#3: [13-Nov-15]

#1: [31-Oct-01]

12-Jan-2012 -- The story starts at 43°S 147°E and continues from 8°S 113°E.

Travelling in Indonesia was great - for a certain amount of time. At one point we felt like going somewhere totally different. And suddenly the idea of visiting New Caledonia was born. We spontaneously booked a flight and two days later we were off to Nouméa, New Caledonia's capital city. With a rental car, we went around La Grande Terre, the main island of the archipelago.

On the third day, we started from the town Bourail (80 km south of CP). We followed the coastal road RT1 up to Pouembout and then took the Transversale Kone - Tiwaka (RPN1). This road crosses the mountain ranges from the south-western to the north-eastern coast. The nice property of this road: its smallest distance to the confluence is only 400 m.

We first went into a side road that the first visitors must have taken. Although this side road comes as close as 150 m to the confluence point, we didn't use it as our base. The reasons were that we had to cross a steep canyon and secondly there was a residential area. Convincing property owners that strangers need to cross their land for a confluence visit can be cumbersome. So we went back to the main road and parked at the minimal distance of 400 m. From there, I found a footpath that helped us to get down to a distance of 60 m. It was extremely hot and the hike was exhausting. When the path ended and bushwalking appeared to be necessary, Elionora let me do the final approach alone.

The precise location of the confluence is marked by a giant bamboo bush. Behind the bamboo, i.e. almost at the valley bottom there is a tall, thin Araucaria tree. The confluence is on a slope with high grass and agaves. 20 m further up, there is a nice view into the mountains.

We went back the same footpath that we had come. Back to the road we took a cooling bath in the little river and had our lunch at the picnic area (Aire Aménagée) just 600 m from the confluence point. Later, we went further north to see the Cœur de Voh and the northern tip of the island.

CP Visit Details:

• Distance to an asphalt road: 400 m
• Distance to a footpath: 60 m
• Distance of car parking: 400 m
• Time to reach CP from car parking: 30 minutes
• Time at CP: 1:15 PM
• Measured height: 76 m
• Minimal distance according to GPS: 0 m
• Position accuracy: 5 m
• Topography: mountainous
• Vegetation: bamboo, high grass, agaves, araucarias, palm trees
• Weather: sunny, 38° C (felt temperature)
• Given Name: The Grande Terre Confluence

More pictures of the trip can found at mautz.net.

The story continues at confluence 15S 167E.