Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

Part-way up the biggest incline on the fourth day, my legs start to feel it. I
pause and raise my eyes along the steep muddy jungle track to a misty
clearing at the top where some porters have gathered to wait for us. Apes
Turia, the 49-year-old head porter, pulls his acoustic guitar from the side of his
pack; this is his 104th Kokoda trek. As he strums a few chords and sings in his local
dialect, the other porters join in. Their perfect harmonies melt down the
mountainside and through the canopy, scooping us all up, somehow delivering us
to the peak, beaming and momentarily ache-free. There is no better way to reach
this mountaintop here; somehow the music captures the trek and the landscape
perfectly, and adds poignancy to the moment we emerge. We’re greeted by a
breathtaking view back through the valley, small villages dotting an infinite number
of greens that perforate the blue horizon.