Where was the new road?  Did it exist in this part of the Highlands?  Was I that far off track?  I really didn't know.  And 25 years later looking at maps, I still can't determine the exact route that I took from Mt. Hagen to this point of the journey.

I was no longer on a narrow trail, but an actual dirt road that looked like it had been there forever.  There were no loose rocks, and actual bridges, funky as they may be, crossed rivers and streams.  For the past ten days on the trail. I encountered maybe a dozen people a day, but here I pedaled past huts, groups of people gathered on the side of the road and stragglers popping out of the jungle when it seemed like no one was around.
Surprisingly there was absolutely nothing to buy; no food, no souvenirs, no advice, just a bunch of people suddenly freaked out by what/who was pedaling by.