Strangers Up Trees
During WW2, the Australians and the Japanese fought a bloody campaign on what is now known as the Kokoda Track, or Kokoda Trail. The Australians refer to it as one, the Americans refer to it as the other, and for some reason people get all upset over whether its a trail or a track. I call it a path just to annoy both camps.
Anyway, the track/trail whatever is now a world class trekking site, one of the few where you can still see weapons and other war debris right beside you on the hike. A few weeks ago, one trekker was photographing the foliage when he sighted something that didnt make sense, and when the wind caught it it looked like a moss covered body complete with goggles. The airspace above the track was the site for some ferocious dogfights during the war and a lot of pilots and crew vanished into the jungle never to be seen again, so the authorities conducted a search to determine if it was a body or not. Turns out it wasnt, but families are still waiting for word of lost loved ones from PNG so there was intense interest in the story. The U.S military regularly sends teams from Hawaii to recover remains from USAAF wreck sites.
The other thing about the trail is the way its gone from being a must-trek for hard core adventurers to a must-do for corporate sorts. We see a regular flow of company teams coming to PNG to 'bond' on the track through adversity and so on. I think 'bleed' is more appropriate than 'bond'. Sure, many are well prepared and the trek organisers are world class, but I always get the impression theres at least one or two trekkers who really didnt want to be there but felt they had to to advance their career in the company. You can see which ones they are in the hotel restaurant in the morning before they set off... they are the ones sitting alone and not saying anything, not eating. Sure enough, we keep hearing of trekkers being airlifted out, one recently by the U.S Navy, after they suffer exhaustion or heat stress or fractures. Heart attacks are also popular. Thank God for corporate release forms.
Now Im a biker Ive found other bikers wave at me as they go past. Its a change from having them give me the finger and scream abuse so Im not quite used to it yet. Mind you, Im busy screaming abuse at drunk/drugged/disheveled dipstick drivers who keep trying to murder me with their Toyotas so I cant talk. I bought a 225cc Yamaha, partly because it was the cheapest bike in Australia and partly because I live to be pitied. Ill have to put up with the sad looks from other road users for a year.
K
