The 58-year-old bushwalker who had to be airlifted to safety after activating his personal locator beacon while on the NT’s Larapinta Trail last weekend has been speaking of his ordeal.
And, at the same time, a leading expert on the trail has laid part of the blame for a recent spate of issues there on the NT’s campsite booking site.
Devan Pillay had planned to spend nine days hiking on the Larapinta Trail in Central Australia over the Easter long weekend. The ABC reports that he set off from Standley Chasm on Saturday carrying at least five litres of water and a bag weighing more than 20 kilograms.
However, as temperatures reached about 36 degrees Celsius, Mr Pillay began to experience heat stress and activated the emergency beacon he was carrying.
“I knew that I was losing a lot of fluid because of the heat, so I started to pace myself … I was taking a lot of breaks,” he told the ABC. “Every time I took a break and sat down I was dozing off … that’s when I got a little bit scared.
He said he continued drinking water but it didn’t seem to quench his thirst.
The ABC reports that four emergency service personnel reached Mr Pillay late on Saturday evening and stayed with him until the following morning when he was airlifted to safety.
Mr Pillay said he didn’t know how to express his gratitude to his rescuers, and he didn’t believe he would have survived another day if he continued on the trail.
While this particular incident had a relatively happy ending, there have been a series of incidents on the popular walking trail recently. Emergency services attended four requests for assistance from hikers there in less than three weeks, including one call for help when a 22-year-old man collapsed and died before paramedics could reach him.
While Mr Pillay does not blame a new campsite booking system for his misadventure, experienced bushwalker and author of the Larapinta Trail Guide, John Chapman, says there are questions that need to be asked. He fears that the campsite booking system introduced by the NT Parks and Wildlife Commission in March might be causing some people to push themselves to continue walking in difficult conditions.
He told the ABC it was effectively forcing hikers to make concrete plans.
“They just made a big mistake by making people book campsites each night,” Mr Chapman said.
He said the booking system should distinguish between hikers doing short trips, and people walking the full 230-kilometre length of the Larapinta Trail.
“The end-to-ends can take whatever time they need,” he said. “Sure, you’ll get the odd night the campsite will be crowded but overall, the numbers will work out.”
In response, the District Manager of Central Australian Parks, Phil Cowen, stressed that hikers should never put themselves at risk to keep their campsite bookings … and that issues could always be sorted out retrospectively.
“We absolutely don’t want people feeling like they’re in a position where they have to get to a particular campsite or have to start their hike if conditions are not good,” he told the ABC. “We do want people to understand that there is flexibility in the system … if you need to pull up and rest and have a break and wait for conditions to ease, we absolutely want people to make that decision.”
Yes. We do not like to travel to a set timetable and pre-booking lock you into being at a certain place for a set time
Yeah, miss the old pay in an envelope, drop in box, and stay the allotted time, after finding the place by chance. Since all bookings have gone online, we have not stayed at a park anywhere in the country at all.
Booking systems do not take into account the Grey Nomads desire to “take their time”. Having to be at a certain place at a certain time or else you have no camp site is stressful to older folks. The worry that someone else without a booking will be occupying the booked site is also concerning.
Booking seems to be a beaurocrat’s answer to a problem that didn’t exist.
Yes online booking is a problem. We set off each year for at least three months which means we have to book months in advance which then leads to pressure to be in a certain place at a certain time which can lead to many difficulties when travelling thousands of kilometres. Our itinerary is never that precise as it changes maybe due to weather or other availability or just overstating a good place. sometimes we are out of internet range and difficult to change.
There are so many factors when travelling, to upset the schedule, whether it is due to tiredness, flat tyres or any of a host of possible delays or diversions. That is why I have rarely in my lifetime booked ahead of time.
Hi all,
Outside of Covid restrictions we have been travelling for 7 months a year for the last 7 years.
We are currently 1 month in of a 6 month, 1/2 lap through NSW, SA, NT and WA and this is the first time we have had to make so many multiple forward bookings, some as far out as September, just to ensure that we have somewhere to stay.
In the past we just meander along to somewhere that seems nice, roll into the local caravan park and set down for a few days – or more if we feel like it. Now there is a pressure that we have to be out of one park, and into the next, by a specific time.
Yes, we do intermingle free camping as well but even a lot of these seem to be ‘well populated’ by 12:00. It comes back to the old ‘supply v demand’ equation, I’m not sure there is a definitive answer, if time permits build a few extra days into the schedule, but that is not always possible.
This is not the fault of National Parks and comes back to the sheer volume of people travelling within Australia. Even before the school holidays started I would estimate the number of vans, campers, motor homes to trucks on the road to be well in excess of 10:1. In 7 years I have never seen it so congested.
On a completely unrelated topic, remember that those trucks on the road a driven by people trying to earn a living, and ferrying goods to some of the remotest parts of Australia. We are just on holidays, give them some room and courtesy and the roads will be a safer place for us all.
Safe Travels
Dave
Always pros and cons. When I lived in Exmouth WA on the Ningaloo Reef it was almost impossible as a local to get away to the national park for a weekend before the booking system came in. Tourists would arrive early in the morning on Friday and queue for a spot until they were taken. Very difficult if you were working. At least with the booking system you have a chance. The booking system gives some certainty now I have moved away that after a 1200km drive I will get a spot. There are plenty of other places out of national parks that don’t need a booking.
Not a very helpful system when you get to a site but don’t have reception to enable you to book and when there are 2,3 or 4 of you travelling together you can’t see if there are enough sites available for all of you. Also can you get a refund if you don’t make it to the site on the day?
All of the above
Its a pig of a system and gives you NO flexibility when travelling.
Camp sites are not being used because some one does not arrive, breakdown, health or for what ever reason.
For those travelling, with no time restraints, so so frustrating.