At the foot of Saruwaged Range

By MALUM NALU
HOBUC, about 20km northeast of Lae, at the foothills of the Saruwaged Range, is the stomping ground of Tourism Promotion Authority chairman and Nawaeb MP Kennedy Wenge.
It’s a beautiful place, which commands panoramic views of the Huon Gulf, under the grandeur of the majestic and mysterious Saruwaged.
Hobuc supplies some of the best fruit and vegetables to Lae.
To come up here, you drive to Bumayong, cross the Busu Bridge, and drive further inwards.
In 1995, while working in Lae as a young reporter with The National, the Busu came roaring down from the Saruwaged and swept the bridge away like a matchstick.
Morobe singer KDumen sang about that incident in his famous song Wara Busu.
The memories come rushing back.
You turn left from the Lae-Bukawa Road and head towards Hobuc.
The Saruwaged stretches all the way to Finschhafen, Tewai-Siassi and Kabwum.
This area has been made famous by Australian Coastwatcher, Peter Ryan, in his bestselling book Fear Drive My Feet.
Fear Drive My Feet tells of the exploits of Ryan during the dark days of WWII.
Ryan, who was just 18, started at Wampit, crossed the Markham River, and then followed the Erap into the Saruwaged to spy on Japanese troop movements in an unforgettable WWII epic.
The book tells of his cat-and-mouse game with the Japanese.
It’s a glorious Saturday morning, on the immaculate grounds of Nawaeb High School, as I stand here mesmerised by the view before me.
It’s all “wow”.
I send up my DJI Spark drone to capture the magnificent scenery in pictures and video.
I am here with Wenge, Hudson Lavari and Joel Ombo of the TPA, and Defol Jabbar of Morobe Tourism Bureau.
Wenge, the perfect host, extols the virtues of Nawaeb, Morobe and Papua New Guinea.
“Tourism in my electorate is like a pool of still water,” he tells me.
“You throw a stone and the ripples spread.
“We have so much to offer to tourism.”
Wenge points to the towering mountains behind us.
“We are just next to the Saruwaged,” he says.
“I want to establish a national park on the border with Kabwum.
“I want a road to be built from here, into the Saruwaged, which will be declared as a national park for tourists
“There will be tree kangaroos and so much flora and fauna to see.”
Wenge is also keen for a lookout to be established for visitors to enjoy the view from the clouds.
“From the top, you can look north, south, east and west,” he says.
“You can see the city of Lae and look all the way down to the border with Oro (Northern).
“I have already cut 14km of road into the mountains, starting from the high school.
“At the same time, there are other attractions like war relics including a plane wreck, magnificent waterfalls and rivers.
“During the war, the Japanese operated between here and Kabwum, so we can also attract Japanese tourists.
“The early Lutheran missionaries also walked these mountains all the way into the Highlands, so that’s another attraction.”
Wenge says Nawaeb is just next to Lae so visitors can come and enjoy all that it has to offer.
“Tourists can come here, stay with the people and enjoy,” he says.
“We Morobeans are known for being good hosts.
“I give you my word that nothing will happen to visitors here.”
Wenge says Morobe as a whole has so much to offer, starting with the islands.
“We have our main island of Siassi,” he says.
“Siassi is made up of one main island (Umboi) and many smaller, outlying islands.
“We also have smaller islands leading down to the border with Oro, and leading towards Finschhafen.
Wenge also wants tourists to live with people in the villages, rather than staying in hotels in town.
“There is nothing that they should be worried about, as we Morobeans are good hosts,” he says.
“Tourism is an industry that puts money directly into the pockets of people and should be encouraged.
“I am glad to be chairman of tourism in this country as I am very keen on promoting the industry.
“We are a wonderful country, however, have not fully tapped into tourism.”
Wenge says tourism can flourish in PNG if everyone takes ownership.
On our way back, we stop at the Busu Bridge, to marvel as this mighty river as it makes its way down to the sea at Yanga village in Lae.
Poetry in motion.