Location
Lat 9° 44' 4S Long 147° 43' 29E Karekodobu village is located at an elevation of 413' / 125m inland from the coast of southern New Guinea. During 1942 a rough coastal road connected to the southern coast and a rough walking trail connectd to Kapa Kapa (Gabagaba). From this location began the Kapa Kapa Trail. Alternate wartime spelling of the village include "Karekodobu" or
Kalikodobu". Prewar and during the Pacific War part of the Territory of Papua. Today located in Central
Province in Papua New Guinea (PNG).
Wartime History
In early October 1942, the U.S. Army, 32nd Infantry Division established a Command Post (CP) under the direction of Major Baetcke at this location. Karekodobu was nicknamed "Kalamazoo" by the Americans because the actual name was hard to pronounce.
On October 14, 1942 nine hundred U.S. Army soldiers under the command by Lt. Col. Henry A
Geerds including the 32nd Infantry Division, 126th Infantry Regiment plus the 114th Engineer Battalion and 19th Portable
Hospital with several hundred native carriers began walking the Kapa Kapa Trail from this location. These men would
be the only U.S. personnel to walk across the Owen Stanley Range. The rest of the 32nd Division were flown aboard C-47 Skytrian to airfields developed on the north coast of New Guinea.
References
HyperWar: US Army in WWII: Victory in Papua pages 111-112
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Last Updated
March 31, 2025
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