“Away from it All” – and Back again: The Sepik River, Papua New Guinea

Papuan girl sitting on the prow of a Boat, Sepik River PNG

Girl on a Boat
Life marches to a different rhythm in the Middle Sepik region of Papua New Guinea. Perhaps it is the heat in the leaden air, but the torpor is palpable under the rising sun.

There are places where you can truly “get away from it all” – away from the trappings of modern life: phone and internet coverage, electricity and running water, roads and basic infrastructure …

Of course, you have to get there; and then, unless you are hardy enough to stay in the wilds forever, you have to get back again!

The Middle Sepik region of Papua New Guinea is a long way from most of what is familiar to me. It is not away from humanity, however: people are scattered around the region in small, familial communities that come together occasionally, by foot or by boat, for trade or for cultural exchange.

And that is why we were there: with a small group of photo-enthusiasts under the guidance of photographer Karl Grobl from Jim Cline Photo Tours, I had travelled by plane and bus and boat to partake in the Sepik River Festival, a richly rewarding local sing sing of music and dance (see: A Black and White View, In the Little Spirit House, Preparations for the Dance, and Invitation to the Dance).

But, the dancing was over, and I was over-heated – and covered in itchy spots in spite of wearing long sleeves and bug repellent. What you can’t escape in the middle of PNG is the unremitting heat, hanging like a wet blanket and sucking the oxygen out of the air, and the relentless hum of biting pests – including the mosquitos responsible for malaria, Japanese encephalitis, and dengue fever.

Truth be told, as much as we enjoyed our stay in the little village of Kanganaman in the Middle Sepik (see: Welcome to the Spirit House and Crocodile Men), most of us were looking forward to our boutique accommodation in Wewak, with hot showers in the ensuites, cool linen on the beds, and a selection of fresh food and alcoholic drinks in the bar.

It was time to move on!

Of course, when you are days from “anywhere”, moving on poses its own challenges. Join me for a languid – but not entirely smooth – boat trip down the Sepik River.

Mattresses under mosquito nets, Kanganaman, Middle Sepik PNG

The Girls’ “Dorm”
We are packed and ready! The accommodation for our two-night stay in the village was in a three-room elevated bamboo hut: women on one side, men on the other, with a common-room in the middle. We had a rain-water tank for washing, and a pit toilet a short walk away. The mattresses were clean and comfortable, but, as hot as it was outside, it was even hotter under the mosquito netting … and you had to be careful not to fall through the woven flooring.

Papuan boy in a Dugout canoe, Sepik River PNG

Boy in a Dugout
We have a short walk over grassy “roads” to the riverbank. Our boat has not yet arrived, and the river is quiet; I guess the crocodiles are sleeping. A single boy is on the water in his dugout canoe.

The Dugout Canoe
It seems we have disturbed the calm; …

Boy on the River
… the young lad poles his dugout upstream away from us.

Young Men on the Shore
A number of villagers have joined us on the riverbank as we wait for our transport.

“This T-Shirt is Illegal”
These remote regions of PNG are mostly Animist, but Christian missionaries have been all over the island, so I am not overly surprised to see a T-shirt printed with a gospel message. Then again, it may be a hand-me-down, and the text may not reflect the owner.

“Hurry up and Wait!”

Boy in a Tree
One of the young lads climbs up to a higher vantage-point.

Smiling Boatman
Finally! Our two dugout log boats with their noisy outboard motors arrive, and we pile in with our bits and bags and set off downstream.
Unfortunately, our boatman is not smiling for long: our motor coughs, sputters, and dies. We have no phone reception and the walk-talkies don’t seem to be working. We send the other boat (and its passengers) off with the request for a new motor, and continue to limp downstream …

Father and Child
… until we reach a small settlement with a couple of boats tied up at the shore. Where there are boats, there are bound to be motors!
In an irony like something out of the 1999 American war movie Three Kings, Karl has managed to reach a contact in another country using his satellite phone, and has asked that the request for a new motor be relayed downstream.

Mother and Child
We are well off the tourist trail here, so we are a bit of a curiosity to the villagers.

Mother and Child
The pigmentation mutation that results in blond babies in remote Australia is obviously present here as well.

People on the Shore
Word got back to the little village pretty quickly: before long we had a lot of “helpers” supervising the removal of the faulty motor …

A Borrowed Motor
… while the borrowed motor is being brought down to the water.

Young Man

Woman and Children
While the motors are being swapped, a family is washing in the river.

Middle Sepik Village
Finally, we are back on the move. The woven houses we pass along the shore are extremely modest – but quick to build.

The Bridge
Eventually, the boat got us back to the meeting point with our bumpy bus. Half way along the dirt track to Wewak, we again come across a missing bridge. The gaps in the planks seem even wider than they did when we passed before! I couldn’t believe the bus would make it.

Fanning the Food
We make a brief stop at the Maprik Market that I’ve written about before (see: Market Portraits), …

Sausages and Plantains
… and once again I admire the wild colours of the sausages!

In Flight
After a hot shower, a good meal, a drink (or two), and a comfortable sleep, we were on a plane to Port Moresby.

In the Holiday Inn in Port Moresby, we could have been anywhere in the world. But, we all knew, when we met for dinner, that we had truly been “away from it all” at the back of beyond – and it had been special!