This part of the Arfak Mountains in Papua is untouched by modern development and therefore, very pure and special in its own. Only one small village lies high in these imposing, mountains. It’s surroundings hide a great variety of wildlife which is unique to the world. The terrains are still very untouched so no roads lead to this part of the Arfak Mountains. Therefore, the challenging and thrilling trek to your basic base camp is the only way to get there. You need to have a good physical condition for this tour.
Our driver will pick you up from the airport in Manokwari and transfer you to your hotel. If needed, personal supplies can easily be bought in Manokwari as it is a medium sized town with good facilities. During the trekking we will boil water from a nearby spring. If you wish to, please bring water purifiers for your own health and safety. These can not be bought in Papua.
In the afternoon you can visit Mansinam island, known as the ‘holy’ island. This island is important to most Papuans because Christianity was first introduced there in 1855 by 2 German missionaries, Ottow & Geisler. The religion has spread out all over Papua ever since. Another interesting fact is that the British naturalist and biologist Alfred Russel Wallace writes in his journal dated back to 1858 that he met with these 2 missionaries. At that time, Wallace was on an exploring expedition along the coasts of New Guinea. During his expedition, he also visited Arfak Mountains and observed the jungle's playground. The story of these 3 man comes alive when you visit Mansinam Island. On the hill top of Mansinam island stands a big Jesus Christ statue and from there, you have a beautiful view of the magnificent mountains.
Your guide to Arfak will pick you up at the hotel. Departure time is at 4.30am. We will drive about an hour on a good coastal road alongside the mountains and dense jungle of Arfak. Mupi beach village is the starting point of our trekking and there we will meet our porters. They will carry the food. In case you need a personal porter to carry your personal bag, you should let us know upfront.
The trekking: We start walking at 6am. The first half an hour is easy. We walk on a flat terrain to the foot of the mountain. After that you will climb 1.5 hours in steep conditions to reach the top. In the following 1.5 hours after that, the terrain becomes flat with some doable climbs and starts to descent until we reach Mupi River. You will have a short break to refresh yourself with the cool water of the river. The next hour from Mupi river is mainly flat with the last part a steep descending to the point where we meet again the Mupi river. Lunch will be set on the river and you also have a possibility to walk to a beautiful waterfall which is approximately 20 minutes away. From the waterfall, it is a rough and steep climb of 2 hours to your final destination: Mupi Mountain village on 1350m above the sea level. Arrival will be at the end of the day.
The following days are reserved to explore the jungle's playground. The villagers are people from the jungle and with the help of their knowledge we will be able to find a great range of different species special to Papua. The difficulity of the tracks to great birding sites will vary from moderate to challenging. You will have a full day of jungle exploration each day. The porters will bring lunch picnic style to the sites where you are, so you don't have to walk all the way back to your base camp.
Birds of Paradise and more:
When weather conditions are good, there is a very good chance that you will see the birds. The male comes back every day to their nest or playground and make the necessary preparations to impress the females. The Birds of Paradise are known for their beautiful feather colours and original dance performance. The Bowerbird is known as an impressive architecture, building complext nests.
Just a short example list of other bird species that have been heard and/or spotted:
After breakfast we will start to descend the same way down the mountain. In the end of the afternoon we will arrive back to Manokwari. A refreshing shower and good sleep in in the hotel will be rewarding after spending the days under primitive conditions in the jungle.
Our driver will transfer you from your hotel to the Airport.
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