Wewak is a sleepy tropical town, with a small hotel and
an airport. Its attraction stems from its function as gateway
to visit the mighty Sepik river and its ancient cultures,
or to board a liveaboard dive cruise.
The Hermit Islands and the Ninigo Group have some of PNG's
most excellent diving as has been documented on video and
in a book through Cousteaus cruise in 1988 ("Cousteaus
Papua New Guinea Journey").
The area is one of the most remote parts in PNG. Currently
there is one option to dive here, with the live aboard vessel
"The Golden Dawn".
The water temperature is warm throughout the year due to
the proximity to the equator. Isolated island groups, atolls
and a rich WWII history are the features of cruises that
start up here.
Best month of the year to dive these waters are between
June and September. Visibility is 90 feet plus, but on good
days you can even experience 200 feet. Water Temperatures
are around 30 C (86 F), so a lycra or very thin neoprene
suit will be enough.
The air temperatures are fairly moderate, given that you
are close to the Equator. A constant breeze holds temperatures
down at a comfortable 30 C (86F).
Divers should be experienced to fully enjoy the diving
in this region.
How To Get There
Wewak is at the northern shore of PNG's main island and
its only access is by sea or air. Flying time from Port
Moresby is approx 100 minutes. Wewak is accessed by daily
flights from Madang, Mt. Hagen and Port Moresby on Air Niugini
F28 services.
Diving
There is no land based dive operator in the area. The
only way to dive is onboard live aboard vessel "Golden
Dawn". She offers dive trips in this area between June
and September each year.
Expect some exciting drift dives and a bit of wreck diving
as well. Around Ninigo and Hermit Islands you can experience
atoll style diving in calm, warm water with great visibility.
Lots of big pelagic fish and untouched reefs in clear water.
There is a lot of variety in diving on the northern
excursions. The cruise visits very remote Islands, which
have almost no contact to the life on the main island. They
can only be accessed by boat and life is pretty much like
it has been for the last hundred years.
Large pods of Orcas are coming to this area regularly during
August and September. Of course dives with Orcas cannot
be guaranteed, as nothing is 100% predictable in nature,
but the chances for Orca-spotting is there. Additionally
chances are even better for Dolphins. Everyone loves to
swim with a pod of a hundred Dolphins at a site called Dolphin
Pass. Close to one reef near Hermit Islands is a channel
which is home to a family of approximately 10 dolphins.
Like the ones in Honduras they are very curious to check
out divers. Enjoy!
Around Ninigo and Hermit Islands one finds a lot of variety
of big marine creatures like sharks and rays. All kinds
of rays are common here, such as Eagle Rays, Bull Rays,
Mobilat Rays, and Manta Rays.
At the start or end of the cruise you will have the opportunity
to dive the wreck of "India Maru", a legendary
Japanese cargo ship which sank off Wewak during WWII.
For many years its location was unknown. It was thought
that the "India Maru" had the entire gold of the
British Crown on board, which was taken by the Japanese
after the fall of Singapore. There was a lot of excitement
when the first divers explored the wreck in late eighties.
No gold was found. It is however a beautiful dive site
as the old steel blends in with the new structures built
by the coral during the past 50 years. It's a great dive
even for those divers who usually are not enthusiastic about
wrecks. Many species of scorpion fish can be found here,
as well as ghost pipefish and frogfish.
Other Activities
The small coastal town of Wewak is on the northern shore
of PNG's main island. Wewak is a good starting point for
excursions along the mighty Sepik River with its ancient
culture famous for magnificent wood carvings.
About 425 000 people live on and close to the shore of
the mighty Sepik River, one of the great rivers of the world.
The Sepik River is to PNG what the Amazon River is to South
America. The people on the Sepik River live a very secluded
subsistance live, dominated by their ancient believes and
cultures.
The artefacts produced by these people are amongst the
most beautiful in PNG. The spirit houses (Haus Tambaran)
in the Sepik villages are fascinating, as are the many different
cultures in the area.
Live Aboard Vessels
Accommodation
Independent
