Norton’s Kokoda
More
than 60 years after WWII, ‘doing Kokoda’ has become an Australian
pilgrimage. The site of bitter fighting in extreme conditions, it has
taken on legendary status not only as a war story, but because of the
sheer physicality of the track. More than 3000 pilgrims walked the track
this year and UniSA’s Professor Kevin Norton was one of them.
The track runs for 96km through dense rainforest, boggy swamps, tall grassland, and rises to over 7,000 feet at its highest point. The slopes are steep with narrow uneven footholds and paths often less than a metre wide above sheer cliffs. Daily tropical rainstorms ensure slippery conditions. On one day the track runs through smelly, ankle-deep swamp for up to 10 hours. Hazardous river crossings are also a feature. Mainly ex-footballers, our group completed the walk in 7.5 days and I followed them measuring their physical work. Each walker performed health and fitness testing in the laboratory before heading off to New Guinea and all were allocated a heart rate monitor to wear on the walk.
"Their average weight loss was around five kilos, with one person losing almost 12kg – generally the largest people lost the most weight. Everyone lost their appetite as they succumbed to the heat and oppressive tropical conditions. Quality sleep was scarce. The energy expended in climbing the steep slopes, carrying water and other provisions was enormous.
Studies show that for health benefits we should try to expend at least 150 kilocalories (kcal) per day – about 30 minutes of walking. A very intense exercise session for an hour in the gym might require up to 600kcal.
On the Kokoda track, where days stretch to between seven and 11 hours of walking, the energy required averaged 4,200kcal per day. On the first day the energy used was almost 6,000kcal per person. This massive rate of energy use is not much under the energy required by the Tour de France cyclists, 6000kcal per day for 21 days. To lose one kilo of fat requires 9,000kcal of energy use. Kokoda required burning off about a kilo of fat every two days. Coupled with a loss of appetite, it’s easy to see how each person could lose five kg over the eight days. You can’t underestimate the preparation required for the walk. The week before our trek, a group had eight of 11 air-lifted out because of dehydration and extreme fatigue.
"Doing Kokoda is an extremely demanding walk both mentally and physically. The knowledge that previous generations of Australians had covered the same paths and had fought and died there kept us going.