Back to Rabaul

We leave Port Moresby and our first stop is Rabaul. I enjoy seeing the place again. After hiring a vehicle we checking into the Commonwealth Department of Works hostel in town.

Rabaul Harbour in 1968

The following day, we drive to the wharf and pick up our crate of motor bearings and drive to the first job. It’s not an easy task, stripping down electrical motors in hot plant rooms, the task is tedious and quite frankly should never be done on a dirty plant room floor. Motors should be serviced and bearings changed on a proper work bench with proper tools and only when required. The fellow who insisted on having this clause in the contract was obviously a theoretical fellow and totally unaware of practical situations.

The occupiers of the buildings, mostly public servants, are not too happy about the situation either. The air conditioning is off for quite long periods while we strip down every motor. It’s far too hot in the Territory to have air conditioning off for such long periods.

It takes a while before we get the task down to a fine art. Phil is helping me, but it takes two people to strip a motor down, I’m beginning to see why Dave Scott told me it would take at least three months for us to complete this trip.

Jap tunnels in Rabaul

Someone suggests we have a look at the tunnels the Japanese built during the war while they occupied New Britain. So, Sunday we drive along the road to Kokopo and find the tunnels. Some still contain various Landing craft and other vessels in them. The tunnels dug into the mountain side seem to be endless, narrow and simply carved out of the mountain. Apparently that's where the Jap soldiers lived while they were in Rabaul.

With our torches, we explore these tunnels for some time, when deep inside, we hear a spooky sound, a bit like a wounded animal. Phil and I look at each other. 'What was that'? he asks, 'I don't know, I reply, we better get out of here'.

As we make our way back to the entrance, some bloke jumps out of a side tunnel in front of us. It  is a real 'change pants situation'. He laughs at us and is thrilled he scared the pants of us. He introduces himself as Ken Lyneham, a plumber from Sydney who works in Rabaul. When our heartbeats return to normal, he shows us the rest of the tunnels.

Jap craft in tunnel

Ken explains, due to the incredible pounding given to the Japanese base at Rabaul by aircraft from the air forces of USA, Australia, and New Zealand the Japanese defenders simply "dug in"!

The pumice hills of Rabaul were honeycombed with over 500 kilometres of tunnels, including 15 hospitals (one such being 4 kilometer in length, and having capacity for

2,500 patients). Indian P.O.W's captured at Singapore, and local inhabitants were used as labour for digging the tunnels - extreme hardships and many deaths resulted.

We go deeper into the tunnels and find the 4 kilometre hospital. The tunnels are very small and Philip who is tall finds it hard to walk in them and has to bend over like an old man. Ken and I manage better. It’s moments like these I don’t mind being on the short side. We spend a couple of hours wandering through the tunnels, taking pictures and when we finally exit and look back, Philip points out a couple of snakes just above our heads. It’s time to leave.