PAPUA NEW GUINEA
EXPEDITION
AN UNMOTORISED CROSSING
13th January 2014
River crossings and navigation
I have left the best till last though. As excited as a bride-to-be I can proudly announce: ‘We have set a date!’
We will be leaving London 09th March 2014 for Papua New Guinea. After confirming the flights it really dawned on us that this is happening. We are now in a state of nervous anticipation, so excited to get out there and experience this amazing country which until now has only been text and picture. If we are this excited now I can not imagine what we will be like in Vanimo!
With seven weeks left until our departure date we are going through final checks of kit, upping our training and enjoying our final few weekends with friends and family until we leave.
Donations to Childfund has continued to trickle in we are both very grateful, it is truly a wonderful cause and I look forward to seeing how all the donations impact Papua New Guinean children.
Thanks for following,
Patrick Hutton
As always we have been busy continuing all our preparations, ensuring no stone is left unturned.
One piece from the last blog which seemed to gain the most interest, and honestly which did not fill either of us with much excitement, was the planned practise river crossing session during an English winter. Thankfully the team has gained the support of Alpacka Rafts. This great American company produces robust, lightweight and portable rafts which will allow us to be shuttled safe and dry, along with our kit, across the never ending section of rivers in the first two sections. On the final section we will still be sourcing a raft or canoe to complete our paddle down the Fly River.
I am sure there are quite a few people reading this who would’ve taken great enjoyment as we submerged ourselves into an icy river, sorry!
Another major breakthrough for us has been East View Geospatial supplying the team with detailed 1:100 000 topographical maps of the route. The maps will also be on waterproof paper, which given the environment was the icing on the cake. Accurate maps have been incredibly difficult to locate so support from East View Geospatial has been an absolute God send.
We are both very pleased to have these two companies helping us out. As we have said from the start, it is the support of others who have helped made this expedition. If you believe you can help PNG Expedition in anyway, big or small, please do not hesitate to contact us.