below to download printable versions of sample track notes for the Black Cat (Skin Diwai route) and Bulldog (Kudjeru route) treks (reproduced with kind permission of Pam Christie, PNG Trekking Adventures).
(Black Cat Track Notes)
(Bulldog Track Notes)