The Simpson Desert Recovery

Thanks Phil, an interesting interview by a very interesting guy. I was lucky enough to meet Outback Mike earlier this year. Had a good talk with him at Nelson Bay as he was assembling his dug out canoe for its first test run on water. Good to see a balanced interview.

Thanks for posting that, Phil.

They were really unlucky to get that far, and to strike that band of weather right at the Delta. I felt for them trying to dig their way out, but while that surface water was there, they’d have been better off sitting in the truck, watching videos with the kids!

The tracks will be there for a few years, so we can all check them out, and ponder what we would have done in similar circumstances.

Bob

Gday Bob,
After rain on the first night I guess they thought they were still travelling OK, but didn't realise that once they get out of the sanddunes on the western end, the boggy stuff begins. Those of us who are old enough know that the Spring Creek Delta road between Dalhousie and Purnie was realigned about 15+ years ago because it was always flooding and was a bog.

I also wondered what I'd do in the same situation, and I guess I'd have fresh info at my disposal.
Firstly, at night you can usually pick up a weather forecast on ABC radio 639 or 891 on the car radio.
Secondly, I use VKS737 on the HF Radio and would ask for conditions and an updated forecast.
With that information, I would not have proceeded - either turn back if fuel allowed or stay put until conditions dried. I was up north at the same time and stopped by the Birdsville Track being closed and the weather warnings were pretty severe for at least a week before.

The video talks about the usefulness of a Sat Phone and Epirb, but for me the information obtained from my radios would have been all that was needed to prevent the situation from occurring. People forget they have an AM radio in the car and that it is worth knowing the ABC radio frequencies for South Australia (639, 729 and 891) as you can pick them up in the afternoon and night from anywhere in the state.

"This is what the forum should be like."

Spot on there skulldug.

Much better read than that from the experts correcting others that don't agree with some minor technical issue.

Totally agree