The Black Cat Trail.
This goes from wau to salamaua. it was used before world war ii during the goldrush and during the war some of the bloodiest battles were fought along it. the scars of the war remain and live mortars, munitions, plane wrecks, and huge bomb craters can be seen. the trek should take four to five days. it is tough 8-9 hours walk each day, with hospitality in villages that have little other contact with the outside world. there is an abundance of wildlife and magnificent flora and fauna. the trail is almost always followed from wau to salamaua, allowing you to reach salamaua on the last day with a recuperative rafting trip down the francisco river. treks are organized by png trekking (http://www.pngtrekking.co...).
The Bulldog Trail.
Although this trail is rich in history it is only now being commercially developed and the villagers along the trail have had little exposure to trekkers to date. following their defeats at buna and kokoda, japanese forces fell back to lae. they then ventured south towards wau, looking for another route to port moresby. there was fierce fighting between lae and wau with australian troops being supplied by porters carrying food and munitions to wau from port moresby along the bulldog trail. this trek is for experts only and can be organized by png trekking (http://www.pngtrekking.co...).