One of the biggest barriers that stops people from getting out and connecting with nature — through hiking or bushwalking — is the fear of getting lost.

Today's guest is no stranger to the bush. She'd done some research, packed for the conditions, let someone know her plans and downloaded the AllTrails app. But despite all of that, her 10 km day walk (which should’ve taken about 4-5 hours) turned into an unplanned night out, alone, in difficult terrain, with the looming anxiety of being completely lost.

She's sharing her story today with real courage and gratitude, having received a bit of unhelpful judgment after the event. So in the spirit of the Rescued Podcast, I ask that we receive her story with kindness and see what we can all learn from her experience.

Key learnings from this episode:

• If you’re lost, stay where you are unless it’s not safe to do so
• The importance of slowing down to think through decisions if something goes wrong, not rushing about or panicking
• The value of rest on your body and mind when something goes wrong
• Why packing (or wearing) thermals is a good idea
• Being sensitive to anyone you know (or work with) who may experience something like this
• Why it’s always a good idea to carry a raincoat, even if it’s not forecast to rain while you’re out
• Understanding that apps like AllTrails are best when used as one (of many) research tools (ie. when looking to walk in a new area), not relied on for navigation
• Gathering reviews and comments from people online can be a helpful tool in research, but they’re subjective: what’s easy for one person can be hard for another. The Australian Walking Track Grading System is an objective national guideline.
• The value of carrying a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB)
• Carrying a first aid kit with an emergency blanket
• The strength of not walking/adventuring solo - groups like bushwalking clubs or other groups/MeetUps/organisations are great resources if you don’t have any outdoorsy friends
• The limitations of smartphones to pinpoint location via apps when under/near the base of clifflines or in narrow, deep areas
• Why it’s good to test out gear/equipment/apps before relying on them in the bush
• Importance of carrying a battery power bank to keep phones and other devices charged
• Planning for contingencies - even for a short day walk such as extra food, water, clothing layers and an emergency bivvy (eg. SOL bivvy bag) for unplanned overnight or in an accident
• When leaving your trip intentions with people, write down the details or send them the link/details via SMS/email

NB: Olga refers to a ladder that she used to ascend a short section. This ladder is not part of the old and decommissioned waterboard structures attached to the cliff face in the area-these are inaccessible.

Other Resources:

• Day hike packing list
• Overnight hike packing list

LISTEN to part 1 first

ENTER to win a $50 Paddy Pallin voucher + Nalgene bottle 

The things we love to do in nature can lead us to explore and discover places not just close to home, but to some very remote and uncharted places around the world.

In this special double episode of Rescued, we hear from 3 friends, all highly skilled and experienced canyoners, as they find themselves in the embrace of Taiwan’s small and dedicated canyoning and rescue community, after a life-threatening fall during a multiday expedition.

If you ever needed a reminder of the value of regular, high-quality wilderness first aid training and the importance of being able to rely on the people you adventure with - this is it.

This isn't a straightforward pack n’ send case of helicopter, paramedics and hospital. Their reliance on each other, their skills and a solid sense of humour is put to the test throughout this 2 day ordeal.

Key learnings from this episode:

• The importance of having the right skills, training and experience for the environments
• The ability to make fair self-assessments of the above
• Planning is key to better outcomes
• Research multiple contingency plans, if your exit from a canyon doesn’t work, are there alternatives you can see on satellite imagery? Plan refuge and camp spots
• Being able to rely completely on your adventure buddies if something goes wrong. Q: Can you say this about strangers you connect with on MeetUps or similar?)
• Value of research, local knowledge and connections
• Huge thanks to the incredible and supportive local canyoning community of Taiwan
• Being smart about choosing your emergency contacts and setting up a What’sApp group - briefing them all properly with plans, contingencies and giving them permission to act as your advocates if something happens
• The essential recert and muscle memory of quality wilderness first aid training
• Benefits of choosing to study Wilderness or RAFA over simple Senior First Aid
• Brainstorm and practice of roping and rescue problems at home and in easier environments before being confident to execute them in challenging ones
• Good open, inclusive and frank communication in and around a patient
• How humour can help with stressful situations
• Everyone knowing their job and getting it done
• How party size can change outcomes in an incident
• Importance of essential survival skills eg: fire making, knowing priorities for survival
• Stove, lighters and Nalgenes as essential canyon equipment
• Making sure your first aid kit is up-to-date (when was the last time you made sure you had enough panadol and ibuprofen?)
• Bright clothes, bothy bag, emergency blankets to draw attention
• Knowing how to prepare for helicopters and downwash
• Aussie registered PLBs activated overseas are received by AMSA in Canberra

There's a bunch of different ways you could help support the work of this pod:

1. Leave a review on your platform of choice
2. Leave a donation towards the costs
3. Visit my sponsors at Paddypallin.com.au
4. Buy my book - "How to Navigate - the art of traditional map and compass navigation in an Australian context."
5. Check out my Navigation Courses

The things we love to do in nature can lead us to explore and discover places not just close to home, but to some very remote and uncharted places around the world.

These activities, like bushwalking/hiking, climbing or canyoning, give us opportunities to step outside the typical tourist or visitor experience, not only opening our eyes to cultures different to our own, but on a deeper level, the chance to connect with the local outdoor community through our shared love of wild places.

In this special double episode of Rescued, we hear from 3 friends, all highly skilled and experienced canyoners, as they find themselves in the embrace of Taiwan’s small and dedicated canyoning and rescue community, after a life-threatening fall during a multiday expedition.

If you ever needed a reminder of the value of regular, high-quality wilderness first aid training and the importance of being able to rely on the people you adventure with - this is it.

This isn't a straightforward pack n’ send case of helicopter, paramedics and hospital. Their reliance on each other, their skills and a solid sense of humour is put to the test throughout this 2 day ordeal.

Key learnings from this episode:

• The importance of having the right skills, training and experience for the environments
• The ability to make fair self-assessments of the above
• Planning is key to better outcomes
• Research multiple contingency plans, if your exit from a canyon doesn’t work, are there alternatives you can see on satellite imagery? Plan refuge and camp spots
• Being able to rely completely on your adventure buddies if something goes wrong. Q: Can you say this about strangers you connect with on MeetUps or similar?)
• Value of research, local knowledge and connections
• Huge thanks to the incredible and supportive local canyoning community of Taiwan
• Being smart about choosing your emergency contacts and setting up a What’sApp group - briefing them all properly with plans, contingencies and giving them permission to act as your advocates if something happens
• The essential recert and muscle memory of quality wilderness first aid training
• Benefits of choosing to study Wilderness or RAFA over simple Senior First Aid
• Brainstorm and practice of roping and rescue problems at home and in easier environments before being confident to execute them in challenging ones
• Good open, inclusive and frank communication in and around a patient
• How humour can help with stressful situations
• Everyone knowing their job and getting it done
• How party size can change outcomes in an incident
• Importance of essential survival skills eg: fire making, knowing priorities for survival
• Stove, lighters and Nalgenes as essential canyon equipment
• Making sure your first aid kit is up-to-date (when was the last time you made sure you had enough panadol and ibuprofen?)
• Bright clothes, bothy bag, emergency blankets to draw attention
• Knowing how to prepare for helicopters and downwash
• Aussie registered PLBs activated overseas are received by AMSA in Canberra

There's a bunch of different ways you could help support the work of this pod:

1. Leave a review on your platform of choice
2. Leave a donation towards the costs
3. Visit my sponsors at Paddypallin.com.au
4. Buy my book - "How to Navigate - the art of traditional map and compass navigation in an Australian context."
5. Check out my Navigation Courses

How many decisions do you reckon you’ve made today?

It's probably the conscious ones that come to mind. Do I wear the red shirt or blue top? 1 coffee or 6.

Believe it or not, The Harvard Business Review states that adults can make around 35,000 decisions each day and many of those happen automatically and simultaneously.

When we head out into the wild places we love, or find ourselves in environments with a higher level of risk, some of these decisions (conscious or otherwise) can have some pretty intense consequences.

Today, I’m joined by Hugh Ward, co-owner of the Blue Mountains Climbing School, to learn about an easy tool that we can use every day, to help us make better decisions, smarter choices and have better adventures.

He talks us through the established acronym F.A.C.E.T.S, developed by Ian Mcammon, based upon the work of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tsversky. It was designed to highlight common deficiencies in our decision making (Heuristic Traps) and to offer a tool to temper the choices we make in high consequence environments.

Excitingly, he then steps us through a NEW acronym,  A.C.C.E.S.S. that he has developed with Climbing School co-owner and wife, Bridie Campbell, that works better with Australian outdoor environments. You can read more and DOWNLOAD their handy pocket guide here.

Resources

Article on the Climbing School blog

It was the ABC News that first alerted the outdoors community to Macca's big wall fall near Blackheath in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales. With over 30 years climbing under his belt, including many first ascents and stories, some of which are the stuff of legend, he is one of the Blue Mountains climbing community's most well-known characters. 

Five years on from the accident, he joins me today with Sergeant Dal Atkinson, the team leader of Blue Mountains Police Rescue Squad, to speak about what happened and what the challenges of location, access, and weather made this one of the longest and most difficult cliff rescues in New South Wales.

https://youtu.be/IVtaK-v99jM

Dr Paul Luckin is an authority on human survivability. He’s a medical advisor to the Police Search and Rescue teams and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (that’s AMSA), providing time-frames for human survival during Search and Rescue operations.

In part 2 of my conversation with Paul, we look deeper into demographics and practicalities of surviving in the wild. What should people do if in that situation and ask what can be done to help get these messages across.

Dr Paul Luckin is an anaesthetist, with a very unique background.

As an authority on human survivability he’s a medical advisor to the Police Search and Rescue teams and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (that’s AMSA), providing time-frames for human survival during Search and Rescue operations.

He teaches the medical aspects of Search and Rescue, and is on the directing staff of the National Police Search and Rescue Managers Course.

A humble and highly trained specialist clinician and expert in search and rescue, he has served as a Captain in the Royal Australian Naval Reserve in Bougainville, East Timor, in the Resuscitation and Retrieval Team for the victims of the first Bali bombing, and in the first foreign medical team into Banda Aceh following the 2004 tsunami, and much, much more.

In 2015, he was made a Member of the Order of Australia, AM, for significant service to the

community through emergency medicine, and he joins me today…

According to the World Health Organisation, roughly 1 to 2 people die from snakebite in Australia each year. The good news is this is significantly lower than the 1920’s when the Sydney Morning Herald reported about 13 people were dying each year.

Today we hear from Joyce, who bucks modern statistics which tell us that 74% of victims are male, with an average age of 46, and interestingly, with around 54% of bites happened at home.

She’s joined by her friend Frances and together, they share the story of what happened when along a spectacular, grade 5 track, over 3 hours from the nearest road, she describes what felt like a sharp stick hit her ankle.

Learnings from this episode:

• First Aid Training (preferably Wilderness (WFA) or Remote First Aid (RAFA) or Remote Area First Responder is essential for you and also those you walk with or meet along the way.
• How to treat a snake bite - what they did.
• The importance of carrying more than 1 snake bandage.
• When calling for help in the bush in coverage, call 000. Anecdotally, Police (rather than Ambulance) may be better equipped to locate you in a remote location (ie. away from roads/tracks/etc.)
• The incredible benefits of walking with a group where you know the skills and capabilities, rather than strangers (support, first aid, navigation, bushcraft, tasks, team management, etc)
• Understand that your backpack may not travel in a rescue helicopter. Pack smart.
• The value of debriefing with your group after a crisis. Taking a moment to take it all in and be gentle on yourselves.
• Utmost importance of being prepared: packing everything you need.
• Learning to mitigate risks: wearing long pants, gaiters, first aid kit and training, communication methods (for in and out of coverage).

Helpful Links:

• My comprehensive packing lists (day hikes, overnight hikes)
• What's in my first aid kit?
• Bites and Stings app
• Find a club in your state! Bushwalking Australia - 
• Emergency+ App
• What3Words

Dr Kate Baecher is a clinical psychologist specialising in trauma in high-risk or complex environments.

Behind all her training and experience serving with the military and working in civilian life supporting critical incidents, she is somebody deeply connected to nature, where the wild place is her happy place.

She joins me today, and shares about the time she witnessed the death of another climber while on a mountaineering holiday to Mont Blanc, on the border of France and Italy… and how that event led her to develop models for dealing with trauma and psychological first aid in remote and rugged environments.

She’ll walk us through those models and give us some really practical tools on how we can deal with traumatic incidents should we ever come across them when out on our adventures.

Episode takeaways:

• The importance of having psychological first aid skills (these are different to mental health first aid)
• It’s normal to find ourselves in psychological distress after witnessing trauma
• It can affect us all in different ways (no right or wrong way)
• Recognise when we need to seek professional help
• There are some helpful (and SIMPLE) resources available (see the episode webpage) to help yourself and those around you

Contact Kate at: https://drkatebaecher.com/

Transcript available here.

My guest today has a long history of working and playing in some of the most rugged and remote parts of NSW. So, with a few days up his sleeve, a bit of research and the right kind of skills and experience behind him, he set off for another steep n’ deep trip through Kanangra Boyd National Park, bound for Katoomba on the traditional K2K route.

WARNING: The K2K route is described online as a classic 3 day trip in the southern Blue Mountains. This description was written before the fires and floods since 2019. It cannot be compared with other walks of a similar length such as the Six Foot Track, which is on well-defined management and fire trails. The K2K has always been a challenging walk that pushes the Australian Walking Track Grading System of 1-5, into an unofficial 6. That was then (before the fires) and now, it's an even more punishing route.

I've written about this route before with this rescue of Chini who shared her written story.

NPWS Alert re: K2K route

Heraclitus was a Greek philosopher, born around 500 BC. Now, I’m wondering if he was a bit of a bushwalker and a lover of nature, cos he’s the one who said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice. For it's not the same river and he's not the same man.”

He’s also the one credited with saying, “the only constant is change.”

Nowhere is this more evident than in nature: The turning of the seasons, the changes this brings in life cycles of plants and animals, erosion from weather, climate change, bushfires, my greying hair, you name it.

And for those of us who love being out on (or off) the track, it’s something that feels more obvious in recent years: there’s more people, more bushfires, weather events and landslides are changing the landscapes that we love to spend time in.

Learnings from this episode:

• Having a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) as a critical part of your packing.
• The importance of having a 'place to go' within yourself (eg. meditation, mindfulness, faith, etc) when faced with a crisis, helping you remain calm and make wise decisions.
• The value of having past experience in similar terrain you expect to encounter.
• Just because a track is marked online or on apps, doesn't meant it exists in the landscape. Other than the official land manager apps (eg: NPWS App) data can be out of date and user reviews or descriptions extremely subjective. Apps like AllTrails, etc should be used in conjunction with other research and navigation skills. 
• If it's been a while between longer or hard walks, consider your overall health from other factors.

Helpful Links:

• Episode 6 - PLBs and other satellite communication devices // My interview with Linda Berriman from AMSA (the AU govt agency responsible for rescues in Australia)
• Creatine Kinase (CK) testing