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Hi rintin,
I had a knee injury when I did the track. I only walked from Kokoda to Isurava and back to Kokoda and can honestly say that I doubt that could undertake the whole track. In my training, I did a lot of leg weights, to build up the muscles around my knee as I have cartlidge and ligament damage. i wore a knee brace ( make sure it is a good one) and took plenty of panadol. I can't take anti-inflamatry's though I have heard they are really good. I also started on a course of Fish Oil and Glucosamine, which did seemed to help. the only real advise I can give you is to take it slowly, I found going down soooooo much harder than going up! I got 'laughing' knees, where they just start to shake, then suddenly go out from under you. I didn't have alot of time to properly prepare for the track, which I think was a problem as well, so do alot of hill and stair work, as well as weights. i also found that Tiger Balm helped at night, but I did develope a rash from the heat of the knee brace and the tiger balm during the day, so I had to make sure I washed the area in the morning before I put the knee brace on.
Yes, our knees take a lot of punishment when walking the track and its the most common thing mentioned by trekkers when they return, most do not like the down hills.
As for me personally, it took at least three months after walking before I felt my knees were back to normal. When on the track itself about the half way point I started to feel my knees and started taking some 'Stop Pain' tablets I bought over the shelf at a chemist here in Port Moresby before I headed out.
On the 8th Feb this year I fell over on a block of land at Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast and broke my ankle quite badly. Its now December and I was only saying yesterday that its the first time I have been walking around that I have not been reminded of my ankle.
So I guess our bodies just need time to heal when we put ourselves through stressful situations. Only one or two have written to me and said they thought they could not do it again because of their knees. So I guess its the same for me, I know I could walk the track again with a couple of months training and I know my knees will go through the same pain. However, what I got out of walking the track far out weighed any physical pain I felt. Its hard to explain before you head out but once you have completed your trek you will know what I am trying to say.
Like here we are in the best of health, with the best equipment, heaps of food; best boots we can afford to buy etc and to think of our diggers who were ill prepared; well it puts anything we feel into perspective and we all come back feeling so proud we completed our mission but in so much admiration of what they went through.
Make sure you get used to wearing a stretchable knee brace which are easily found at a chemist shop and that it is the correct size; that you walk with a good walking stick (which we supply); have some pain killers to ease the pain and you should be ok. The main thing is to train a lot before you come to make sure your knee will hold up and to obtain an opinion from your local GP or specialist.
I would get an opinion from a good Physio/doctor as the knees tend to bear the brunt of the punishment
I walked the trail in '06 and asked my brother in law at the last moment (4 weeks from departure) if he wanted to come. He was sporting an "Old Knee injury" at the time but some intense physio got him across the trail without a problem.
Good luck
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