Papua New Guinea Sepik River Journey

Wewak · Papua New Guinea

Moderate10 daysOceania~£2,000 est.

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Overview

The Sepik is one of the world's great art rivers. Along its middle reaches, Iatmul and neighbouring villages raise haus tambaran - spirit houses - whose carved posts, orator's stools and masks stand in the ancestry of half the tribal art in Western museums. Travelling by motorised canoe out of Pagwi or Wewak, you sleep in villages such as Tambunum and Kanganaman, meet crocodile-clan men whose backs carry the raised scars of crocodile-spirit initiation, and buy carvings directly from the artists in the shade of the houses where they were made. The river sets the rhythm: glassy dawn water, children paddling to school, sago processing on the banks, fireflies after dark. There is no infrastructure here in any conventional sense - no roads, no power, kina cash only - and everything runs through your boatman-guide, so travel with an operator holding genuine village relationships; it is the difference between welcome and intrusion. May to October's drier months keep the river navigable and the mosquitoes survivable, and malaria prophylaxis, strong repellent and a treated net are non-negotiable. Ten days including Wewak flights, boat, fuel and village stays runs about £2,000. Carvings are heavy: arrange freight before you fall for a two-metre crocodile prow.