Aola was entered on 30 October and airdrops there alleviated supply problems as the Australian line-of-communication extended from Myola. On 2 November, a patrol of the 2/31st Battalion entered Kokoda and found that it had been abandoned. Vasey had re-gained access to the village's vital airstrip which helped relieve the pressure on the supply chain which had largely relied upon Papuan carriers. The two brigades then fought the final battle of the campaign around Oivi and Gorari between 4 and 11 November 1942. After this, the Japanese abandoned most of their artillery and completed their withdrawal across the Kumusi River, falling back to Buna and Gona, where heavy fighting followed in December 1942 and January 1943.