MODERN EXPLORERS
THE digital age we now live in has resulted in a society that relies far too heavily on technology. This is very evident on Facebook pages, where the ignorance of all things bush and wilderness is mind-boggling.
City wannabees are heading to the wilds in vehicles that are dependent on technology, when compared to the Land Rovers and short-wheelbase Toyotas used by film-makers like the Leyland Brothers and Norm Needham. While it’s a good thing to have reliable vehicles, we must not lose our common sense and ignore the danger about us, a danger that cares naught for technology.
I have come across people who had no idea how to change a tyre; one bloke in a Landcruiser had most of the rear section pulled apart trying to find the spare. The look on his face was priceless when I pointed to where it was. Last year I came across a rollover on the Pormpuraaw Road: a Nissan Patrol towing a trailer loaded with a quad. Luckily they had a sat-phone and help was already on its way. They would not allow me to take a photo of the wreck, because “it will make us look stupid on Facebook”.
It could have been worse, but it aptly demonstrates that bad things can happen in the bush; and if you’re not mentally prepared for such a disaster, you’re safer holidaying on the Gold Coast.
Running out of spare tyres is common on many outback roads, especially in Indigenous communities. The locals generally sit down to wait for another vehicle – pretty simple, really, when most community vehicles are Toyotas, so there is no problem with spares.
This mindset is one to follow when you are unlucky enough to experience the intensity of a mishap or major disaster. The problem is, once you panic, everyone else catches it and it spreads among the group like wildfire.
REMEMBER THAT EVEN THE BEST-EQUIPPED VEHICLES AND PLANS ARE SUBJECT TO MURPHY’S LAW