ANZAC Day Kokoda.
Should You Do It?

With about 1/3 of all trekkers taking on Kokoda during the ANZAC period, the Track can get very busy. That’s 1000 trekkers. Especially when you have groups of 20, 30 or even 50 plus (that’s trekkers only and doesn’t include their support teams).

Campsites are over flowing, and tensions can rise between trekkers (so un-Australian). Things can get ugly.

With so many trekkers, the Track gets torn up and campsites muddy. Oh and the the rainy season usually stays until May making matters worse.

BOMANA IS BUSY TOO
Bomana War Cemetery gets very busy and while getting there is usually ok, believe it or not, a traffic jam usually ensues leaving the site, joining with peak hour traffic. Don’t be alarmed if it takes 2 to 3 hours to get back to your hotel even though it only took you 15 minutes to get to the cemetery earlier in the day.

WITH SO MANY PEOPLE ON THE TRACK, SERVICE USUALLY DROPS

When you have a group of 40 or 50 trekkers, there is no way in the world the local teams can cater for them as well as if it were a much smaller group. Personal service drops off, as you would expect.

LOCAL TEAMS ARE SO BIG THAT MANY ARE NOT EVEN FROM THE KOKODA TRACK

Companies that run large groups over the Anzac period, are often full of local porters from places other than the Kokoda Track. Many are from the northern beaches and some are even from the highlands. This can cause friction among the trekking teams, with many of these temporary team members under trained and simply not ready to help on the trail.

HOW DO YOU OVERCOME THESE ISSUES?

To do Kokoda during the ANZAC Day period can be one of the most rewarding journeys of your life. But you have to do it the right way. Many of these problems can be fixed by simply keeping your group size to a manageable level.

KEEP THE GROUP SIZE SMALL, A MAXIMUM OF 14 IS PERFECT.

14 trekkers seems to be the perfect number for a group.

This ensures the following:

Campsite selection is widened as you can camp almost anywhere, so away from large groups.

Local teams are from the Kokoda Track, no ring ins.

Personal service is possible because the local teams are not overwhelmed by a large group.

Local Teams are cohesive providing a better service all round.

As for the Bomana Dawn Service, there isn’t much anyone can do with the traffic.

TO GO OR NOT TO GO, THAT IS THE QUESTION!

Trekking an ANZAC Day Kokoda is an incredible experience. It is an emotional, spiritual and physical journey for many Australians. And being at Bomana War Cemetery on ANZAC day is a moving experience. But keep in mind, if you don’t like crowds, either go with a company that takes small groups OR go at another time of the year (it’s just as amazing, trust us).

For more about the Kokoda Track got to our Kokoda Trail page.