Walking Myself Back to Confidence: What a 96 Kilometre Kokoda Trek Taught Me About Strength, Support and Starting Again

Earlier this year I walked the 96 kilometre Kokoda Track at a time when my confidence had taken a hit I wasn’t prepared for. I had just been made redundant. I was doubting everything. And I was carrying a heaviness I couldn’t seem to shake no matter how many “plans” I tried to make.

I didn’t realise it then, but I was stepping into an experience that would strip my world back to the essentials and rebuild me in ways I didn’t see coming.

Beam Media published my story this month, and reading it reminded me of all the details I had pushed aside once life sped back up again.

You can read the full feature here:
https://beaminbusiness.com/beam-media/how-a-96-kilometre-kokoda-trek-rebuilt-a-north-queensland-womans-confidence/

But there are parts of the journey that deserve a deeper reflection.
Here is the version I get to tell in my own words.

The trek began with more fear than strength

I arrived in Papua New Guinea with impending rain, a backpack that felt heavier than it should, and the sinking feeling that I wasn’t ready for any of it.

From the first climb, Kokoda demanded honesty.
The mud swallowed my boots.
The tree roots towered like steps built for giants.
My mind was loud with all the insecurities I had been ignoring.

I don’t have a job.
I’m not fit enough.
I’m not good enough to be here.

I cried more in those first days than I expected. There is nowhere to hide on that track. No distraction. No performance. Just you, your thoughts, and the next slippery metre ahead.

Then came the day everything shifted

Day 4 took me through Nauro Swamp and across Brown River.

Black mud. Heavy legs. Hours of walking almost entirely alone.
The only constant was Joshua, my porter, who stayed a few quiet steps behind me.

Joshua spoke very little English, but he understood everything that mattered.

He pulled me up gently when I would have pushed too far.
He made sure I drank water when I tried to ignore how tired I was.
He gave me space when I needed it and support when I didn’t know how to ask.

There was a moment on that day when I thought, I can’t do this.
But I kept walking.
And when I finally climbed into camp long after the others, something extraordinary happened.

The whole group began cheering.
Clapping.
Celebrating like I was a rockstar.

I was too exhausted to feel proud, but they carried that moment for me.
And something cracked open.

The power of not walking alone

From the next morning onward, I was never alone again.
Other trekkers walked beside me.
They shared stories.
They paced their steps with mine.

The group I went on this adventure with stayed with me the entire rest of the trip. We crossed the finish line together. I will remember that feeling for the rest of my life.

Kokoda changed my definition of strength.
It isn’t stoic.
It isn’t silent.
It isn’t about carrying everything without breaking.

Strength is letting people in.
It is accepting help before you fall apart.
It is choosing to face the hard things knowing you don’t have to hold them alone.

What I carried home

I went to Kokoda feeling uncertain, small, and shaken by a chapter that ended before I was ready.

I came home with something entirely different.

A steadiness I did not know I had lost.
A belief that I could take the next step, even when I wasn’t sure of the one after that.
A quiet confidence that grew out of community, care and shared hardship.

Those lessons shaped how I now lead, how I support others, and how I built The COO Hub.
Not with perfection.
Not with pressure.
But with the same rhythm Kokoda taught me.
One step.
One decision.
One moment of courage at a time.

Why I’m sharing this now

Publishing the story with Beam in Media reminded me of something important.
We don’t always realise when we’re rebuilding ourselves.
Sometimes the transformation only becomes clear when someone else reflects it back to us.

If you’d like to read the Beam Media feature, it’s here:
https://beaminbusiness.com/beam-media/how-a-96-kilometre-kokoda-trek-rebuilt-a-north-queensland-womans-confidence/

And if my story lands with you, I hope it reminds you of this
You are allowed to fall apart and still finish.
You are allowed to accept help.
And you are allowed to begin again with a confidence that looks softer, steadier and far more real than before.