Rick Lanyon

I trekked the Kokoda Track for the first time in 2007 with a group of mates from the Lilydale Football Club. Pete Condon was our tour guide on that trek and with his knowledge of the people that live along the track and of the history of the Kokoda campaign, Pete helped to make our experience a very rewarding one.

After that trip I decided I would do it again when my two sons were old enough to do it with me. So when the youngest turned 15, I started planning my return trip to Kokoda with my two boys and a group of misfits I call friends.

I had heard from a mate that was on the first treck with me that Pete had started his own tour company, so I contacted Pete and after our initial conversation I had no hesitation in booking the trip with Kokoda Brothers.

The staff at Kokoda Brothers were extremely helpful and very professional from start to finish and Pete, once again, made the challenging treck, a very memorable experience.

Trekking the Kokoda Track with my two sons is one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. I have since, recommended Kokoda Brothers to two close friends that have also booked their treck with Kokoda Brothers.

I have no hesitation in recommending Kokoda Brothers for an awesome trip.

Rick Lanyon

Fordy

I had a great uncle fight in New Guinea and another fight and die as a prisoner of war in Rabaul and for years had wanted to trek Kokoda as a thankyou on behalf of my family. I made the journey in July 2012 for what turned out to be the experience of a lifetime trekking through some of the most beautiful and harshest terrain in the world.

Special thanks must go to our trek leader Sav who in trying conditions, went to every effort to make our trek safe and enjoyable, but also help us learn what happened 70 years ago. Our group bonded extremely well making the experience even more enjoyable, for this I thank Sav and the local porters who do an amazing job, Nick (guide), Johnsy, Jonah, Guy, to name just a few.

Highlights for me included arriving in Kokoda, a place I had read so much about, the memorial at Isurava (including the last post), Kingsbury’s rock, Brigade Hill, arriving at the arches in Owers corner, and the things that everyone goes for; the mud, the hills, to sweat more than you think is possible, the laughs, the falls and more hills.

Also a big thanks to Jasmine and everyone at Kokoda Brothers for the detailed organisation of our trip, as well as the training sessions with Sav prior to departure.

And a HUGE thanks for the ice cold beers waiting for us at the finish line. The other groups didn’t look as satisfied with water.

See you again in 2014.

Fordy.

Trevor Ah Hang

 My father served on the track in 1942 and I thought that for some strange reason that if I could “walk a mile in his shoes” we could reach some sort of truce. We lost dad in ’99 but I still hadn’t moved on with a plan.

In some ways, being no different from anyone else, I procrastinated until I received an email from Autism Victoria in early 2010. There was interest in forming a group to trek to raise awareness of Autism and to grow the AV Resource Centre by 1000 items.

We formed and began fund-raising, training and equipping ourselves until a month or so before the trek when I was dropped from the group.  I’d lost my support base, my friends and familiar faces but still had my drive and so I cast around for another group.  I found a group but unfortunately the loss of everyone else left me struggling and I turned back after a day.  A day and a half later saw me back out, injured.

Bowed but not broken I kept training and looking closer to home for a better balanced firm that I felt would give me every benefit I would need.

After contacting Dominic of Kokoda Brothers and explaining my own needs as we arranged to meet.  I was the first Autistic to take on the track with them and there was as much to find out from me as I had from them.

Being locals I was able to meet Darren, the guide, and for both of us to lay out what we thought we would need of each other, above and beyond the average.  I was also able to meet and train with other members of the group and to contact some of the others.

The real work started on the ground in PNG, I had a personal porter, Guy (or Gai, check spelling), and worked closely with Jonnsie, the ‘Tail-End Charlie’, a real powerhouse. Jonah’s face appeared to help out whenever things got hardest and Nic, the head porter was there supervising what seemed a cast of thousands. Nic also seemed to have an intuitive grasp of the special needs of autism that is often unusual back here in Australia.

They held nothing back and I wish I could say the same. It was a matter of pride to Darren and the porters that “no-one gets left behind” and I was given every aide and assistance to complete the trek. Indeed, if it were not for the dedication and determination of the people employed by Kokoda Brothers, I would not have made it this time either.

Several events stand out as waypoints on my journey; The arches at Kokoda, the Memorial at Isurava, Brigade Hill, Ioribaiwa and Imita Ridges but the last 30 metres to walk through the arches at Owers Corner would be the crowning glory, that and being able to complete my first entry in the visitors book at Bomona War Cemetery, the entry that now reads “Started Oct 2011 … Completed July 2012”. 

Geoff Chandler

  Hiking the Kokoda track was the experience of a lifetime, it is something I can be proud of. My achievement in completing the track is something I find very humbling and something I can look back on with fond memories.

My father was Digger on the Kokoda Track during World War II. It was from this I gained my inspiration to one day complete the track, but I also wanted to gain an understanding of what he and his mates went through.
 
Before I left for Kokoda I celebrated my 50^th birthday. The Track was something I had always wanted to do, but for different reasons I was never given the ‘nudge’ to actually go through with it. So what gave me that nudge?? Twelve months ago my right leg was amputated just below the knee, I used Kokoda as motivation to complete my rehab, get my fittness back, and to re-earn my independence. To gain the fitness needed to complete the challenge was no easy task. I feared I was taking on too much too soon after my operation, but I had a good team behind me. The boys from ‘Kokoda Brothers’ were the main reason I could pursue my dream and it was through Peter, Dom, Jasmine and Matt’s fitness training that I was able to get the fitness and strength level I needed. For my success in completeing this trek,  I owe much to them.
 
Once at Kokoda,  Trav was my guide and the amount of help and guidance given to myself from him was something for which I will always be grateful. The track was physically challenging but more so mentally challenging.  There is no doubt it was the hardest thing I have ever done. In saying this, I loved every minute of of it and each night the satisfaction I gained from completing another day on the track was unexplainable.

I could not of asked for a better group of people to complete the track with. Everyone was kind and fun to be around, and they certainly enhanced the experience for me. Whether it was sitting down for tea after a long day on the track or belting out a tune while the group walked, I know I have gained 14 life long mates.
 
To anyone thinking of completing the track do not hesitate to contact me. The guys from ‘Kokoda Brothers’ were my main inspiration and the reason behind my success. With this I would like to extend a special thankyou to Trav, Peter and Matty who were especially inspiring to me along the journey from Geelong to Kokoda.

Geoff Chandler

Norma Shearer

What a physical and emotional challenge !! This will draw on your own resilience ... you will get tired, experience some pain and have a few strains. However as each day passes you will get physically fitter. Walking over the finishing post is like winning your biggest challenge ! Believe in yourself .. it is FANTASTIC !

Kokoda Brothers were very well organised throughout. All our questions were answered quickly and accurately. The food was excellent and they informed us what to expect and what to carry.

Norma

Geelong, Victoria (July 2011)