Sway to the tapioca dance from the Trobriand Islands of the Milne Bay province, Papua New Guinea
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Old Salamaua cemetery a relic of a bygone era
The old Salamaua cemetery is a relic of a bygone era of the 1920s and 1930s when fevered gold miners from all over the world converged on this idyllic part of the world.
To visit the old Salamaua cemetery is to step back in time, to a rip-roaring period when gold fever struck men from around the globe.
The discovery of gold at Edie Creek above Wau in 1926 sparked off a gold rush of massive proportions, which led to the development of Salamaua as the capital of the then Morobe District.
Thousands of Europeans flocked to the jungles of Salamaua and Wau in search of gold in the ‘20s and ‘30s.
Their legacy lives on today through the infamous Black Cat Trail, later to become scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of WW11.
In those days, foreigners were regarded as insane by the village people because of the joy the strange yellow dust brought to them and the trouble they went to get it
Gold-fevered foreigners from all around the globe were landing at Salamaua!
The goldfields lay eight days walk through thick leech-infested jungle and steep razorback ridges.
There was a real threat of being attacked by hostile warriors.
And when they got to the fields, they were faced with the prospect of dysentery, a variety of ‘jungle’ diseases, and pneumonia brought on by the extremes of temperature between day and night.
Blackwater fever, a potent tropical disease akin to malaria, claimed the lives of unaccustomed European gold miners by the score.
Gold Dust and Ashes, the 1933 classic by Australian writer Ion Idriess, tells the fascinating yarn of the gold fields and of the trials and tribulations faced by the miners.
Idriess, in his book – which remains a bestseller to this day – also writes of many of the colorful characters that now lie on a hill overlooking the sea in the old Salamaua cemetery.
It provides probably the best insight into the history of the development of the Morobe goldfields, and is a must- read for students of colonial history.
Today the old Salamaua cemetery, or what remains of it, is well tended to by the local villagers.
The graves are mute testimony to the days when European man, running a high gold fever, was claimed by a fever of a different kind.
To visit the old Salamaua cemetery is to step back in time, to a rip-roaring period when gold fever struck men from around the globe.
The discovery of gold at Edie Creek above Wau in 1926 sparked off a gold rush of massive proportions, which led to the development of Salamaua as the capital of the then Morobe District.
Thousands of Europeans flocked to the jungles of Salamaua and Wau in search of gold in the ‘20s and ‘30s.
Their legacy lives on today through the infamous Black Cat Trail, later to become scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of WW11.
In those days, foreigners were regarded as insane by the village people because of the joy the strange yellow dust brought to them and the trouble they went to get it
Gold-fevered foreigners from all around the globe were landing at Salamaua!
The goldfields lay eight days walk through thick leech-infested jungle and steep razorback ridges.
There was a real threat of being attacked by hostile warriors.
And when they got to the fields, they were faced with the prospect of dysentery, a variety of ‘jungle’ diseases, and pneumonia brought on by the extremes of temperature between day and night.
Blackwater fever, a potent tropical disease akin to malaria, claimed the lives of unaccustomed European gold miners by the score.
Gold Dust and Ashes, the 1933 classic by Australian writer Ion Idriess, tells the fascinating yarn of the gold fields and of the trials and tribulations faced by the miners.
Idriess, in his book – which remains a bestseller to this day – also writes of many of the colorful characters that now lie on a hill overlooking the sea in the old Salamaua cemetery.
It provides probably the best insight into the history of the development of the Morobe goldfields, and is a must- read for students of colonial history.
Today the old Salamaua cemetery, or what remains of it, is well tended to by the local villagers.
The graves are mute testimony to the days when European man, running a high gold fever, was claimed by a fever of a different kind.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Unforgettable Salamaua
Salamaua, Morobe Province, played a pivotal role in the history of Papua New Guinea.
World-famous Salamaua Point, scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of World War 11 in PNG, on September 11 in 2003 marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture from the Japanese.
This jewel in Morobe’s crown, an icon that time has forgotten, is now more or less a forgotten ghost town.
In 2002, Kokoda celebrated its 60th anniversary with commemorative ceremonies in both PNG and Australia, which rekindled interest in its history.
What many do not know is that the Japanese launched their attack on Port Moresby over the Kokoda Trail from Salamaua, and when the attack failed, turned the port into a major supply base.
It was eventually attacked by Australian troops flown into Wau.
Japanese reinforcements failed to arrive and the town was taken in September 1943 in what has become known as the Battle of Salamaua.
Salamaua – the “town of gold”- has never regained its shine.
The Australians recaptured Salamaua in September 1943 but by then, it was too late, as places like Lae and Port Moresby had taken its glory.
Veterans in both Australia and PNG called for similar recognition to be accorded the battlefield of Salamaua as it marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture in September 2003.
It was the main port and airstrip for the goldfields of Wau and Bulolo during the gold rush days of the 1920s and 1930s.
It was headquarters for the all-powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd, had its own shops liked the famed Burns Philp, New South Wales and Commonwealth banks, named streets, hospital, bakery, theatre, bars where characters like the legendary Errol Flynn once strutted his stuff before becoming a Hollywood legend, and was a famed port of call for swashbuckling gold miners from all over the world.
It was here that expeditions into the undiscovered hinterland – including the famous exploration into the Highlands of New Guinea by the Leahy brothers and Jim Taylor – were launched.
Rivalry between Salamaua and Lae for the capital of New Guinea following the demise of Rabaul in the 1937 volcanic eruption was legendary.
But for all that Salamaua has contributed to the development of PNG and the world – through the millions in gold that was taken out - it is one of the greatest ironies that it is now a forgotten backwater, left to the mercy of the vast Huon Gulf which threatens to swamp its narrow isthmus any moment, despite repeated calls for a seawall to be built.
Development is limited despite efforts by the Morobe Provincial Government, there is little economic activity, and the price of outboard motor zoom has skyrocketed recently contributing to massive inflation.
The people, to this day, are resentful at the mining companies that made millions from their land and left them with nothing, and at both being made victims of a war that was not their doing.
Never mind that these days its beautiful bathing beach and coral reefs are havens for people from Lae – mainly the expatriate community - who have built weekend houses on the peninsula to get away from the traffic, phones, and bustle of the city.
The discovery of gold at Edie Creek above Wau in 1926 sparked off a gold rush of massive proportions, which led to the development of Salamaua as capital of the Morobe District.
The rigorous walk between Salamaua and Wau took up to a week, the flamboyant Errol Flynn writing of how the gold fields had to be approached from Salamaua by 10 days’ march through leech-infested jungle, in constant fear of ambush, and at night wondering “whether that crawly sound you heard a few feet away might be a snake, a cassowary or maybe only a wild board razorback…I have seen Central Africa, but it was never anything like the jungle of New Guinea”.
Lae was but a “company” town and was very much a satellite of Salamaua.
Salamaua sprang up before Lae and because it was the administrative and commercial centre of the District and also the port for the goldfields, it continued to dominate its sister across the Huon Gulf right up till WW11.
Shipping interests refused Lae as a port, probably because they had already established themselves at Salamaua before Lae developed.
The powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd – following a dispute with Guinea Airways – purchased its own plane and established its own aerodrome on Salamaua in 1929.
The government also resisted pressure to have Lae built up as the chief town of Morobe District, and at times, even affirmed its preference for Salamaua by stubbornly refusing to use either the aviation or shopping facilities at Lae.
Following the disastrous volcanic eruption in Rabaul in May 1937, a protracted and bitter debate over the merits of Salamaua and Lae ensued, when Australian minister for territories W.M. Hughes – who in his days as prime minister had been responsible for New Guinea coming under Australia’s mandate - chose Salamaua as both port and capital.
Hughes was accused of being bribed by Burns Philp and New Guinea Goldfields, the Australian government was accused of apathy and irresponsibility in its attitude towards New Guinea affairs, and the Pacific Islands Monthly and Rabaul Times led the anti-Hughes and anti-government debate.
It became a matter of great controversy that that Canberra press corps, which had been faithfully reporting new developments for six months, in December 1938 produced a satirical newspaper Hangover containing a parody of the controversy under the title “Lae off Salamaua: Capital crisis causes crater cabinet confusion”.
The article reads: “A new crisis has arisen overshadowing the budget, the coal strike, and Hitler. Alarming tensions were created when the Prime Minister received the following urgent message from Mr Hairbrain, M.H.R: ‘Lae off Salamaua, Joe! Natives hostile!’Mr Hairbrain’s message has created the profoundest sensations in Federal political circles. It is feared that the natives may try to make capital out of it. The situation is fraught with grave possibilities and impossibilities. Mr Lyons summoned cabinet immediately. ‘Wow!’ said the Prime Minister as he staggered from the cabinet room after the tenth day with the problem apparently nearer no solution. ‘That’s it!’ yelled a chorus of weary ministers. ‘Why the hell didn’t we think of Wau before?’ Mr Hughes collapsed. The crisis had passed.”
Rabaul, however, continued to remain as capital of New Guinea until 1941 when renewed volcanic forced the transfer to Lae in October 1941 right up to the Japanese invasion in January 1942.
War, however, had begun in the Pacific with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour on December 7, 1941.
Rabaul was bombed on January 4, 1942 followed by Lae, Salamaua, and Bulolo on January 21.
This was the beginning of the end of Salamaua’s ephemeral reign as the “town of gold”.
To go into detail about the long and bitter fighting that took place between Salamaua and Wau in 1942 and 1943 would fill pages.
Many hundreds of Japanese, Australians, as well as Papua New Guineans were killed in the two years of fighting.
To this day battlefields like Salamaua Point itself, Mubo along the famed Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, The Pimple, Green Hill, Observation Hill, Bobdubi Ridge, Komiatum Ridge, Nassau Bay, Tambu, Mount Tambu, Ambush Knoll, Orodubi, Salus Lake, Lababia, Davidson Ridge, and Roosevelt’s Ridge bear the scars of those bloody battles.
Briefly, the Japanese landed at Lae and Salamaua on March 8, 1942.
The New Guinea Volunteer Rifles and survivors of the 2/22nd Battalion from Rabaul destroyed all military supplies and withdraw into the hinterland where they observed the Japanese build-up.
In May, Kanga Force, which included the 2/5th Independent Company, was airlifted into Wau to operate as a guerrilla force against the Japanese in the Markham Valley.
On June 29, Kanga Force raided Salamaua inflicting heavy casualties and capturing the first Japanese equipment and documents taken by the Australian Army.
On August 31, a strong Japanese group arrived at Mubo but with the Japanese on the offensive along the Kokoda Trail and at Milne Bay, reinforcements were not available for Kanga Force until October when 2/7th Independent Company joined.
The 3rd Australian Division slowly fought its way towards Salamaua in a series of exacting and grim battles from April to August 1943 in a campaign largely overshadowed by the Papuan campaign the preceded it and by the capture of Lae that followed.
The Salamaua campaign was designed to screen the preparations for the Lae offensive and to act as a magnet to draw reinforcements from Lae to Salamaua.
The capture of Lae, the centre of the Japanese defensive line in New Guinea, was the allied target after the defeat of the Japanese in Papua.
General Sir Thomas Blamey, the Australian Commander-in-Chief, directed that Salamaua be starved out after Lae was captured.
On August 26, 1943, Major General Savige and his 3rd Division headquarters were relieved by General Milford and his 5th Division headquarters.
The 5th Division conducted the final operations around Salamaua, which was occupied by the 42nd Battalion on September 11, a week after the Lae offensive opened and five days before the 7th and 9th Australian Divisions entered Lae.
The legendary Australian cinematographer, Damien Parer, captured some of these dramatic moments for posterity in his famous works “Assault On Salamaua” and “Frontline At Salamaua”. Following Kokoda’s 60th anniversary, many Australian veterans of Salamaua also want their battlefield to be accorded the same recognition, as it too had its 60th anniversary in September 2003.
The same call has been echoed by old men in the Salamaua villagers – many of whom have died without being justly compensated – who served as carriers for both Australians and Japanese during WW11.
Maybe then, at least for a day, Salamaua will rise again.
World-famous Salamaua Point, scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of World War 11 in PNG, on September 11 in 2003 marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture from the Japanese.
This jewel in Morobe’s crown, an icon that time has forgotten, is now more or less a forgotten ghost town.
In 2002, Kokoda celebrated its 60th anniversary with commemorative ceremonies in both PNG and Australia, which rekindled interest in its history.
What many do not know is that the Japanese launched their attack on Port Moresby over the Kokoda Trail from Salamaua, and when the attack failed, turned the port into a major supply base.
It was eventually attacked by Australian troops flown into Wau.
Japanese reinforcements failed to arrive and the town was taken in September 1943 in what has become known as the Battle of Salamaua.
Salamaua – the “town of gold”- has never regained its shine.
The Australians recaptured Salamaua in September 1943 but by then, it was too late, as places like Lae and Port Moresby had taken its glory.
Veterans in both Australia and PNG called for similar recognition to be accorded the battlefield of Salamaua as it marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture in September 2003.
It was the main port and airstrip for the goldfields of Wau and Bulolo during the gold rush days of the 1920s and 1930s.
It was headquarters for the all-powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd, had its own shops liked the famed Burns Philp, New South Wales and Commonwealth banks, named streets, hospital, bakery, theatre, bars where characters like the legendary Errol Flynn once strutted his stuff before becoming a Hollywood legend, and was a famed port of call for swashbuckling gold miners from all over the world.
It was here that expeditions into the undiscovered hinterland – including the famous exploration into the Highlands of New Guinea by the Leahy brothers and Jim Taylor – were launched.
Rivalry between Salamaua and Lae for the capital of New Guinea following the demise of Rabaul in the 1937 volcanic eruption was legendary.
But for all that Salamaua has contributed to the development of PNG and the world – through the millions in gold that was taken out - it is one of the greatest ironies that it is now a forgotten backwater, left to the mercy of the vast Huon Gulf which threatens to swamp its narrow isthmus any moment, despite repeated calls for a seawall to be built.
Development is limited despite efforts by the Morobe Provincial Government, there is little economic activity, and the price of outboard motor zoom has skyrocketed recently contributing to massive inflation.
The people, to this day, are resentful at the mining companies that made millions from their land and left them with nothing, and at both being made victims of a war that was not their doing.
Never mind that these days its beautiful bathing beach and coral reefs are havens for people from Lae – mainly the expatriate community - who have built weekend houses on the peninsula to get away from the traffic, phones, and bustle of the city.
The discovery of gold at Edie Creek above Wau in 1926 sparked off a gold rush of massive proportions, which led to the development of Salamaua as capital of the Morobe District.
The rigorous walk between Salamaua and Wau took up to a week, the flamboyant Errol Flynn writing of how the gold fields had to be approached from Salamaua by 10 days’ march through leech-infested jungle, in constant fear of ambush, and at night wondering “whether that crawly sound you heard a few feet away might be a snake, a cassowary or maybe only a wild board razorback…I have seen Central Africa, but it was never anything like the jungle of New Guinea”.
Lae was but a “company” town and was very much a satellite of Salamaua.
Salamaua sprang up before Lae and because it was the administrative and commercial centre of the District and also the port for the goldfields, it continued to dominate its sister across the Huon Gulf right up till WW11.
Shipping interests refused Lae as a port, probably because they had already established themselves at Salamaua before Lae developed.
The powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd – following a dispute with Guinea Airways – purchased its own plane and established its own aerodrome on Salamaua in 1929.
The government also resisted pressure to have Lae built up as the chief town of Morobe District, and at times, even affirmed its preference for Salamaua by stubbornly refusing to use either the aviation or shopping facilities at Lae.
Following the disastrous volcanic eruption in Rabaul in May 1937, a protracted and bitter debate over the merits of Salamaua and Lae ensued, when Australian minister for territories W.M. Hughes – who in his days as prime minister had been responsible for New Guinea coming under Australia’s mandate - chose Salamaua as both port and capital.
Hughes was accused of being bribed by Burns Philp and New Guinea Goldfields, the Australian government was accused of apathy and irresponsibility in its attitude towards New Guinea affairs, and the Pacific Islands Monthly and Rabaul Times led the anti-Hughes and anti-government debate.
It became a matter of great controversy that that Canberra press corps, which had been faithfully reporting new developments for six months, in December 1938 produced a satirical newspaper Hangover containing a parody of the controversy under the title “Lae off Salamaua: Capital crisis causes crater cabinet confusion”.
The article reads: “A new crisis has arisen overshadowing the budget, the coal strike, and Hitler. Alarming tensions were created when the Prime Minister received the following urgent message from Mr Hairbrain, M.H.R: ‘Lae off Salamaua, Joe! Natives hostile!’Mr Hairbrain’s message has created the profoundest sensations in Federal political circles. It is feared that the natives may try to make capital out of it. The situation is fraught with grave possibilities and impossibilities. Mr Lyons summoned cabinet immediately. ‘Wow!’ said the Prime Minister as he staggered from the cabinet room after the tenth day with the problem apparently nearer no solution. ‘That’s it!’ yelled a chorus of weary ministers. ‘Why the hell didn’t we think of Wau before?’ Mr Hughes collapsed. The crisis had passed.”
Rabaul, however, continued to remain as capital of New Guinea until 1941 when renewed volcanic forced the transfer to Lae in October 1941 right up to the Japanese invasion in January 1942.
War, however, had begun in the Pacific with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour on December 7, 1941.
Rabaul was bombed on January 4, 1942 followed by Lae, Salamaua, and Bulolo on January 21.
This was the beginning of the end of Salamaua’s ephemeral reign as the “town of gold”.
To go into detail about the long and bitter fighting that took place between Salamaua and Wau in 1942 and 1943 would fill pages.
Many hundreds of Japanese, Australians, as well as Papua New Guineans were killed in the two years of fighting.
To this day battlefields like Salamaua Point itself, Mubo along the famed Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, The Pimple, Green Hill, Observation Hill, Bobdubi Ridge, Komiatum Ridge, Nassau Bay, Tambu, Mount Tambu, Ambush Knoll, Orodubi, Salus Lake, Lababia, Davidson Ridge, and Roosevelt’s Ridge bear the scars of those bloody battles.
Briefly, the Japanese landed at Lae and Salamaua on March 8, 1942.
The New Guinea Volunteer Rifles and survivors of the 2/22nd Battalion from Rabaul destroyed all military supplies and withdraw into the hinterland where they observed the Japanese build-up.
In May, Kanga Force, which included the 2/5th Independent Company, was airlifted into Wau to operate as a guerrilla force against the Japanese in the Markham Valley.
On June 29, Kanga Force raided Salamaua inflicting heavy casualties and capturing the first Japanese equipment and documents taken by the Australian Army.
On August 31, a strong Japanese group arrived at Mubo but with the Japanese on the offensive along the Kokoda Trail and at Milne Bay, reinforcements were not available for Kanga Force until October when 2/7th Independent Company joined.
The 3rd Australian Division slowly fought its way towards Salamaua in a series of exacting and grim battles from April to August 1943 in a campaign largely overshadowed by the Papuan campaign the preceded it and by the capture of Lae that followed.
The Salamaua campaign was designed to screen the preparations for the Lae offensive and to act as a magnet to draw reinforcements from Lae to Salamaua.
The capture of Lae, the centre of the Japanese defensive line in New Guinea, was the allied target after the defeat of the Japanese in Papua.
General Sir Thomas Blamey, the Australian Commander-in-Chief, directed that Salamaua be starved out after Lae was captured.
On August 26, 1943, Major General Savige and his 3rd Division headquarters were relieved by General Milford and his 5th Division headquarters.
The 5th Division conducted the final operations around Salamaua, which was occupied by the 42nd Battalion on September 11, a week after the Lae offensive opened and five days before the 7th and 9th Australian Divisions entered Lae.
The legendary Australian cinematographer, Damien Parer, captured some of these dramatic moments for posterity in his famous works “Assault On Salamaua” and “Frontline At Salamaua”. Following Kokoda’s 60th anniversary, many Australian veterans of Salamaua also want their battlefield to be accorded the same recognition, as it too had its 60th anniversary in September 2003.
The same call has been echoed by old men in the Salamaua villagers – many of whom have died without being justly compensated – who served as carriers for both Australians and Japanese during WW11.
Maybe then, at least for a day, Salamaua will rise again.
Black Cat Trail war relics
The thick jungle between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe Province, is littered with relics from World War 11.
Students of history as well as WW11 enthusiasts would not be disappointed at what is there to be seen.
Live bombs from 1942 and 1943 are prolific along the old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau.
Villagers told me of huge unexploded bombs in the jungles and rivers that they avoid like the plague.
Australian and PNG bomb experts have yet to defuse these bombs.
In 1997, during the El Nino, bushfires sparked off by dry bushes detonated WW11 bombs as terrified villagers fled.
Huge bomb craters from WW11 testify to the ferocity of the battles along the trail between Salamaua and Wau.
At Skin Diwai – a major Australian base during WW11 - locals showed me unexploded bombs, live ammunition, Australian army boots, as well as the bush covered wreck of a DC3 supply plane.
All along the Black Cat Trail, you can see the helmets of Australian, US, and Japanese forces that fought here in WW11.
Those dark days of WW11 are well and truly over but their legacy lives on in the jungles between Salamaua and Wau.
The jungle also conceals many secrets of the gold mining days of the 1920s and 1930s.
Local lore has it that somewhere between Wau and Salamaua lays the wreck of a gold-laden plane.
Whether true or not, the fact is that locals avoid the thick jungle, saying that it is masalai (spirit) place where dark forces await unwary human beings.
Students of history as well as WW11 enthusiasts would not be disappointed at what is there to be seen.
Live bombs from 1942 and 1943 are prolific along the old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau.
Villagers told me of huge unexploded bombs in the jungles and rivers that they avoid like the plague.
Australian and PNG bomb experts have yet to defuse these bombs.
In 1997, during the El Nino, bushfires sparked off by dry bushes detonated WW11 bombs as terrified villagers fled.
Huge bomb craters from WW11 testify to the ferocity of the battles along the trail between Salamaua and Wau.
At Skin Diwai – a major Australian base during WW11 - locals showed me unexploded bombs, live ammunition, Australian army boots, as well as the bush covered wreck of a DC3 supply plane.
All along the Black Cat Trail, you can see the helmets of Australian, US, and Japanese forces that fought here in WW11.
Those dark days of WW11 are well and truly over but their legacy lives on in the jungles between Salamaua and Wau.
The jungle also conceals many secrets of the gold mining days of the 1920s and 1930s.
Local lore has it that somewhere between Wau and Salamaua lays the wreck of a gold-laden plane.
Whether true or not, the fact is that locals avoid the thick jungle, saying that it is masalai (spirit) place where dark forces await unwary human beings.
Memories of the Black Cat Trail
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Exactly five years ago, in July 23, I walked the infamous Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau in the Morobe province. These are my memories:
The old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe Province, makes the Kokoda Trail seem like a Sunday arvo stroll in the park.
This is because it is not an established trail like Kokoda, on which hundreds of trekkers regularly tread, but a forgotten World War 11 course that passes through some of the toughest and most-hazardous terrain in the world.
Leech and snake -infested jungle, moss-covered rocks and fallen tree stumps, precarious cliff crossings, and potentially-dangerous river crossings make the Black Cat arguably one of the toughest tracks in PNG and the world.
Should there be an accident, unlike Kokoda, there are no radios to call for a helicopter to come and evacuate you.
It is recommended only for the very-fit and experienced trekker.
Some Australian soldiers have described the Black Cat as the hardest walk they’d ever done.
The Lonely Planet guidebook quotes a local expat as saying the Black cat is “suitable only for masochists and Israeli paratroopers”.
After walking from Salamaua from Wau over five days from July 22 tt 26 in 2003, I can only say know that I do not know how I survived.
The idea of walking the Black Cat Trail came to me after my painful struggle over the Kokoda Trail in June 2003.
The Black Cat has always fascinated me, since I take an avid interest in WW11 history, and that my mother is from the Salamaua area.
In September 2003, Salamaua marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture from the Japanese in 1942.
“So why not”, I proposed to Morobe Tourism Bureau project officer Heni Dembis, “we walk the Black Cat Trail on the week of Remembrance Day?”
On Monday, July 21, 2003, we found ourselves heading down the Huon Gulf on board a 40 horsepower dinghy from Lae to Salamaua.
Pouring rain eventually gave way to sunshine as we dropped off some students at Salamaua High School on top of Kela village, before crossing the bay to Laugui village at Salamaua Point.
We spent a relaxing afternoon visiting the old graves around Salamaua, which date back to the gold mining days, as well as Japanese tunnels and anti -aircraft guns on the hill overlooking the isthmus.
After that, we went to the new-look Salamaua Haus Kibung, which after many years of inattention is now getting back its glory.
We checked into one of the chalets, which at K20 per person a night is quite a good deal, seeing that it comes complete with electricity, gas cooking facilities, and bathroom and toilet facilities.
After dinner, we chatted well into the night with caretaker Mathew Gomuna, a cheerful fellow from Garaina and some of the locals.
Mathew also lined us up with Lionel Aigilo, a young guy who would take us from Salamaua to Wau.
Come Tuesday morning, heavy rain started pouring, and we had to wait until 10am before we left Laugui with Lionel and his hardy uncle Solomon Jawing.
We followed the coconut avenues past the colorful cemetery, walked further inland through thick mud, where we crossed the flooded Francisco River.
I found the going tough against the swift current; however, Lionel and Solomon were on standby in case I was swept away.
We walked through gardens, swamps, and creeks before engorging on a classic lunch of Lae Biscuit and Sita tinned meat, washed down with spring water, on the banks of the flooded Francisco.
We continued upstream to Komiatum village, and at 3pm arrived at the confluence of the Francisco and Tambu Rivers,
This was when the hard slog started as we climbed through thick kunai up towards Mount Tambu.
Every now and then, we would come across shady bamboo, rewarded by panoramic views of the valley and sea unfolding before us.
Massive bomb craters from WW11 indicated the ferocity of the battles here in 1942.
Solomon recounted a story, which was repeated several times, of a Japanese assault of the Australian defenses in 1942.
The Japanese were charged down by a huge masalai (spirit) pig, which ravaged them and forced them to flee.
We continued up Mt Tambu, every now and then turning back to feast our eyes upon the panorama that continued to unfold, as well as the magnificent flora and fauna.
Hornbills and prized black cockatoos flew across the afternoon sky – a welcome sight for our sore bodies.
Wild pigs, cassowaries, cuscus, tree kangaroos, and other wildlife are profuse in these mountains of Salamaua.
We reached the top of Mt Tambu at about 6pm and continued on to a mountain spring, in which we all washed and quenched our thirst, before descending to the hamlet of “Niukamp” (New Camp).
We had dinner of bananas, rice, tinned meat, and hot cups of coffee before resting our tired bodies.
Wednesday July 23, 2003 – Remembrance Day – is a day that I’ll always treasure as I firmly believe our small group honored the 60th Anniversary of Salamaua in its true spirit by trekking the Black Cat Trail.
Our thoughts were with the many soldiers and carriers of WW11 who lost their lives on this treacherous path in 1942 and 1943.
We were up early that morning, while the rest of PNG was probably still in bed, and descended down Guisep Creek, and made numerous creek and river crossings before arriving at Mubo.
From Mubo, we precariously edged our way past steep cliff faces as the flooded Bitoi River raged below, to an easier crossing further upstream.
We passed through a network of gardens, pebbly fords and steep jungle scrambles past landslides and difficult sections of the river before climbing up the steep ascent to the fortress- like village of Gaudagasul.
The villagers – who only have visitors once in a blue moon - welcomed us with open arms and literally stuffed us with food.
There were dishes of bananas, kaukau, taro, tapioca, and choko to go down with our rice and Diana tuna.
After that, we talked well into the night, encouraging the locals to start building village-style guesthouses for trekkers who would pass through their village.
The response was very encouraging.
We pressed on the next morning through thick rainforest as the track steepened and deteriorated markedly.
My bulk and weight of the backpack on my shoulders caused the track to give way in many places, and on more than one occasion, I had to grapple on to salat – stinging nettles – for dear life.
We continued like this, scrambling down to creeks, back up again, over and around slippery log falls, landslides, and salat.
On several occasions, we heard the calls of bird of paradise, which tantalisingly weaved their way through the forest canopy.
Wildlife was in abundance and the forest was alive with raucous calls of other unseen birds.
One time, as I was climbing up a creek, I almost put my hand on to a brown snake which Lionel and Solomon later told me was poisonous.
Talk about a close call!
Suddenly, Lionel gave out a yell, thinking that a snake had bitten him.
After close inspection, no, but it was a leech.
Thus marked our entry into leech country.
The insidious creatures crawled on the forest floor like tiny dragons, and once they sniffed out blood, clung on to our legs and sucked until fattened.
Shoes and socks were no hindrance as they worked their way in and continued in the same vein as miniature vampires.
Lionel and Solomon, who walked barefoot, had their feet absolutely devoured by the slimy leeches.
Every now and then, we had to stop, and scrape the leeches off with knives.
The leeches, however, were a blessing in disguise as they forced us to pick up the pace despite the heavy backpacks on our shoulders.
Many a time, I felt like opening my backpack and throwing all my wet clothes into the bush, as they were the ones really adding on extra kilos.
We persevered, and after eight hours of torture, came to a kunai clearing which marked our entrance to Skin Diwai.
We could push our weary bodies no more, and literally collapsed in a heap at Skin Diwai.
In June 2003, three British backpackers dared to try the Black Cat, and two of them ended up very sick at Skin Diwai from either malaria, pneumonia, exhaustion, or a combination of all three.
The third Pommie continued on to Biaweng village and eventually, Wau, where he managed to get a helicopter to come and ferry out his two sick buddies.
Skin Diwai is a detour from the main Black Cat Trail – which continues on to Bitoi and eventually Wandumi village outside Wau - and is now the preferred choice of locals.
Skin Diwai was the site of a major Australian base during WW11 and is littered with live bombs, ammunition, other war junk including boots, and even the wreckage.
Being one of the high points between Salamaua and Wau, Skin Diwai is freezing cold, and we slept as close to the fire as possible that night.
Keen to hit Wau the next day, come rain or sun, we were up at the crack of dawn and started walking at 6am on Friday, July 25.
Like the previous day, this was a walk through leech-infested country, slippery logs and rocks, as well as numerous other obstacles straight out of a commando-training manual.
We pushed our bodies to the max and at 1pm, after seven hours of hellish jungle, we descended into kunai country and were rewarded with our first glimpse of Wau.
“Wau! Wow!” went through my mind as I glimpsed down on this famous gold mining township.
We went down the roller coaster path to Biaweng village over the next two hours, sliding all the way down a graded track from the mining and WW11 days.
Despite our sheer exhaustion, we all felt a sense of achievement, and celebrated with cans of Coca -Cola and from the village trade store.
An early night, and at 5am on Saturday, July 26, we started walking to Wau which we finally arrived in at 8am.
From Wau, a PMV ride to Bulolo, and another to Lae where Lionel, Solomon, Heni, and myself celebrated with a barbeque and a couple of cold beers before I departed at the crack of dawn the next day for my flight back to Port Moresby.
This is because it is not an established trail like Kokoda, on which hundreds of trekkers regularly tread, but a forgotten World War 11 course that passes through some of the toughest and most-hazardous terrain in the world.
Leech and snake -infested jungle, moss-covered rocks and fallen tree stumps, precarious cliff crossings, and potentially-dangerous river crossings make the Black Cat arguably one of the toughest tracks in PNG and the world.
Should there be an accident, unlike Kokoda, there are no radios to call for a helicopter to come and evacuate you.
It is recommended only for the very-fit and experienced trekker.
Some Australian soldiers have described the Black Cat as the hardest walk they’d ever done.
The Lonely Planet guidebook quotes a local expat as saying the Black cat is “suitable only for masochists and Israeli paratroopers”.
After walking from Salamaua from Wau over five days from July 22 tt 26 in 2003, I can only say know that I do not know how I survived.
The idea of walking the Black Cat Trail came to me after my painful struggle over the Kokoda Trail in June 2003.
The Black Cat has always fascinated me, since I take an avid interest in WW11 history, and that my mother is from the Salamaua area.
In September 2003, Salamaua marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture from the Japanese in 1942.
“So why not”, I proposed to Morobe Tourism Bureau project officer Heni Dembis, “we walk the Black Cat Trail on the week of Remembrance Day?”
On Monday, July 21, 2003, we found ourselves heading down the Huon Gulf on board a 40 horsepower dinghy from Lae to Salamaua.
Pouring rain eventually gave way to sunshine as we dropped off some students at Salamaua High School on top of Kela village, before crossing the bay to Laugui village at Salamaua Point.
We spent a relaxing afternoon visiting the old graves around Salamaua, which date back to the gold mining days, as well as Japanese tunnels and anti -aircraft guns on the hill overlooking the isthmus.
After that, we went to the new-look Salamaua Haus Kibung, which after many years of inattention is now getting back its glory.
We checked into one of the chalets, which at K20 per person a night is quite a good deal, seeing that it comes complete with electricity, gas cooking facilities, and bathroom and toilet facilities.
After dinner, we chatted well into the night with caretaker Mathew Gomuna, a cheerful fellow from Garaina and some of the locals.
Mathew also lined us up with Lionel Aigilo, a young guy who would take us from Salamaua to Wau.
Come Tuesday morning, heavy rain started pouring, and we had to wait until 10am before we left Laugui with Lionel and his hardy uncle Solomon Jawing.
We followed the coconut avenues past the colorful cemetery, walked further inland through thick mud, where we crossed the flooded Francisco River.
I found the going tough against the swift current; however, Lionel and Solomon were on standby in case I was swept away.
We walked through gardens, swamps, and creeks before engorging on a classic lunch of Lae Biscuit and Sita tinned meat, washed down with spring water, on the banks of the flooded Francisco.
We continued upstream to Komiatum village, and at 3pm arrived at the confluence of the Francisco and Tambu Rivers,
This was when the hard slog started as we climbed through thick kunai up towards Mount Tambu.
Every now and then, we would come across shady bamboo, rewarded by panoramic views of the valley and sea unfolding before us.
Massive bomb craters from WW11 indicated the ferocity of the battles here in 1942.
Solomon recounted a story, which was repeated several times, of a Japanese assault of the Australian defenses in 1942.
The Japanese were charged down by a huge masalai (spirit) pig, which ravaged them and forced them to flee.
We continued up Mt Tambu, every now and then turning back to feast our eyes upon the panorama that continued to unfold, as well as the magnificent flora and fauna.
Hornbills and prized black cockatoos flew across the afternoon sky – a welcome sight for our sore bodies.
Wild pigs, cassowaries, cuscus, tree kangaroos, and other wildlife are profuse in these mountains of Salamaua.
We reached the top of Mt Tambu at about 6pm and continued on to a mountain spring, in which we all washed and quenched our thirst, before descending to the hamlet of “Niukamp” (New Camp).
We had dinner of bananas, rice, tinned meat, and hot cups of coffee before resting our tired bodies.
Wednesday July 23, 2003 – Remembrance Day – is a day that I’ll always treasure as I firmly believe our small group honored the 60th Anniversary of Salamaua in its true spirit by trekking the Black Cat Trail.
Our thoughts were with the many soldiers and carriers of WW11 who lost their lives on this treacherous path in 1942 and 1943.
We were up early that morning, while the rest of PNG was probably still in bed, and descended down Guisep Creek, and made numerous creek and river crossings before arriving at Mubo.
From Mubo, we precariously edged our way past steep cliff faces as the flooded Bitoi River raged below, to an easier crossing further upstream.
We passed through a network of gardens, pebbly fords and steep jungle scrambles past landslides and difficult sections of the river before climbing up the steep ascent to the fortress- like village of Gaudagasul.
The villagers – who only have visitors once in a blue moon - welcomed us with open arms and literally stuffed us with food.
There were dishes of bananas, kaukau, taro, tapioca, and choko to go down with our rice and Diana tuna.
After that, we talked well into the night, encouraging the locals to start building village-style guesthouses for trekkers who would pass through their village.
The response was very encouraging.
We pressed on the next morning through thick rainforest as the track steepened and deteriorated markedly.
My bulk and weight of the backpack on my shoulders caused the track to give way in many places, and on more than one occasion, I had to grapple on to salat – stinging nettles – for dear life.
We continued like this, scrambling down to creeks, back up again, over and around slippery log falls, landslides, and salat.
On several occasions, we heard the calls of bird of paradise, which tantalisingly weaved their way through the forest canopy.
Wildlife was in abundance and the forest was alive with raucous calls of other unseen birds.
One time, as I was climbing up a creek, I almost put my hand on to a brown snake which Lionel and Solomon later told me was poisonous.
Talk about a close call!
Suddenly, Lionel gave out a yell, thinking that a snake had bitten him.
After close inspection, no, but it was a leech.
Thus marked our entry into leech country.
The insidious creatures crawled on the forest floor like tiny dragons, and once they sniffed out blood, clung on to our legs and sucked until fattened.
Shoes and socks were no hindrance as they worked their way in and continued in the same vein as miniature vampires.
Lionel and Solomon, who walked barefoot, had their feet absolutely devoured by the slimy leeches.
Every now and then, we had to stop, and scrape the leeches off with knives.
The leeches, however, were a blessing in disguise as they forced us to pick up the pace despite the heavy backpacks on our shoulders.
Many a time, I felt like opening my backpack and throwing all my wet clothes into the bush, as they were the ones really adding on extra kilos.
We persevered, and after eight hours of torture, came to a kunai clearing which marked our entrance to Skin Diwai.
We could push our weary bodies no more, and literally collapsed in a heap at Skin Diwai.
In June 2003, three British backpackers dared to try the Black Cat, and two of them ended up very sick at Skin Diwai from either malaria, pneumonia, exhaustion, or a combination of all three.
The third Pommie continued on to Biaweng village and eventually, Wau, where he managed to get a helicopter to come and ferry out his two sick buddies.
Skin Diwai is a detour from the main Black Cat Trail – which continues on to Bitoi and eventually Wandumi village outside Wau - and is now the preferred choice of locals.
Skin Diwai was the site of a major Australian base during WW11 and is littered with live bombs, ammunition, other war junk including boots, and even the wreckage.
Being one of the high points between Salamaua and Wau, Skin Diwai is freezing cold, and we slept as close to the fire as possible that night.
Keen to hit Wau the next day, come rain or sun, we were up at the crack of dawn and started walking at 6am on Friday, July 25.
Like the previous day, this was a walk through leech-infested country, slippery logs and rocks, as well as numerous other obstacles straight out of a commando-training manual.
We pushed our bodies to the max and at 1pm, after seven hours of hellish jungle, we descended into kunai country and were rewarded with our first glimpse of Wau.
“Wau! Wow!” went through my mind as I glimpsed down on this famous gold mining township.
We went down the roller coaster path to Biaweng village over the next two hours, sliding all the way down a graded track from the mining and WW11 days.
Despite our sheer exhaustion, we all felt a sense of achievement, and celebrated with cans of Coca -Cola and from the village trade store.
An early night, and at 5am on Saturday, July 26, we started walking to Wau which we finally arrived in at 8am.
From Wau, a PMV ride to Bulolo, and another to Lae where Lionel, Solomon, Heni, and myself celebrated with a barbeque and a couple of cold beers before I departed at the crack of dawn the next day for my flight back to Port Moresby.
Preserving Port Moresby’s WW11 history
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Some time last year, a friend of mine asked me to be a tour guide for a retired American WW11 veteran, who is also a bit of a history buff.
The old American wanted to be shown all the prominent WW11 sites around Port Moresby, war relics, Bomana war cemetery, as well as the start of the Kokoda Trail at Owers’ Corner.
To prepare for the job, I had to be well-versed in the WW11 history of Port Moresby, so I brought down all my old books down from the shelves, made notes, as well as searched the Internet.
The big day came, and I showed the US veteran such places as Burns Peak, Paga Hill and the wreck of the Macdhui near Tatana Island before we hit the highway bound for Bomana war cemetery and Owers’ Corner.
We made a brief stop at what used to be the site of Schwimmer Drome at Laloki, on the banks of the great river of the same name, where we inspected all the WW11 relics at an impromptu war museum run by Gulf man Thomas Richard Auhava.
By 1944, Port Moresby had six airfields, one of which was Schwimmer.
Jackson was the largest of these, and was named after Australian ace pilot John Jackson, leader of RAAF Squadron 75, who was killed in a dogfight against Japanese planes over Port Moresby on April 28, 1942.
The wartime airfields were Kila Drome (3-Mile) airfield for fighters and bombers; Ward Drome (5-Mile) airfield for heavy bombers and transport planes; Jackson (7-Mile) main airfield still in use today; Berry Drome (12-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base near Bomana; Schwimmer (14-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base; Durand (17-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base; Rogers (Rarona, 30-Mile) fighter and medium bomber and Fishermen’s (Daugo) emergency landing strip on offshore island.
Schwimmer Drome, according to various airmen who served from it, was the “eye and mind” of the 1942-1945 Pacific War, because it was from here that aerial surveillance missions of Japanese positions were made.
The US airmen forming the 8th Photo Squadron commanded by First Lieutenant Karl Polifika, a Russian, first landed at Schwimmer on May 2, 1942, and flew from Schwimmer until July 27, 1944, when the squadron moved to Durand Strip.
There are also other squadrons from the US Air Force like 435th Bomb Squadron, 3rd Attack Group assigned to do fragmentation bombing, 43rd Bomb Group assigned to do long-range bombing missions, 39th Fighter Group and 9th Fighter Group.
Mr Auhava has, over the years, been collecting the numerous war relics in and around the site of the old Schwimmer Drome in a labour-of-love.
He is fighting a lonely battle against scrap metal hunters and dealers, who without any scruples, do anything to get an extra buck.
He has brought a proposal to the National Museum and Art Gallery in Waigani, Port Moresby, for funding to set up a proper museum.
Mr Auhava has been living at Laloki for the last 20 years and knows every nook and cranny in the area.
“Over the years,” says the former PNG Defence Force soldier, “I’ve been collecting these war relics and I’ve been featured in newspapers.
“Because of this media publicity, tourists started visiting, and I’ve decided to start a proper museum.
“The proposal for the museum has been signed by the landowners already and will be handed over to the National Museum.”
The war relics include human bones, helmets, dog tags, tools, hand grenades (defused), bombshells, bullets, coins, jerry cans, 1940’s Coca-Cola bottles and assorted paraphernalia.
One of the prized possessions of the collection is the remains of the plane of Australian air ace, John Jackson, after whom Port Moresby’s famous Jackson’s International Airport is named.
Jackson crashed on the hills overlooking Laloki after a heroic dogfight against Japanese fighters.
Mr Auhava, originally from Iokea village in Gulf province, is a self-taught historian and is a walking encyclopaedia as I found out.
“History is very important,” he extols.
“This generation, unfortunately, doesn’t seem to know anything about the war.
“Historical sites like Schwimmers should be preserved for educational purposes, tourism, etc.
“These relics should be preserved and protected.
“Scrap metal vendors are getting their hands on these war relics.
“If we lose these war relics, we lose history.
“People are just taking them out and selling them to scrap metal dealers.
“I decided to bring them all to one place and take care of them.
“After that, I began to find out about the place itself, its history.
“I borrowed some WW11 books from a historian and did research.
“I realised that it (Schwimmers) was a WW11 US airbase.”
According to Mr Auhava’s proposal to the National Museum, a museum built under the name ‘Schwimmer War Museum’, would be a fitting tribute to the thousands of Americans and Australians based in Port Moresby during WW11.
It would focus on history, war surplus material protection, a site for educational excursions and a shrine for the future generations.
It would also protect war relics from being sold to unscrupulous scrap metal dealers and would promote community tourism values
“I’m submitting a proposal to the National Museum to see if they can gurantee a budget for the (Schwimmer) museum, because these relics are State property which I’ve been protecting,” Mr Auhava said.
“The government talks so much about war surplus materials, and yet, they are not putting their money where their mouth is.
“Looking after these relics is hard work, for which I’m not paid.”
The old American wanted to be shown all the prominent WW11 sites around Port Moresby, war relics, Bomana war cemetery, as well as the start of the Kokoda Trail at Owers’ Corner.
To prepare for the job, I had to be well-versed in the WW11 history of Port Moresby, so I brought down all my old books down from the shelves, made notes, as well as searched the Internet.
The big day came, and I showed the US veteran such places as Burns Peak, Paga Hill and the wreck of the Macdhui near Tatana Island before we hit the highway bound for Bomana war cemetery and Owers’ Corner.
We made a brief stop at what used to be the site of Schwimmer Drome at Laloki, on the banks of the great river of the same name, where we inspected all the WW11 relics at an impromptu war museum run by Gulf man Thomas Richard Auhava.
By 1944, Port Moresby had six airfields, one of which was Schwimmer.
Jackson was the largest of these, and was named after Australian ace pilot John Jackson, leader of RAAF Squadron 75, who was killed in a dogfight against Japanese planes over Port Moresby on April 28, 1942.
The wartime airfields were Kila Drome (3-Mile) airfield for fighters and bombers; Ward Drome (5-Mile) airfield for heavy bombers and transport planes; Jackson (7-Mile) main airfield still in use today; Berry Drome (12-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base near Bomana; Schwimmer (14-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base; Durand (17-Mile) fighter and medium bomber base; Rogers (Rarona, 30-Mile) fighter and medium bomber and Fishermen’s (Daugo) emergency landing strip on offshore island.
Schwimmer Drome, according to various airmen who served from it, was the “eye and mind” of the 1942-1945 Pacific War, because it was from here that aerial surveillance missions of Japanese positions were made.
The US airmen forming the 8th Photo Squadron commanded by First Lieutenant Karl Polifika, a Russian, first landed at Schwimmer on May 2, 1942, and flew from Schwimmer until July 27, 1944, when the squadron moved to Durand Strip.
There are also other squadrons from the US Air Force like 435th Bomb Squadron, 3rd Attack Group assigned to do fragmentation bombing, 43rd Bomb Group assigned to do long-range bombing missions, 39th Fighter Group and 9th Fighter Group.
Mr Auhava has, over the years, been collecting the numerous war relics in and around the site of the old Schwimmer Drome in a labour-of-love.
He is fighting a lonely battle against scrap metal hunters and dealers, who without any scruples, do anything to get an extra buck.
He has brought a proposal to the National Museum and Art Gallery in Waigani, Port Moresby, for funding to set up a proper museum.
Mr Auhava has been living at Laloki for the last 20 years and knows every nook and cranny in the area.
“Over the years,” says the former PNG Defence Force soldier, “I’ve been collecting these war relics and I’ve been featured in newspapers.
“Because of this media publicity, tourists started visiting, and I’ve decided to start a proper museum.
“The proposal for the museum has been signed by the landowners already and will be handed over to the National Museum.”
The war relics include human bones, helmets, dog tags, tools, hand grenades (defused), bombshells, bullets, coins, jerry cans, 1940’s Coca-Cola bottles and assorted paraphernalia.
One of the prized possessions of the collection is the remains of the plane of Australian air ace, John Jackson, after whom Port Moresby’s famous Jackson’s International Airport is named.
Jackson crashed on the hills overlooking Laloki after a heroic dogfight against Japanese fighters.
Mr Auhava, originally from Iokea village in Gulf province, is a self-taught historian and is a walking encyclopaedia as I found out.
“History is very important,” he extols.
“This generation, unfortunately, doesn’t seem to know anything about the war.
“Historical sites like Schwimmers should be preserved for educational purposes, tourism, etc.
“These relics should be preserved and protected.
“Scrap metal vendors are getting their hands on these war relics.
“If we lose these war relics, we lose history.
“People are just taking them out and selling them to scrap metal dealers.
“I decided to bring them all to one place and take care of them.
“After that, I began to find out about the place itself, its history.
“I borrowed some WW11 books from a historian and did research.
“I realised that it (Schwimmers) was a WW11 US airbase.”
According to Mr Auhava’s proposal to the National Museum, a museum built under the name ‘Schwimmer War Museum’, would be a fitting tribute to the thousands of Americans and Australians based in Port Moresby during WW11.
It would focus on history, war surplus material protection, a site for educational excursions and a shrine for the future generations.
It would also protect war relics from being sold to unscrupulous scrap metal dealers and would promote community tourism values
“I’m submitting a proposal to the National Museum to see if they can gurantee a budget for the (Schwimmer) museum, because these relics are State property which I’ve been protecting,” Mr Auhava said.
“The government talks so much about war surplus materials, and yet, they are not putting their money where their mouth is.
“Looking after these relics is hard work, for which I’m not paid.”
Schwimmer Field, Port Moresby
I've just received this message from one Bruce Buchan regarding the WW11 14-Mile Drome, Schwimmer Field, and am posting the pictures that he send. Above is an article I write regarding Port Moresby's fascinating WW11 history, including Schwimmer Field.
"Dear Sir,I am interested in locating the 13th Bomb Squadron USAAF Honour Roll at 14 mile drome, Schwimmer Field, that was erected by the unit in honour to the airmen that were killed in the war.
" I have attached photos of it and the of the airstripo as it was and is today.
"Have you ever located this memorial.
"Probably made of concrete with a flag pole in the middle?
"I believe that a Mr Henry Mayer may have also searched this air field however I am unable to locate his direct email address.
"Any information would assist."
Monday, July 28, 2008
Ian Downs
Many of those legendary Australian kiaps (patrol officers) who helped develop Papua New Guinea into what it is today are sadly not be around today.
Such a man was Ian Downs, who died on Tuesday August 24, 2004, in the Gold Coast, aged 89, one of the greatest and most legendary men who walked this country.
Downs is remembered as the principal facilitator of the contruction of the Highlands Highway – linking the Highlands, Lae and Madang - as well as being a powerful influence in the founding of PNG’s great coffee industry.
He was also a member of the first House of Assembly in 1964, when he collected a record majority of over 100,000 votes – which goes to show the respect he commanded – to win the Seat of the New Guinea Highlands, a constituency in the Central Highlands region with a population of over half a million people.
In the face of an increasingly nationalist style of politics he decided not to stand for re-election in 1968, and retired from parliament to take up private interests.
“He’s the one who got the road (Highlands Highway) through,” pioneer Highlands explorer Mick Leahy once said of Downs.
“He’s a man and a half this Downs.
“A few more like him and New Guinea would really get somewhere.”
A man of intellect and a great strength of character, Downs was also a writer of note.
A former patrol officer who rose to the position of Deputy Administrator in the mid-1950s, Downs was a prominent figure in PNG in the last years of the Australian trusteeship, and possibly the only person who combined the roles of administrator, politician, planter and historian.
Ian Fairley Graham Downs was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1915 and was educated at Brighton and Geelong Grammar Schools between 1926 and 1928.
He entered the Royal Australian Naval College as a midshipman in 1929, and in 1935, joined the New Guinea administration as a cadet patrol officer.
Downs took up his appointment to New Guinea in 1936 and was one of the first patrol officers assigned to the Western Highlands.
He accompanied John Black and Jim Taylor on part of their famous Hagen-Sepik patrol in 1938-39.
From 1942 to 1945, Downs was a Coastwatcher with the Royal Australian Navy in New Guinea waters.
Downs returned to New Guinea after World War II and by 1951 was the youngest District Commissioner in the administration, based in Madang.
Between 1952-56 he held the position of District Commissioner in Goroka, before resigning to take up coffee farming and to enter politics.
Succeeding the late George Greathead as District Commissioner to the then Central Highlands, a huge “middle kingdom” of more than a million people stretching from Kassam in the East to the then Dutch New Guinea border in the West.
Disillusioned with official policy, Downs resigned from his post as District Commissioner in 1956 and in the following year gained election as Member for the New Guinea Mainland in the Legislative Council.
As a parliamentarian he was further elected in 1961 to the Administrator's Advisory Council (later known as the Administrator's Executive Council), a board set up to advise the Administrator on policy issues.
Downs resigned from the Government, where he had long been a member of the Legislative Council, to contest this country’s first national elections.
Downs was elected to the first House of Assembly in 1964 with a record majority of over 100, 000 votes.
For the next four years he held the Seat of the New Guinea Highlands, a constituency in the Central Highlands region with a population of over half a million people.
In the face of an increasingly nationalist style of politics he decided not to stand for re-election in 1968, and retired from parliament to take up private interests.
He involved himself deeply in the infant coffee industry, being instrumental in the creating of the original Coffee Marketing Board in 1964, of the coffee exporting company Coffee International Ltd, of the Highlands Farmers & Settlers Association and its trading arm Farmset Ltd, and was active in many areas of PNG’s early political and social development.
It was during these years that Downs pioneered what became known as Korfena Plantations, a group of coffee plantations centred in the Upper Asaro Valley, as well as one of the first village-based coffee marketing groups known as Upper Asaro Coffee Community Ltd.
His novel The Stolen Land was published in 1970, and he returned to Australian in 1970 after 35 years in the country.
His widely respected publication The Australian Trusteeship: Papua NewGuinea, 1945-75 was published in 1980, followed by his autobiography The Last Mountain in 1986.
Ian Downs’ contribution to the founding of modern-day Papua New Guinea was immense, and thousands who knew him well have mourned his passing.
The Bully Beef Club
Caption: Pangu Pati members outside the House of Assembly after its formation in June 1967 :Left-right are Albert Maori Kiki, Tony Voutas, Pita Lus, Barry Holloway, Paul Lapun, Cecil Abel, Michael Somare and Oala-Oala Rarua
Angeline from the University of PNG wrote in asking for more information about the famous Bully Beef Club of the pre-independence era: "I'm Angeline emailing from UPNG and just read your file on the Bully Beef Club members.I was hoping you could help my team on one of our Independence programmes.One of our Independence programmes is to have all (if possible)the PapuaNew Guineans that were heavily involved in the fight for ourIndependence come and talk to us students. We realised that we are a fortunate generation in which we can still see and hear some ofthe 'pillars ' of our nation. It will be history in the making in which these 'pillars' or 'patriots' talk to us, this young generation, the period leading up to Idependence and the Independence Day itself. It will be interesting for all of us to know the passionthat drove them to fight for our Independence and for them, these patriots, to tell us what thay want us to achieve in order for ouryoung country to prosper.I figured you would have some knowledge about ourcountries 'patriots' and where some of them might be now.We really need your help in finding out who they were and where theyare now."
Below is a re-run of the Bully Beef Club story:
The late Cecil Abel (later to become Sir) was one of the many unsung heroes of the infamous Bully Beef Club, Pangu Pati and Independence in 1975.
Sir Cecil (KBE, OBE, DipAnth), who died on June 26, 1994, aged 91, was a son of the famous pioneering London Missionary Society (LMS) missionary Charles Abel of Kwato Island, Milne Bay Province, and was one of those who “stimulated” the minds of members of the Bully Beef Club and Pangu Pati – paving the way for Independence.
He was born on February 1, 1903, on Kwato Island.
Cecil Abel did his primary schooling on Kwato; high school at North Shore Grammar School in Sydney, Australia; and university at Cambridge in England.
He returned to Kwato and was asked by Administrator Sir Hubert Murray to teach political science at the Administrative College in Port Moresby.
Little did Sir Hubert know that the idea of home rule – independence – would be contemplated right under his nose by Cecil Abel and the Bully Beef Club.
He was a member of the second House of Assembly from 1968 to 1972.
In November 1968, Cecil Abel outlined Pangu’s economic policy: “The Pangu Pati believes that we must find the true economic basis for a multiracial society. We must aim for a reasonable equality of wealth between black and white, or rather, between haves and have nots. We are concerned at doubling the national income and we are equally concerned that all groups share in this growth.”
He went on to state that a viable economy depended on five points:
Increasing overseas capital investment;
Raising exports in both primary and secondary sector;
Reducing imports and encouraging import replacement;
Greatly increased secondary industry; and
Movement to subsistence to cash economy.
In 1966, a young man named Michael Somare came to the Administrative College in Port Moresby for studies, met many like-minded men and together they began to plan the future of the country.
Albert Maori Kiki was in his second year at the college, while Joseph Nombri, Sinaka Goava, Gavera Rea, Jack Karakuru, Cromwell Burau, Bill Warren and Lukas Waka were among the students.
Ebia Olewale was president of the Students’ Representative Council at Port Moresby Teachers’ College.
“We talked politics all the time,” recalled Somare (now Sir Michael) in his autobiography Sana.
“Our teachers encouraged us to take a lively interest in current affairs and to freely discuss the political and economic future of our country.
“We had some outstanding teachers to whom all of us owe a great deal.
“David Chenoweth was the principal.
“Tos Barnett, who is now my chief legal advisor in the office of chief minister, Cecil Abel and Ted Wolfers were among those who stimulated our minds.
“I was delighted when Albert Maori Kiki was elected president of the Students’ Representative Council.
“He provided the strong leadership that was needed.”
At night, the group would meet at Kiki’s house in Hohola, and thus was formed the Bully Beef Club.
On June 13, 1967, the Pangu Pati was founded with the support of nine members of the House of Assembly: Paul Lapun, Pita Lus, Nicholas Brokham, Wegra Kenu, Paliau Moloat, Barry Holloway, Tony Voutas, Siwi Kurondo and James Meangarum.
The founding members, in addition to the nine members of the House of Assembly, were: Cecil Abel, Albert Maori Kiki, Joseph Karl Nombri, Elliot Elijah, Sinaka Goava, Ilimo Batton, Reuben Taureka, Kamona Walo, Cromwell Burau, Oala Oala-Rarua, Gerai Asiba, Ebia Olewale, Pen Anakapu, Epel Tito, Basil Koe, Gavera Rea, Vin Tobaining, Thomas Tobunbun and Michael Somare.
A little later two more members of the House of Assembly – John Guise and Edric Eupu – joined the parliamentary wing of Pangu.
“The moment the party was formed,” reflected Somare, “I knew that I would have to give up my career as a civil servant.
“The next years of my life, for better of worse, would be devoted to politics and the struggle for independence.”
Cecil Abel was one of those who laid the groundwork for the Bully Beef Club, the Pangu Pati, and lived to see Papua New Guinea gain independence from Australia on September 16, 1975.
He was awarded an OBE for services to politics and Papua New Guinea at the age of 72 and at aged 79 was awarded his Knighthood.
Below is a re-run of the Bully Beef Club story:
The late Cecil Abel (later to become Sir) was one of the many unsung heroes of the infamous Bully Beef Club, Pangu Pati and Independence in 1975.
Sir Cecil (KBE, OBE, DipAnth), who died on June 26, 1994, aged 91, was a son of the famous pioneering London Missionary Society (LMS) missionary Charles Abel of Kwato Island, Milne Bay Province, and was one of those who “stimulated” the minds of members of the Bully Beef Club and Pangu Pati – paving the way for Independence.
He was born on February 1, 1903, on Kwato Island.
Cecil Abel did his primary schooling on Kwato; high school at North Shore Grammar School in Sydney, Australia; and university at Cambridge in England.
He returned to Kwato and was asked by Administrator Sir Hubert Murray to teach political science at the Administrative College in Port Moresby.
Little did Sir Hubert know that the idea of home rule – independence – would be contemplated right under his nose by Cecil Abel and the Bully Beef Club.
He was a member of the second House of Assembly from 1968 to 1972.
In November 1968, Cecil Abel outlined Pangu’s economic policy: “The Pangu Pati believes that we must find the true economic basis for a multiracial society. We must aim for a reasonable equality of wealth between black and white, or rather, between haves and have nots. We are concerned at doubling the national income and we are equally concerned that all groups share in this growth.”
He went on to state that a viable economy depended on five points:
Increasing overseas capital investment;
Raising exports in both primary and secondary sector;
Reducing imports and encouraging import replacement;
Greatly increased secondary industry; and
Movement to subsistence to cash economy.
In 1966, a young man named Michael Somare came to the Administrative College in Port Moresby for studies, met many like-minded men and together they began to plan the future of the country.
Albert Maori Kiki was in his second year at the college, while Joseph Nombri, Sinaka Goava, Gavera Rea, Jack Karakuru, Cromwell Burau, Bill Warren and Lukas Waka were among the students.
Ebia Olewale was president of the Students’ Representative Council at Port Moresby Teachers’ College.
“We talked politics all the time,” recalled Somare (now Sir Michael) in his autobiography Sana.
“Our teachers encouraged us to take a lively interest in current affairs and to freely discuss the political and economic future of our country.
“We had some outstanding teachers to whom all of us owe a great deal.
“David Chenoweth was the principal.
“Tos Barnett, who is now my chief legal advisor in the office of chief minister, Cecil Abel and Ted Wolfers were among those who stimulated our minds.
“I was delighted when Albert Maori Kiki was elected president of the Students’ Representative Council.
“He provided the strong leadership that was needed.”
At night, the group would meet at Kiki’s house in Hohola, and thus was formed the Bully Beef Club.
On June 13, 1967, the Pangu Pati was founded with the support of nine members of the House of Assembly: Paul Lapun, Pita Lus, Nicholas Brokham, Wegra Kenu, Paliau Moloat, Barry Holloway, Tony Voutas, Siwi Kurondo and James Meangarum.
The founding members, in addition to the nine members of the House of Assembly, were: Cecil Abel, Albert Maori Kiki, Joseph Karl Nombri, Elliot Elijah, Sinaka Goava, Ilimo Batton, Reuben Taureka, Kamona Walo, Cromwell Burau, Oala Oala-Rarua, Gerai Asiba, Ebia Olewale, Pen Anakapu, Epel Tito, Basil Koe, Gavera Rea, Vin Tobaining, Thomas Tobunbun and Michael Somare.
A little later two more members of the House of Assembly – John Guise and Edric Eupu – joined the parliamentary wing of Pangu.
“The moment the party was formed,” reflected Somare, “I knew that I would have to give up my career as a civil servant.
“The next years of my life, for better of worse, would be devoted to politics and the struggle for independence.”
Cecil Abel was one of those who laid the groundwork for the Bully Beef Club, the Pangu Pati, and lived to see Papua New Guinea gain independence from Australia on September 16, 1975.
He was awarded an OBE for services to politics and Papua New Guinea at the age of 72 and at aged 79 was awarded his Knighthood.
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