Lost bushwalker found

p1 said :

ThatUniStudent said :

…between Nursery swamp and Ron Day View creek and…

Love the spelling of rendezvous.

🙂

…Ron Day …mate of Paddy Pallin’s

ThatUniStudent said :

…between Nursery swamp and Ron Day View creek and…

Love the spelling of rendezvous. 🙂

ThatUniStudent said :

The smart bloke decided it would be fun to hide their camp and camo up the tent then half an hour later could not find it and ended up walking out that night. When we went back the following summer the tent was no longer there not surprisingly.

That is hilarious!

Maps are wonderful things. But so is a sense of direction. I have explored in Namadgi for over 10 years now without carrying a map, compass or GPS. But I am one of the lucky few who has an unfailing sense of direction, and am just good at remembering where I have been. It is gresat to wander along the barely discernable track between Nursery swamp and Ron Day View creek and tell my mates, it’s okay, we’re not lost, in about 50 metres there will be a fallen log / pile of rocks etc and sure enough there is. There are some unoffical tracks that are barely marked where people get lost on. The one between Nursery and RDV creeks is a bad one. When people get to Hadley’s Hope they just tend to get lost. There has been three searches down that valley that I know of. About 4 years ago a mate of mine and his missus went camping out there overnight and got lost. The smart bloke decided it would be fun to hide their camp and camo up the tent then half an hour later could not find it and ended up walking out that night. When we went back the following summer the tent was no longer there not surprisingly.

One word.

Map.

Learn how they work.

Well its not that easy – I cant work out the correct gestures to zoom in properly on a small screen…..Actually I bet the bloke’s wife may have taught him a lesson or two afterwards about map carrying and reading.

>>This is turning in to a geek-bash-fiesta, isn’t it? Why no support for GPS…
Nothing wrong with GPS, just don’t rely on it as a primary means of navigation. I’ve had many experiences over the years (hiking, driving and flying aeroplanes) where my location as reported by the GPS (some of them very expensive units) was just plain *wrong*, not inaccurate, totally wrong. Coronal Mass Ejections, sun spots, jamming, atmospherics, hardware/software errors – you name it, plenty of scope for GPS to mess up. If you’re out in the middle of nowhere nothing beats a good topo map/compass/nav skills and a healthy amount of situational awareness. Oh and a detailed plan of where you’re going and when you’ll be back (left with someone responsible). That said, I do take a good topo (1:25000) GPS along for extra support, plus a SPOT and a PLB device. Use technology wherever you can to make life that bit easier, just don’t expect it to save your bacon as it does fail (often!).

jawm said :

the map and compass (and nav skills) are the best option.

p1 said :

I was doing three day hikes in Namadgi and Kosi NPs with a paper map and compass.

You said :

Why not just take common sense, a compass, a map and stick to used trails?

This is turning in to a geek-bash-fiesta, isn’t it? Why no support for GPS…

Okay, okay. Law is probably over the top. Education perhaps, and possibly a free hand out of photocopied topography maps with key landmarks highlighted.

troll-sniffer said :

Did the first people taking tentative steps into Australia stop dead

… If my history lesson of early explorer into the Australian outback serves me well, the answer to that is sort of yes (Stop dead, no, they were brave men. Dead, yes, they underestimated the barrenness of the land).

troll-sniffer said :

So one person got disoriented on the weekend. Whoopee do. Occasionally it will happen. For every person who gets lost, several thousand accomplish basic navigation in perfect safety.

Good call, and I agree that mandating GPS/etc is an OTT kneejerk suggestion. But …

troll-sniffer said :

How the bejoisus did Australia ever get opened up? Did the first people taking tentative steps into Australia stop dead, no GPS to guide them?

… is a silly comparison. When Aus was being opened up, it was common for people to die in the process.

Why not just take common sense, a compass, a map and stick to used trails?

It’s worked fine for me.

What is it with this insistence that people carry effing electronics wherever they go? How the bejoisus did Australia ever get opened up? Did the first people taking tentative steps into Australia stop dead, no GPS to guide them? Did even one generation back need to rely on a glorified computer game to know where they were?

So one person got disoriented on the weekend. Whoopee do. Occasionally it will happen. For every person who gets lost, several thousand accomplish basic navigation in perfect safety. If there was a rush of lost people, then perhaps there would be a case for mandating devices but IMHO an occasional errant soul doth not an epidemic make.

Jivrashia said :

We really should turn this into law…..

We really should not!

Sure, I am all for society being grumpy at people who go get themselves in trouble by doing things without the appropriate s kills or equipment, but when I was 14 I was doing three day hikes in Namadgi and Kosi NPs with a paper map and compass. Hand held GPS units were only just available then, but well outside the price range of anyone but the military.

Rules regarding EPIRBS in remote country are a pretty good idea, but mandating the carrying of GPS is a classic example of nanny state mentality.