PNG - areas compared

[peterjmaerz]

I have a presentation today at 4 pm for work, then it's all go for the trip to PNG, it's already hard to focus on anything else :11:
Everyday nearer to take off, I seem to drift to the computer to search for tid bits about the areas we will be visiting....it'ss ssslow ssilent torture....argh!
Then again what would I do without this web site for reinforcement? I just have to maintain my sanity for a few hours....Star Dancer-Walindi-Lolata, Oahu :dazzler1:

Dive Safe,
Caymaniac

Hey, at least you get to GO ! I'm deeply, desperately envious. I know you're gonna be in dive heaven shortly! Have a GREAT time!

Best,[/QUOTE]


PS..... be sure to look for my avatar on the support columns in POM airport!

 

[alijtaylor]

Glade to hear your going to do a sing sing if its the big one (Goroka ) I envy you. I did one in New Britain and went through four rolls of film in an hour.
Please post some photo when you get back.

Yes it is Goroka I am intending to head for, getting information isn't easy but that is what makes it a challenge.

During the next 15 months I will read this forum regularly for reports on PNG diving.

Alison

 

[cdiver2]

Yes it is Goroka I am intending to head for, getting information isn't easy but that is what makes it a challenge.

During the next 15 months I will read this forum regularly for reports on PNG diving.

Alison

may help if the link works http://www.pngbd.com/
If it doe's not work do a search for Papua New Guinea Business & Tourism.
There is tons of information and a board on the same lines as SB. Let me know if you find it. I also get a news letter from PNG, the next one that comes I will see if I can find out how to get one sent to you.

 

[alijtaylor]

Thank you CDiver2 too busy to check it out tonight, folk comming for dinner in 15 mins, but I will have a good look at the weekend.
Alison

 

[thranx]

Alison;
The best place to stay in Goroka is (or at least was) The Bird of Paradise Hotel. For something else to do while in Goroka, arrange a visit to the Goroka coffee roasters, where coffee from the Highlands is processed. Very interesting, and takes less than an hour.

The Sing-Sing takes place on the town's large athletic field. While wandering the field, be aware that some participants have (unfortunately) gotten in the habit of asking for money if you want to have your picture taken with them. Just shooting the participants is fine for free. Don't hang around after closing...that's when tribes and clans have a tendency to settle old or on-going disputes. If you'd like to see some vidcaps shot at the Goroka sing-sing from several years ago, go to my website, www.alandeanfoster.com, click on the bio/photo page, and scroll down. You might also enjoy the novel I wrote based on the time I spent in PNG...PRIMAL SHADOWS (Tor/Forge).

I've used Larium for years without any side-effects while diving.

While at Walindi, try to make time for a day tour into New Britain to see the steaming lake, WWII relics, etc.

 

[caymaniac]

I've used Larium for years without any side-effects while diving.

While at Walindi, try to make time for a day tour into New Britain to see the steaming lake, WWII relics, etc.

Thanks for the tip, I'm planning on seeing the lake isf we have time.

 

[silent running]

Hello Peter, you are certainly right that contracting Malaria is bad news. I was only passing on the advice I got from every PNG resident I met in the dive industry. If they have improved the medications to a degree that more of the side effects are negligible, that's good news. But from my understanding they still increase sun sensitivity, which for pale faces like me, is pretty impossible to deal with. And if you're like me, I only ever go ashore during daylight hrs, so there is no real risk as the anopheles mosquito is active only after sunset. So the risk seems pretty minimal if you are on a liveaboard. If you are treking through the jungle or camping or staying in a resort that's in a malarial area, that's something else. This is yet another reason to not bother with land based resorts, unless diving is more of side dish on your PNG trip. I don't dig the idea of using insect repellent, but it beats getting bit in the first place, especially if you find yourself in an area with a new strain of the disease, of which there are more than a few.

Hi Silent Running,

Just a quick note of disagreement. Not to be melodramatic, but, once you've contracted Malaria, it's yours pretty much for life, as I understand it. Not a pleasant thing. Rolling the dice will certainly create many winners (not contracting the disease), but if you lose,...

Anyway, after much research before my trip to PNG a year ago (see elsewhere on the board) , I opted for Malarone. This relatively new prophylaxis bears little risk of side effects (virtually none of DCS-type symptoms associated with Larium). Speaking anecdotally on my part, I had no side effects whatsoever and found it easy to remember to take my one pill a day after lunch. My insurance covered all but 12 dollars of the cost of Malarone.

All that said, health officials always recommend mosquito prevention in the form of DEET and permethrin sprays for clothing. Naturally, if you're out on the open sea exclusively, your risk is non existant but you've got to come in to shore sometime .


Best Regards,

 

[reubencahn]

But from my understanding they still increase sun sensitivity, which for pale faces like me, is pretty impossible to deal with.

Doxycyline(sp?) does lead to photosensitivity. But as far as I know, Malarone does not. FWIW, I took Malarone while I was there and experienced no side effects.

 

[silent running]

Hello reubencahn, you may be right. And if so, that's a good thing. But it's still hard to imagine a med that's more effective/current/easy and less problematic than... prevention by way of a bug repellent. My axe to grind is this: The more divers visit PNG, the more likely Air NG will wake up and give us all a break on the airfare/scheduling from their gateway cities(Singapore, Tokyo, Manilla, Hongkong(?)) which is higher and more restrictive than any other country's gateway airfares-except possibly Bhutan(sp?)-and for no real good reason. I'm not happy when people bring up malaria as a major concern while considering PNG(as someone who probably was not very well informed did at the begining of this thread)because it obviously slows down that process. I know divers and non divers alike(including missionaries)who have spent years/decades there and never contracted the dreaded illness. But like so many things in life, the hype arrives before the truth. All I can say is that when I found out it wasn't that big a concern for the crew on the liveaboard I was going to be traveling on, I stopped worrying so much. Thanks all for the info and feedback.

 

[ikepharm]

Hello Alison, I've been to Eastern Fields, Moresby, Milne Bay, along the Papuan Barrier Reef btw Milne and Moresby, Madang and the Volcanic islands, Kimbe and Kavieng. It's all great. Really. There are differences, but I would recomend a Milne bay itinerary first, one that includes some of the sites that are farther out, so you get some good pelagic and shark activity. On 1 dive there last year I saw Hammerheads, Silvertips, tons of Reef sharks, a giant Sand Tiger and a HUGE Oceanic Manta. It was fantastic. Later on the same site I saw a Lacy Scorpian Fish. That 1 dive pretty much gives a great account of PNG. I would recomend the Golden Dawn over most other boats(Telita is also a nice boat, newly refurbished)as she is the most stable, has great food, only takes a maximum of 10 and has an outstanding, very active diver Capt. named Craig de Wit. He's also an avid recreational rebreather diver, like myself. He got me into diving rebreathers and I will never go back to open circuit. You see so much more wild life when you're not making noisy bubbles. If you're at all curious about diving with a rebreather, Craig is an incredible resource. I've done all my trips on his boat and I'm going back again soon. If you want to talk to him, there is a phone on the vessel. It's the same rate as calling Australia. The number is listed in the Lonely Planet guide, which you should definitely get. Or go to the web site and email him. I'm envious of your proximity. I just got back from a trip to Komodo, which was great, but not as good as PNG. If I lived in NZ, I'd go there even more. Oh, and I've never bothered with Malaria meds, as per all the PNG residents advice. It's not worth the expense and the potential bad DCS like side effects. Just put on some insect repellent if you wind up close to shore at night. That's all I did and had no problems during any of the many weeks I spent there-Andy

Hi, Silent Running
I did a PNG trip on Star Dancer last year with Peter last year. It was with Alan as skipper, so you can imagine what a blast it was. We did Kavieng to Walindi with stops at the Witus and Dickey's Knob etc. I am going on the "Golden Dawn " in Nov. of "06 and was wondering if you would mind a comparisn. In the description of the stops at Eastern it seems there would be less Muck Diving and more Pelagic. I love macro, but the dive sites seem so pristine at Eastern with great Vis. Is it just hype? I've also done Komodo Dancer and Aggressor on Palau. The palau trip had a lot of Pelagic activity with a nice "Hi, how are you " with a good size Tiger Shark. How do these compare.

Hope I am not assking for too much info

Thanks
IKE