Visit remote Papua New Guinea in style

Location:
Papua New Guinea

Cruising remote waters

By Sandy Guy

Picture this: you are looking across a flat, silvery ocean as the sun breaks across a pale blue sky. Dozens of dolphins leap from the glassy waters, pirouetting and splashing in the balmy morning air. This morning, the fourth of a 10-day journey aboard the expedition cruiser Orion, is one of utter magic: as the dolphins play around the ship we steam slowly past a multitude of islands to Kitava in Papua New Guinea’s remote Trobriand Islands. Kitava is gorgeous – white beaches, lagoons the colour of swimming pools, thatched-roof villages and fragrant frangipani trees - similar scenes to previous mornings of this remarkable journey to some of the most remote and little-visited places on Earth. The Orion’s arrival is quite an event in Kitava: by 9 am, the beach is busy with plumed, pearl-shelled locals who have travelled from several nearby villages to dance for the 100 passengers on board. Islanders paddle canoes around the Orion, the 4,000 tonne ship’s sleek lines in stark contrast to the roughly-hewn craft, waving to passengers as we board zodiac tenders to shore. Sitting beneath shady trees fringing Kitava’s beach, we are spellbound as the islanders perform the age-old dances that have earned these islands the title “Islands of Love.” Later, at nearby Nuratu Island, we snorkel in wonderfully translucent waters, viewing some of the spectacular reefs and teeming marine life that make Papua New Guinea – which boasts some 40,000 square kilometres of pristine coral reefs – one of the world’s optimum diving destinations. Like many places in Papua New Guinea, the Trobriands are virtually inaccessible except by small planes or by sea. And the opportunity to travel to this world of extreme natural beauty and vibrant cultures, all the while lapping up the luxury of five-star cruising, is what makes an Orion journey so special. The town of Alatou on the country’s mainland is, like the Trobriand’s, reasonably inaccessible. Our first port of call after departing Cairns this capital of Milne Bay province is surrounded by the rugged Owen Stanley Ranges and has no road access to the rest of the country. Dusty Alatou has several shops, a church, a market and, on the edge of the sea in the middle of town, a memorial to the 373 Australian and 14 US soldiers who lost their lives here in the Battle of Milne Bay. Vital to the course of the Pacific War, the allies’ victory at Milne Bay in August 1942, along with the defence of the Kokoda Trail, secured Australia from the threat of Japanese invasion. On board Orion are two former diggers. One, in his 80s, talks of those far-off days when, stationed in Alatou, he hiked the dense jungle and towering peaks surrounding the town. Sixty-five years later, the diggers arrive in Papua New Guinea in very different circumstances, journeying through the Coral Sea in the air-conditioned comfort of the ship while dining on cuisine to match any five-star restaurant. We learn a lot about the brutal war fought across the Pacific from Major General Maurice Dobson, who gives fascinating lectures. There is a marine biologist, an expert in flora and fauna, and an expedition leader with extensive knowledge of local cultures and traditions on board too: Orion’s Melanesian Cultures voyage is not just a five-star holiday, it’s an exceptionally well-researched journey into one of the world’s most remote and underdeveloped regions. Passing small foliage-covered islands and coral reefs, the ship cruises through the Louisiade Archipelago, our next port of call. Anchored in beautiful Deboyne Lagoon, we take an exhilarating zodiac ride, skitting across the ocean to uninhabited Nivana, a small Robinson Crusoe-like island. It’s difficult to image, as you drift above a glorious underwater garden of brightly-coloured coral, that this idyllic spot was once in the thick of the raging Battle of the Coral Sea. We see traces of the 1942 battle nearby, diving on an old Japanese Zero plane now home to multitudes of fish. Back on board guests enjoy a seafood banquet under a glittering carpet of stars. Fat prawns sizzle on the barbecue, and tables groan with salmon, crab, yabbies, and Moreton Bay bugs as the Orion up’s anchor and heads for the Trobriands and, the following day, Ghizo in the Western Soloman Islands. Ghizo’s main town, Gizo (no explanation can be found for these unusual names) was used as a base for Japanese seaplanes during the war. Nearby is a tiny island once known as Plum Pudding Island, where in August 1943 the 26 year-old skipper of the PT 109, John F. Kennedy, and his crew were shipwrecked after their boat was cut in half by a Japanese destroyer. The US President-to-be and his crew languished on the tiny island for two days before Kennedy realised they needed to swim to nearby Olasana Island if they were to survive. It was here that two local scouts found them and, later, carried a coconut Kennedy carved with a message to a lookout, who radioed for a rescue boat. Today the island is called Kennedy Island after its famous castaway. But apart from its name change, this South Pacific speck hasn’t changed since Kennedy sat on the beach and pondered his predicament. At Kennedy Island we alight onto a pristine beach and after wandering the island’s circumference – a ten-minute stroll – take to the waters to experience more of the region’s incredible marine life. There are vast multi-coloured corals and scores of fish including blue-green cromus, striped cardinal fish, parrot fish and little orange clown fish. The snorkelling is just as extraordinary at Marovo Lagoon, a place James A. Michener described as “the eighth wonder of the world.” One of the world’s largest double barrier-enclosed lagoons, this isolated spot in the Soloman Islands is so beautiful that it has been proposed for World Heritage listing. Dotted with hundreds of islands, the waters of the lagoon shimmer in the sun as we again don our snorkels to view the underwater splendor. Late we take a zodiac to beautiful Upei Island to wander among rows of magnificent wood carvings brought by locals from remote islands, astounded at the beauty of the work. Every morning of this journey has featured a landscape of sublime natural beauty – from silent lagoons to rainforest-covered islands to canoes bobbing in mist-shrouded waters. But the sight of our final destination is simply jaw-dropping: colossal clouds of black smoke billow from Mt Tavurvur, an active volcano just outside Rabaul in Papua New Guinea. Smothered under a cloud of ash in 1994, Rabaul is like a ghost town. Nestled beside Simpson Harbour, the town is surrounded by six volcanoes, and large areas – including the former airport - are still covered with thick black ash. There are relics everywhere in Rabaul, which played a significant role in World War II. Japanese, who occupied the town in 1942, built hundreds of kilometers of tunnels beneath the town and surrounding peninsula, some of which we view, along with rusting barges, bombers and guns. A former digger on board hasn’t seen Rabaul since he was stationed here 1946, one of 200 soldiers responsible for 60,000 defeated Japanese soldiers. “It was a rotten job,” he says. “I’d enough of the blasted war; I was itching to get home. But it’s bloody marvellous to come back.” The digger toasts his World War II mates with a beer on the deck as we watch the churning volcano and rugged hills, which look like they have been draped in dark blue velvet, in the distance. It is a fitting finale to an extraordinary journey. Orion has departures for its Melanesian Island Cultures expedition on November 2, 2007 and February 28, 2008. Other Orion journeys include Papua New Guinea Islands and Highlands, Tasmania’s east coast, Antarctica, Mysteries of Ancient Arnhenland, Coral Sea Islands, New Zealand’s South Island, and the Kimberley. For further information phone 1300 361 012, visit www.orioncruises.com.au.