Varirata National Park

Varirata was declared in 1973 as the first national park in Papua New Guinea, covering around a thousand hectares on the Sogeri escarpment at eight hundred metres above Port Moresby, with rainforest, savanna and grassland and a lookout on the edge giving a view over the coastal plain and out to the sea. It is the most accessible birding site in the country: raggiana birds-of-paradise display at leks within the park, along with brown sicklebills, paradise kingfishers, hornbills and around a hundred and fifty other species, and the trails are short and marked, which is unusual here. Tree kangaroos and wallabies occur. Facilities are basic and the park is best visited with a guide.

What you'll find

• Raggiana bird-of-paradise - the display leks within the park.
• The escarpment lookout - the view over Port Moresby and the coast.
• Rainforest trails - the marked walking routes through the park.
• Savanna and grassland - the drier vegetation on the plateau.

When to go

May to October in the drier season for the trails; birds display early and dawn is the time to be at the leks. The wet season from November to April makes tracks difficult.

What to expect

Facilities are minimal and the park has been through periods of neglect. A guide is effectively necessary to find the display leks. The road up from Port Moresby is winding and best driven in daylight. Wildlife other than birds is rarely seen.

Nearby

The Sogeri plateau lies beyond; Port Moresby is southwest.

Key facts