A Fond Farewell

Well, my time on Malekula has come to an end, and most of the new posts on this blog will probably come from someone other than myself. What can I say? It was a wild ride. After two years on the island, here are my recommendations when it comes to tourism in south Malekula:

Trekking along the south of the island is great, but there are some spots I would avoid. I think my ideal trip would be something like:

Day 1: (Monday) Fly into Lamap, and take a walk around the different villages. Lamap has a lot of custom still, and is a great place to see custom dancing simply because of the sheer number of participants. This can be arranged in advance if you contact Joseph Soksok (see the video clip or Lamap tourism link for more information). After half a day in Lamap arrange for a truck to take you to Aruev Bridge, and then do the short trek across to the village of Hokai. From Hokai a canoe or boat could be arranged to travel to Akamb Island.

Day 2: (Tuesday) Take an early boat back to the mainland, landing in Farun village (it is not far, and a canoe would be sufficient). Hike from Farun to Malfahkal village. This is a really nice hike with a lot of pristine beaches and smaller villages along the way.

Day 3: (Wednesday) Hike from Malfahkal to Southwest Bay. This hike can be accomplished in one day if you take the trail that leads up the Matanoi River, and then over a ridge. It would be best to have a local guide for this trip, but it would get you into Southwest Bay in time for a shell of kava and the plane on Thursday. It may be best to avoid the village of Melip due to ongoing concerns within the Vanuatu police community (marijuana farming), and this road would bypass that area.

Day 4: (Thursday) Catch the plane out of Southwest Bay (Wintua). If it is the rainy season odds are the plane will not be able to land. If this is the case boats can be arranged to go up the coast towards Vinmavis, near the 'dog's neck' where it is only a short truck ride to Lakatoro.

Alternative days:
Day 1: (Monday) Alternative route to Akamb. Take a canoe across Port Sandwich and hike to the Akamb canoe landing. This is a really fun hike. There are some difficult sections, and a tough climb, but once on top the road is generally good. If you go with some guides who hunt there are chances of them catching wild pigs.


Now that I have more computer time I hope to add some more pictures and tourism links.

Till next time.
Nt

Interesting Stuff, New Links!

There are two new links about Malekula! The first is ecoadventuremaskelyne.blogspot.com, which provides travel information to those interested in visiting the Maskelyne Islands in South Malekula. To get to the Maskelynes you could fly into Lamap (Vanair services Lamap on Mondays and Thursdays), or you could find a ship heading that way (variable to quite variable).

There is going to be a three day cultural festival starting on October 1st, which will include some of the custom dancing highlighted on this site.

"The festival will be hosted in a new village daily, and visitors will be taken to each village by the local village chief. There, visitors will witness Smol Nambas Kastom Dance, and will be invited to participate in interactive workshops and displays of weaving, carving, coconut scratching, canoe building and sailing amongst other cultural activities."

The second is http://members.shaw.ca/scombs/trv_main.html which is a guide to Rural Travel in Vanuatu. There are some particularly interesting sections on hiking around South Malekula, http://members.shaw.ca/scombs/letters/870807a.html and also the middle of Malekula, http://members.shaw.ca/scombs/kas_imar.html

There is also a section on Malekula itself, covering the geography, infrastructure, people, and economy, http://members.shaw.ca/scombs/mal_intr.html

A big thank you to Stan Combs for sharing this information which he compiled during his work on the island between 1987-1989 as a local government Regional Planner. Some things have changed, but I found a lot of the information was still relevant. It is worth checking out if you are planning on visiting Malekula.

Bush Waterfall Hike

The Malekula Hiking Trail Komiti is happy to announce a new overnight hike to a bush village and waterfall.



The hike goes to the bush village of Vanmai, and then on to a large waterfall.



Lamap to Waterfall Tour

Lamap to Vanmai

Distance: 7.33 km

Elevation: Flat

Difficulty: Easy

The trail starts on the opposite side of Port Sandwich. The trailhead can be reached by paddling a canoe across the inlet and entering a river on the other side. The trail goes through a coconut plantation, before meeting up with the main road that runs all the way down the east coast of the island. (note: Therefore, you could also take a truck to this point if a canoe is not available.) From here the trail goes past a village called Small Hokai, and crosses a river that you will have to wade. The trail is clear and wide, but can get muddy. Soft mud is a problem after heavy rains. Mosquitoes can also get heavy in through here. There is a large field that could be used to camp. A few people in Lamap have houses built out here, and keep a second garden in this area. You will pass a few before crossing the river again and reaching the village of Vanmai. A good idea is to sleep in this village. You can drop off most of your heavy belongings and then proceed to the waterfall with as little weight as possible.

Vanmai to Waterfall

Distance: 5.57km

Elevation: 300 m

Difficulty: Difficult

To proceed to the waterfall ask for a man named Ising. One of his children will be able to guide you on from here. The road heads into some steep and sometimes slippery terrain. It also becomes overgrown really quickly. Ising’s children are very adept with their bush knifes, and never seem to tire while cutting away the countless vines. The road leads to the top of the waterfall, and the road down is extremely steep. Make sure to use your hands and feet, even your bottom if necessary. If you time it right you can get a few hours at the falls and still make it back to Vanmai before nightfall. (If you ask there will certainly be a bowl of kava to take away the stiff joints from the walk.)

Total Distance from Lamap to the Waterfall and back to Vanmai is 18.47 km.

The entire experience costs 3,500 vatu per tourist and includes guides to the waterfall, a nights stay in Vanmai village (in a custom house, or in a tent if you choose to bring one), food and kava.

New Maps!

A special thanks to Steven G. Clegg, the executive director of the non-profit VOLCAN Vanuatu, for helping us turn the GPS points taken along the trail into hiking maps.

For more information on VOLCAN and their projects please check out the website:
http://www.volcan.org/home.html

The maps can be found in the sidebar under the Malekula Hiking Trail Maps heading. Please keep in mind due to weather and other factors trail routes can sometimes change. It is recommended you use local guides before attempting any hikes on Malekula.

Man Bush Walk

This is another option for hiking on Malekula. The trail starts near the Pankumu River on the Unua side. Our guide was from a village called Tisman, but they could probably be found in Unua as well. It is not recommended to try this entire walk on your own, you could, however, probably hike to Melkin on your own if you got someone to put you one the right road.

After Melkin the road becomes very difficult. There is a huge climb out of the river valley that at points seems straight up. It is, however, very beautiful and the village you end up in, Lambongbong, is spectacular. (It was also very humbling to learn that some villagers from Lambongbong had recently carried a generator over the road we just slipped and slided up and down for 6 hours! That is a pretty amazing feat.)

We had to find another guide in Lambongbong to steer us the rest of the way to Lawa. This is an amazing hike, with a very impressive waterfall when you reach the Matanoi river. There are three climbs, but none as severe as the previous day. The biggest one is right after the Matanoi river crossing. The river is a perfect spot to rest to get ready to head up hill again. After Lawa we took a boat for 1,500 vatu to sleep in a village near Wintua. There is an aid station in Wintua that has antibiotics if you happen to get any infections along the journey.

Here is the basic rundown:


Day One:
Unua to Melkin

9.32 km

Elevation 94 meters


Time

Walking: 2 hr. 15 min.

Resting: 30 min.

Total 2 hr. 45 min.

Notes:

Easy walk. The road is good and clear. The village is currently working to widen the road so that trucks can pass. You cross the Paunkumu 12 times, so a lot of river crossings. Most crossings are shallow, rarely over thigh high. Heavy rains could make the road unpassable.

Accomodation:

Stayed at the Melken woman's club. Simple. Mats were placed on the floor for bedding, and food was included. Only 100 vatu per person.

Day Two:

Melken to Labongbong

17.39 km

Elevation 840 meters (finish at 540 m)

Time

Walking: 6 hrs.

Resting: 2 hrs.

Total 8 hrs.

Notes:

Difficult. One very steep climb that gains over 500 meters of elevation very quickly. There are some river crossings early on, and also areas with soft mud. There is a fresh water source after the big climb.



Day Three:

Labongbong to Lawa

15.19 km

Time

Walking: 5 hr. 30 min.

Resting: 1 hr.

Total 6 hr. 30 min.

Notes:

Moderate to Difficult. Lots of mud. Three climbs, including one steep one after you cross the Matanoi river. Gains 300 meters of elevation in less than a kilometer. There is a large waterfall at the river, which is amazing. After Lawa we chartered a boat (1,500 vatu) and slept in a small village near Wintua.

Custom Dance, Lamap, Malekula

There is a new custom dance group in Lamap. If you are interested in seeing a custom dance here is the contact information! See below for a preview!

Kastom Danis

Mahah Barigai Nakamal
Joseph Soksok
Dravai Village
5435722

Ol Danis:
Wenbur Masive: 40,000 vatu
Luan Sirsir: 30,000 vatu
Luan Vewve: 25,000 vatu
Boulon: 20,000 vatu
Lele: 8,000 vatu
Barghari: 7,000 vatu
Waeve: 6,000 vatu
*The price is for groups and includes the cost of entry into a taboo area (a pig). Food is also included.
*Praes hemi blong ol grup mo hem i karvaremap ol kakae. Ol danis ia hemi ol tabu danis.

Souvenirs
Custom Karving: i stat long 5,000 vatu
Bigfala Tamtam: i stat long 10,000 vatu

Kastom Danis, Lamap Malekula