Going to PNG in 3 Weeks!

[avla]

Hey CN, how was the trip? Would love to hear how it went.

 

[caymaniac]

FeBrina has a pretty "flat" hull too. I've been on the SD and haven't felt it to be too "rolling".

Well. if the waves are a-beam, you will be under water at one point and hanging many feet above water at another. If there is any wind/current (ever so common in PNG), you don't really know how the waves will hit you.

Hello Allison, a couple of points:
The Febrina's hull may not be a very deep draft v, but she definitely has more of a v and I think she has a deeper draft than SD. She is also not as tall/top heavy as SD. These things together make a difference. You may not have been bothered by her rolling but I have talked to some who were.

I thought that the hall was tapered but more flat near the back. Here are some pics that the DM took. It's that they are not that revealing.

 

[AlaskaDiver]

Hi Just loggin in. Been a long time member and have been browsing all the posts. Thought I would finally post something.

Going on a major trip in 3 weeks and hope I can get some words of wisdom. Going to Papua New Guinea! That's right, in exactly 3 weeks we (wife, bro-inlaw, & I) will be steppin on board the Star Dancer departing from Kavieng going to Hoskins, 10 day trip. Was wondering if any other PNG regulars would be on the same trip.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Comfortably Numb (CN)

I think I want to cry listening to all these people going to PNG. We loved it there! It is the best diving in the world. My husband and I went on the Mike Ball Paradise sport for the 12 day trip from Milne Bay afeter spending 2 weeks in Cairns & Port Douglas area. The liveaboard was expensive, but we had saved money for many years to be pampered. We went in Dec 2003 and the boat was half full. I brought t-shirts, colored pencils, small zippered bags, swim goggles, fish hooks, Alaskan Aurora postcards, and some Altoids mints (cinnamon & pepermint were eaten immediately - but somehow the green color of the spearmint was suspicious--I ate a few and they loved them). All were gifts. The cost of goods is cheap enough so as you don't need to be a cheapskate - especially when you see how poor the people really are. Spend the few dollars on a Nautilus shell. This isn't a flea market where you bargain and haggle over a dollar. I can still remember the children's voices from the sing-sing "roll ober dee ocean roll ober da sea..." The kids were charming. The day adventures on the islands were very exciting too - Skull Caves, Dei Dei hot springs, forest walks with huge Hornbills flying overhead. The diving was amazing. Lots of bommies and of course my favorite were the night muck dives. I saw literally everything from Kraits to tassled wobbegong. We are going back soon.

 

[mjh]

Ahhh, we leave Tuesday for PNG 10day Mike Ball trip. Bringing school supplies and bunch of Univ of Wash, WSU and Marniers shirts for the kids. Like the idea of fish hooks. With dive gear, camera gear etc... we are way over the 77lbs/person limit but small price to pay on a trip like this.

 

[cdiver2]

I think I want to cry listening to all these people going to PNG. We loved it there! It is the best diving in the world. My husband and I went on the Mike Ball Paradise sport for the 12 day trip from Milne Bay afeter spending 2 weeks in Cairns & Port Douglas area. The liveaboard was expensive, but we had saved money for many years to be pampered. We went in Dec 2003 and the boat was half full. I brought t-shirts, colored pencils, small zippered bags, swim goggles, fish hooks, Alaskan Aurora postcards, and some Altoids mints (cinnamon & pepermint were eaten immediately - but somehow the green color of the spearmint was suspicious--I ate a few and they loved them). All were gifts. The cost of goods is cheap enough so as you don't need to be a cheapskate - especially when you see how poor the people really are. Spend the few dollars on a Nautilus shell. This isn't a flea market where you bargain and haggle over a dollar. I can still remember the children's voices from the sing-sing "roll ober dee ocean roll ober da sea..." The kids were charming. The day adventures on the islands were very exciting too - Skull Caves, Dei Dei hot springs, forest walks with huge Hornbills flying overhead. The diving was amazing. Lots of bommies and of course my favorite were the night muck dives. I saw literally everything from Kraits to tassled wobbegong. We are going back soon.

is great, except buying the Nautilus shells. I would rather ask what they want for it and GIVE the money without taking the shell.

 

[AlaskaDiver]

The nautilus shells are the only shells they collect rather than harvest. The living creatures are 300 to 2500' deep! Wow. The shells they sell are the dead ones that float to the surface and come ashore naturally. There were other shells likes strombs etc that were obviously harvested. No one bought them. We made it a point to ask the people on the liveaboard what's legal to get back into Australia (i.e no banana seeds) and then from that list what was legal to bring in the US. Australian customs was rigid. I mostly purchased handmade goods like woven bags or wall hangings. I did give many of the locals who arrived in their canoes at the boat in the morning money for flowers they were selling and used them as a centerpiece for the boat.

 

[AlaskaDiver]

Bring small t-shirts as the people as a whole are short. An adult medium was swimming on the adults.

 

[caymaniac]

Bring small t-shirts as the people as a whole are short. An adult medium was swimming on the adults.

Most of the shirts I brought were med., for some reason they used to fit and now I wear a large, maybe it's all that food on the liveaboard. The trade we had was for flowers or food.