When we told people we were going to Papua New Guinea for a diving holiday, an immediate look of worry crossed their faces. This is unfortunately the way that most people see PNG, as an unsafe country.
Welcome to PNG
PNG is a country that has been peopled for longer than Australia; that is so diverse in its culture that there are over 850 languages and cultures in a population that is smaller than that of Sydney; that has everything from rainforests to mountainous regions covered in snow; that sits on the “Pacific Ring of Fire” at the point of collision of a number of tectonic plates creating a region of high geological instability resulting in volcanoes, tsunamis and earthquakes; and whose infrastructure is so developed that it has 572 airstrips (and the planes to boot, if not the x-ray machines - they still do painfully slow hand searches of luggage) proving the fact that air travel is often the only way of traversing the mountainous terrain with speed.
The troubles in PNG’s capital city Port Moresby were brought home to Muhunthan and Kylie when, on their way to the airport to catch their flight to Kavieng, they travelled with one of the staff members of Loloata Island Resort. He carried a blunt knife for protection. Yet, notwithstanding this sad perception, everywhere we went, we met people with bright smiles and happy faces. Step away from Port Moresby and you would not know that there was any trouble at all. And that is exactly what we did.
1 degree
Kavieng (pronounced kay-vi-eng) is the capital of the New Ireland province of PNG. It is the most northern of PNG’s twenty provinces, about one and a half hours’ flight north from Port Moresby and just 1º from the Equator.
The landing approach into Kavieng airport is spectacular. On the eastern side, you see the musket shape of the island of New Ireland, a narrow sliver in the ocean, with a mountain ridge rising to over 2,000m. On the western side, you sight the hundreds of islands surrounded by veins of coral reefs that drop off into the depths of the Pacific Ocean, dotting the arc of azure waters that surround Kavieng, all bathed in sunlight. As a diver who has heard so much about the great diving in PNG, the sight is a feast for sore eyes as you itch to jump from your seat, straight onto Mike Ball's Paradise Sport (which you have just spotted, moored at the wharf).
All Aboard
Within minutes of landing, the Dive 2000 group was in a huddle. We had to be - the arrivals lounge is a little tin shed out in the open, where every passenger gathers to collect their luggage. Muhunthan, Kylie, Diane, Jennifer and Ian had all travelled together to the Yongala in Townsville and were reunited once more. They were joined by Emma, who was yet to experience the antics of the others (see the stories of the Terrible Trio)!
Having collected our bags, Dan, the trip director, and Julia, the onboard videographer, bundled us into the Malagan Resort minivan. Most of us would be staying at Malagan (which was the most famous cultural system of New Ireland practised throughout the island until World War II, when it was abandoned due to the expensive resources required for the ceremonies) on the way back.
A short ride later, we were standing at the wharf, beside Paradise Sport. And what better way to start the trip than with a feast of mud crabs? Well, only if we could get the damn things open! Sounds of tapping to pounding were heard throughout the dining room as different techniques were explored. Emma resorted to pleading for assistance from the boys sitting around her. Clean clothes were soiled as mud crab flesh and juices flew in all directions, including onto windows. The funny thing is you would have thought we would learn very quickly. Yet, every time mud crab was served, we would all be wearing clean clothes – it got to the point where people were ducking for cover whenever anyone was trying to crack open the stubborn things!
Dive, dive, dive …
Diving in PNG had a big reputation and with it came high expectations. Sadly high expectations often mean disappointment. We will say at the outset that the diving was not as spectacular as we had all hoped. That’s not to say it wasn’t good; it just wasn’t brilliant (and certainly not the best diving in the world, as it had been touted). Nonetheless, everyone had a good time and enjoyed the diving.
Reefs & bommies
So what did we do and see? We started with a couple of dives on Turtle Reef, not far out of Kavieng. Unfortunately, very strong winds and heavy rain had battered PNG in the two weeks leading up to our trip; so visibility was not that good (only about 10 to 15m). Still, there was a lot of colour and life to be seen. Big Fish, by contrast, had really clear water, crocodile fish and mating cuttlefish in iridescent colour but, ironically, no big fish.
Things got better from there. Other bommies that we did later in the trip included Chapman's Reef I (we didn't get to do Chapman's Reef II because the waves were pounding the boat so much so that one of the tenders sprung a leak by being belted into the hull of Paradise Sport as it was waiting to take on divers) and Peter's Patch. Both of these sites had plenty of fish life, as well as still life. Turtles and barracuda and schools of batfish and trigger fish were plentiful.
The night dive at Nusandala had been talked up by Dan and dive guide Clem throughout the trip. It was definitely a nice dive. Some of the divers found a family of crocodile fish, piled on top of each other (Port Jackson-style). Dive guide Jerome found a pipehorse for Muhunthan and Kylie. There were creepy crawly things that defy description. Cowry shells, sleepy parrot fish and lots of other fish were found. The rain came just before we surfaced, making it a magical end to the dive as we sat just below the surface, watching the rain droplets pelting the surface of the ocean.
Wrecks
The Taisho Maru was a Japanese supply vessel in World War II. Sunk in February 1944, the wreck is a fantastic dive, covered in coral of all varieties. While the coral population and big fish life are not as dense or as diverse as that of the Yongala, they are still impressive, so much so that we spent four dives on it. Gorgonian fans litter the bow section of the wreck, while soft corals inundate the remainder. There are plenty of open spaces for exploration (or penetration, as Diane kept reminding everyone).
About 30m or so off the Taisho Maru lies the intact wreck of a two-man Japanese mini-sub. It's an incredible sight - it is so small that it is almost impossible to comprehend how two people could have spent many hours in it. The hatch opening is so small that you would have to be child-sized to get into it in the first place. Some mystery surrounds how the sub got there, but most people seem to believe it was sitting on the deck of the Taisho Maru when the ship was bombed.
The Nakajima B5N (called the Kate by the Allies) was an attack plane used by the Japanese Navy during World War II. Mostly intact, it lies in about 8m of murky water. A quick 15 minute dive was all that was required to take decent photos of the wreck, although some photographers (none from Dive 2000) hogged the plane (and it isn't a big plane to hog).
The wreck of the Der Yang lies just a short boat ride from Kavieng (and can actually be done as a day trip from Kavieng). A relatively deep dive, the wreck is a fairly small one of a fishing trawler. It was a nice way to finish off the trip.
Channels
Planet Channel was the highlight of the trip, not because of the diving generally, but because of two tiny, tiny creatures - the pigmy seahorses. Found completely by accident by Julia, they were on a small coral fan. While some of us took the approach of steering clear to avoid crushing the delicate creatures, the photographers shook with frustration as virtually everyone had the wrong lens on! The only successful photograph was taken by Ian, who managed to get one of the pigmy seahorse dead centre in the photograph - you've just got to find it! Of course, everyone spent the remainder of the trip swimming up to every coral fan, fanning away with their hands trying to spot another pigmy seahorse. Unfortunately, none were spotted.
Chamisso Channel was another highlight. Ian and Jennifer had to contend with a Singaporean with a big camera, poor air consumption and an inability to swim; they found themselves stranded 30 to 40m from the centre of activity. When this was sorted out, they joined the others in watching a number of grey reef sharks, three spotted-eagle rays, schools of barracuda and heaps of smaller fish like moorish idols playing in the currents at the drop off. The currents weren't strong enough, so we didn't get lots of the big stuff, but everyone got to use their reef hooks, pretending to be kites in the ocean currents.
Albatross Passage was the last channel dive that we did. After sultry, cloudy days for most of the trip, we were finally blessed with decent sunshine, making for a nice dive. Kylie experienced, for the first time, the fierceness of clown fish as one attacked her fingers (her peals of laughter and shock caught on video). Diane claims credit for having provoked the clown fish!
Islands
The walls of Nub Island and Lemus Island had a plethora of still or macro life. At Nub Island, Jennifer and Ian demonstrated excellent buddy techniques - Jennifer swam off with the dive guide; Ian had to find another buddy in Muhunthan! Lemus Island, owned by the governor of the New Ireland province, had a field of garden eels to make the dive special. When Muhunthan tried to point them out to Ian, it took Ian some time to work out where they were hiding (out in the open, several feet in front of them).
On the second last day of the trip, we dropped anchor off Ral Island, a small uninhabited island not far from Kavieng. After an easy dive (which we shall not speak about that for the sake of keeping Ian and Emma on speaking terms!), most of the passengers went ashore to have champagne on the small beach as the sun set. Skipper Pete pulled out his guitar for the entertainment. Poor harried Dan managed to forget the corkscrew for the champagne bottles and also managed to run the tender into the reef on approach!
The Man Born to be Chief
We visited the island of Tunnung, which Clem calls home. After this trip, Clem had another two trips before he hung up his Mike Ball diving booties to develop Tunnung as a surfing destination.
The people of Clem's village invited us in and put on a number of local dances for us. The costumes, make up and movements were awesome. And much to the surprise of some of the divers, the last dance was saved for the guests. Kylie and Diane (and others) were dragged around the village open, much to the amusement of the villagers. The visit was wrapped up with a friendly game of volleyball, where the visitors were well and truly walloped.
Clem was born on Tunnung, the youngest of six children. Thanks to his older sister and her husband (and much to the dismay of his father who believed that schools were an evil thing brought to PNG by the westerners), he went to school in Port Moresby. At the age of 14, he rowed out (like many villagers do) to a dive boat to sell fresh food. When the English skipper found Clem could speak English fluently, Clem was invited aboard. This invitation led to another - an invitation to stay on board for the trip. That trip, meant to be a few days, became a few months. Clem returned, having learnt to dive and to lead dives. He never looked back.
Sixteen years later, married to Sophie (whom he had "stolen") and with three kids of his own, Clem was about to give up diving, set up his surfing destination business (Kavieng is very popular with surfers from around the world during surf season) and become chief.
Typically, in traditional PNG culture, children are betrothed very early in life. Clem refused to follow tradition. He fell in love with Sophie, who lived on a nearby island. When the time was right, he rowed across the sea, proposed (as he says, he fell in love the way young people should these days!) and the rest is history, as they say.
When we visited Lemus Island and had tea with the governor, Clem sat side by side with the governor and they seemed to know each other well. It was only later that we discovered that the governor had actually sent two of Clem's uncles to jail for bribery (one for 5 years, the other for 13 years). Notwithstanding the family ties and his family's protests, Clem had bravely supported the governor in the fight against corruption.
Clem's education, the wealth that he had brought to the village and the opportunities that he had brought to them, his progressiveness and integrity made him the perfect successor to the current chief, his uncle. When one of the passengers asked Clem what he would be doing if he wasn't diving, with a cheeky grin, Clem replied, "Sitting up a tree, smoking a joint." His is an inspirational story of making your own fortunes and making the most of the opportunities that come your way.
Peter of all Trades, Master at all
The old adage "jack of all trades, master at none" simply does not apply to the Paradise Sport skipper, Peter. The chef, ironically also called Peter, had been cut by some coral a week or so before we arrived. On day two of our trip, chef Peter was confined to quarters, with Emma tending to him because the coral cut had become infected and was not healing quickly enough in the tropical climate. (Interestingly, this was the second time that a crew member needed medical attention during a Dive 2000 trip - the common factors each time were that skipper Pete, Dan and Muhunthan were on the same trip together ... Well, at least it is only the crew and not passengers ...)
Skipper Pete took over cooking responsibilities, proving to be a fantastic cook. On top of that, he entertained everyone on the cocktail night with his guitar and his inimitable songs and moves, having serenaded Diane and Jennifer the night before in the darkness of top deck.
As skipper, Pete's duties are not just limited to on board things. After he had dropped us all back at Kavieng, he spent two days running back and forth organising all sorts of things - cleaners because all his crew had disappeared, food when the food supplies didn't turn up (even though the passengers for the next trip had arrived), and somehow having to embark passengers onboard Paradise Sport when they couldn't get access to the Kavieng wharf (thanks to military exercises between PNG and Australian defence forces). Muhunthan and Kylie watched him become a nervous wreck after the others had left (he probably pulled out his hair a long time ago thanks to this sort of stress)!
Yet, he kept good cheer through all of this and he managed to keep the Italians in check ... well, kind of ...
Italians & Americans
This trip turned out to be a classic example of how individuals give groups a bad name. Every diver knows the inescapable problem with liveaboards: if there are people you don't get along with on a trip, you just cannot get away from them. Fortunately, the Mike Ball boats are big enough that you can do a decent job of trying!
We had four Italians on board the trip. And man, were they a handful. Leave aside their non-diving antics, they had interesting diving techniques. For openers, they would dive into the water without a mask on and without a regulator or snorkel in. Now, the mask may be excusable, but without any air source?!! It was only when skipper Pete had some strong words with them that they accepted diving in with their regulator in. Incredible.
Particularly when, on some dives on the first few days, we had to deal with very big waves, so much so that Paradise Sport was moving up and down several metres in the water - it was scary being on the five metre safety stop, underneath the hull! It was scarier being on the surface, being dragged on to the ladders one at a time. And there they were, jumping into the water without any air source. Not a smart thing to do. They were also the only ones to get in the water for a dive when both skipper Pete and Dan had strongly recommended to everybody that they do not do the dive!
Underwater, they managed to swim into people on a regular basis. Kylie found one Italian between her legs, much to her surprise. Another swam far too close to Jennifer that she mistook her for Ian. How this was even possible, one can only guess - completely different sex, completely different build - apparently, the fins were similar. Ian reckons Jennifer needs prescription lenses; Jennifer reckons Ian was wearing the same white bikini!
The funniest incident happened on a dive to 35m when one of the Italians' tank fell out of the BC strap. Supposedly experienced, it took him a while to work out what the problem was and, when he did, he let out a yelp that was heard by the whole group and then he sped off (with his tank dangling between his legs, trying to pull out his regulator) from virtually the back of the group, past six other divers to the dive leader who was a good distance in front. Meanwhile, Muhunthan, who had figured out what was going on before the Italian did, tried to swim up to him to give him a hand, except the Italian kept swimming away from Muhunthan towards the dive leader. When Muhunthan finally caught up to him (just as he got to the dive leader), you can imagine how pleased Muhunthan was (not!). Diane and Kylie looked on in bemusement (but only after they got over their initial thought, what big fish are these two swimming away from)!
Nothing different on board - they managed to anger virtually every other diver on board. They smoked everywhere except inside the enclosed areas of the boat. One of them, a lawyer (bloody lawyers, I say), spent three days looking through Mike Ball paperwork to work out whether or not he could smoke up on top deck. So it got to the point where, any time they turned up somewhere, everyone else disappeared. You would have though they would get some form of complex, but they were quite oblivious! They would manage to interrupt dive briefs (one would even stand in front of the map while Dan was giving a briefing). One played music off his iPod on speakers while others were trying to have a quiet conversation. Quite a group!
Having said all this, while they were annoying, they were a constant source of amusement (at their expense, I can assure you). The funniest thing was when skipper Pete was filling in as chef. At breakfast, fried eggs were provided. The Italians wanted scrambled eggs. So the lawyer walks into the kitchen (no, this is NOT a lawyer-joke) and asks skipper Pete for scrambled eggs. Pete had to restrain himself: he walked to the menu, looked at it and responded, "Scrambled eggs on Thursday." They would take all of pineapple within minutes of the fruit platter being laid out - so Kylie and Robert, another passenger, teamed up to beat them to the pineapple and divide it between the two of them. And they had no concept of queuing for food - they would work their way to the front of the queue, ignoring everyone else who was lined up.
It got so bad that, when the Italians were dropped off at Malagan resort, within an hour, the staff at Malagan were ready to lynch them! (We don't think they did, but who knows?!)
Interestingly, Aaron, the American, turned out to be an intriguing contrast. Muhunthan and Kylie first encountered him on Loloata Island. He almost made them late for the plane to Kavieng, which did not gain him any favours from the pair! During the trip, he varied between entertaining to annoying. He announced to everyone on Lemus Island that Jennifer was his wife (much to her surprise!). He stars in the funniest part of the Mike Ball video. He tailed the Dive 2000 group to Nusa Island, where Muhunthan and Kylie spent the last two days of the trip and, in the end, turned out to be quite a lovely and quiet fellow, away from the crowd!
Mating Calls
Dive 2000 divers clearly have a very close afinity with sea creatures. Jennifer showed us in Townsville how snakes are drawn to her. With no snakes around, Diane and Ian were convinced Jennifer was trying to attract eagle rays with the graceful up and down movements of her arms - it certainly seemed to work at Chamiso Channel. Ian, on returning from the night dive at Nusandala, found that he had brought back an octopus.
And whilst sea life may be attracted to us, bird life certainly were not. On one night dive, the crew of Paradise Sport took to wearing rain jackets because of the birds (who were letting fly, pardon the pun, with number twos!). Divers were pelted with white stuff while still in the water! One bird managed to fly into the sun deck area of the boat during cocktail night, startle the daylights out of some passengers and needed to be given a helping hand into the darkness.
Ian and Jennifer had a special treat when, as they were about to get ready for a dive, the crew spotted some dolphins off the boat. So, they and others who were around grabbed fins and masks, jumped into a tender and off they went. Ian and Jennifer jumped in and had a nice swim with the dolphins; Kylie was about to do the same, but at the last minute realised that she was only wearing underwear and not swimming togs and she wasn't prepared to partake in an impromptu wet t-shirt contest!
Farewell PNG
So after 7 days of good diving, interesting stories, fascinating and bizarre people, the Dive 2000 group left Kavieng for Port Moresby and finally home. Although the diving in Kavieng may not have been brilliant, there are other places in PNG that have a bigger reputation, including Milne Bay. In Kavieng itself, due to the conditions, we missed out on two of the best spots around Kavieng - Chapman's Reef II and a spot further north of New Hanover, where whale sharks had been sighted on the previous Paradise Sport trip (aaahhh, the old "If only you were here last week ..." trick). As usual, the crew on board the Mike Ball boat provided great service and, while they are still in the area (until January 2007), Paradise Sport is a great boat to dive PNG from.
(Thanks to Ian Hindley for his contribution of photos.)
