Tuesday 14 April 1953 Menapi. Rain all A.M. 2 specimens in traps. Made them up and puttered about most of day. Ken gave 6 of the boys practice with shotguns. None of them can shoot except David. Len is planning top camp on Maneao and we all spent P.M. segregating material. Porter loads are to be about 35 lbs. So far I have 2 coll. boxes, 1 knock-down box (for specimens I hope to get), 2 swag bags with traps & tow, 1 ammo box & my personal clothes and bedding swag. No cots, tables or chairs on top. Plan to spend 1 month on top; 1 month at middle camp; 1 at low altitude; and 1 on coast. Then back to Samarai to re-outfit about middle of September. Menapi is not a very good collecting locality & things are getting slow. Most of flying foxes seem to have cleared out. Lucky we arrived when we did. "Ruru" leaves tomorrow about 8:30 A.M. Ken, Geoff & I & 15 boys going to Dabora for another visit to Tapitapipi Caves. Geoff is intrigued by the possibility of capturing a bottle-nosed snake in the cave. We walk home along coast. Ken, David & I out for bats at dusk but did not shoot any. Not a good bat night. David and I tried for flying squirrels-- saw 2 but could not collect. Traps in every corner of house tonight--no luck last night. Len had a nightmare: thought large rat bit his back, grabbed it by snout & yelled for me--woke up & found small beetle biting him! Isilele set new trap line today in rain forest N. of Rest House. Stars out for a while but raining again now. 80°F. Wednesday 15 April Menapi to Dabora. Bill Mason came over early to tell us that "Ruru" would leave at 7:00 A.M. for Goodenough Is. & would drop Geoff, Ken, myself and our 5 boys at Dabora for a few hours at Tapitapipi Caves. Engine missing but we got to Dabora o.k. Left our lunch at Rest House & climbed scarp to caves. No trouble finding them this time. Hill gave Geoff a bad time. Hope he can take Maneao. Have never seen anyone perspire like Geoff. Told boys I wanted only tiny bats this time--and how they went after them! We ended up with 174 bats of 5 species (126 alone of the small Miniopterus of which we coll. only 1 on first trip). Geoff's boys coll. spiders & insects. Trail very sloppy after 3 days of rain. Also visited main entrance. Large Dobsonia were hung up outside cave under big stalactites. All flew off into woods in bright sunlight. Very agile on wing. Had swim in ocean & then light lunch (tea, bread, banana). Started off for Menapi along beach trail alone since I wanted to watch birds. Saw fight between small lizard and spider. Coll. small snake in low grass at Banapa (new for coll.). Saw Patrick--asked him to try for Wallabies. Home at 4 P.M. (8 miles). Hot bath & shave. "Ruru" sailed home. Spent night pickling bats in formalin. Brings total to 385. Geoff did not find bottle-nosed snake in cave !(per Cruttwell's letter) Thursday 16 April Menapi. Threatening dark clouds in A.M. with a few drops of rain. Cleared & SE Trades began in P.M. Had all my skins out drying. Unpinned almost all. Caught small reddish rat in kitchen last night. 2 rats in trap lines. David jacked but found nothing. Government boat in today with Asst. District Officer. He came down from Samarai to see that all was well & to offer any aid possible. Much interested in our specimens. Boat returned to Baniara. Another Gov. boat seen going in to B.-- may have forest officer & Dutch botanist on board. Coming to visit us & study Len's botanical specimens technique. F. Off. may accompany us up Mt. Maneao. Ken pitched one of our good tents for their use. Boys and I spent all day skinning & making up bats & rats. Boys were skinning bats (small) for 1st time & they did a good job. Capt. Smith went by in his boat twice today but did not stop in at Menapi. Ken went down to look over "Ruru's engine--o.k. now.