Cruise Day 2 has been a great day in the Ferguson Islands. Straight after breakfast we took a one-hour helicopter ride on True North’s its own chopper, a seven seater with the pilot and 2 passengers in front and 4 passengers in the rear. Everyone gets a good view so it doesn’t really matter where you sit. We flew along river valleys, into gorges, over mountains, mainly dormant volcanoes but some still venting sulphurous gases, along beautiful palm tree lined coastlines, over coral reefs and lots of subsistence farms on both flat land and steep mountain slopes. It was a spectacular flight and the scenery was stunning.

Mountain scenery from the chopper

One of many islands in the Ferguson group

After breakfast Jo and I enjoyed a 30 minute chat with a local guide and his 3 year old son before the 10:30 start for a jungle walk. We took 3 tenders to the beach where we were met by about 30 young kids, teenagers and adults who smiled happily to meet us. They accompanied us through their village, some practising their English, some too shy and all enjoying the experience of seeing such strange looking people as us. Almost as soon as we started walking rain started. We crossed the nearby creek a few times, then walked in it as the rain became heavier.

A creek crossing, PNG style

2 guys, 2 umbrellas, 1 bush knife – that’s all a girl needs

Local adults and children helped those who were not sure footed, even offering us palm leaves to use as umbrellas. We scrambled over rocks and along slippery muddy tracks until we came to quite a fast flowing water fall about 50 to 70 metres tall. Some passengers showered under the water but we just enjoyed trying to talk to the kids. Rain continued for the 40 minute walk back to the village so we were absolutely soaked by the time we caught the tenders back to the True North.

Oops! Look what happens to white shirts and light hair when rains falls on your pink cap.

True North staff keep us very busy and this afternoon some chose fishing while I chose snorkeling. Jo chose the chat-on-board option.

Embarking on a snorkeling tour, Ted in red

The snorkeling was the best I have ever experienced; a 10 minute boat ride then an hour in the water. We had a dive master and 3 swimmers so we had a real personal snorkeling experience. The reef was generally 2 to 5 metres deep with a very deep drop-off along the side of the reef. There were many different kinds of coral with brown, green, blue and purple colours everywhere. The sky was cloudy and we could only wonder how good the coral must look in sunshine. There were small fish of every colour and shape but not many big fish. During the swim 4 local kids came out about 400 m from the beach in 2 small dugout canoes to interact with us. They couldn’t speak English and we couldn’t speak their language but is was interesting to see them and they were interested to see us – these strange beings with coloured skulls, face masks, breathing pipes poking out from our heads and long rubber feet. The kids were only about 3 to 6 years old. Snorkeling photos will have to wait until we get a copy of the dive master’s photos.

Back on board we watched a 90 minute video on the Kokoda Track, a very moving film about the Kokoda campaign during World War 2. Suddenly it was dinner time, another delicious meal, giving us the opportunity to compare stories about the day’s activities. Just before bed we heard that the weather forecast for tomorrow is not looking good, which is a pity because tomorrow is the day for us to fly to Isurava Memorial on the Kokoda Track. We are scheduled for a 5:30 am flight so we decide on an early night.