“Through a window in the vegetation to the southeast, I distinguish in the distance the perfect cone of Mt Bagana volcano (1750m), smoking heavily – a picturesque postcard of a Jurassic world . ”
Mt Bagana volcano (1750m) smokes in the distance
ended 25 years ago and cost 20,000 lives). Black as ebony, bearing a beard, with a muscular body, the man looks wild as he sits on a plastic chair under the verandah of his house. He stares at me coldly
with charcoal burning eyes. I get a categoric ‘no’ to my visitation request, without any explanation. “He thinks you want to take some photos and that you are going to make some money,” explains Patrick, sorry for me.
Never mind. As the night comes I meet Jerom, who will be my guide for Mt Balbi. He’s a tall gentle guy, a bit shy upon the first look. After some issues of understanding with the villagers of Tokarao – our destination – we
leave Arawa the next morning in a local PMV (Public Motor Vehicle) that we hail on the road at Panguna Junction bound for Wakunai, a village on the east coast. The Toyota Landcruiser speeds on a rather rocky dirt road
Our PMV (above with driver) takes us over creeks from Wakunai to Tokarao, a mountain village 25km inland, from where we will set off on our Mt Balbi trek
VOLUME 34 2023
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