Stephen Currie has a fairly delicate creature to thank in part for his survival, having been stranded for a month in the Australian bush amid 100-degree temps. Three weeks after police gave up the search for the man who went missing Dec. 29 in northern Queensland, Currie, 40, was found wandering a trail Tuesday—more than 30 pounds lighter and without shoes or a shirt—having lived off butterflies, fresh water mussels, and wild fruit, after getting lost on a walk, the Courier Mail reports. "By all money I thought he was gone," says a senior constable. "It's unbelievable. I phoned his mother straight away." With no food or water, Currie initially tried to follow a river back to town but again became lost, and was forced to sleep atop bark placed on sand. That river did, however, prove to be a saving grace, suspects one local, who says the recent lack of rain made other water sources bacteria-ridden and undrinkable. The constable explains that Currie went for a daily walk in search of a track to follow, and eventually came across a local. Currie is currently being treated for dehydration and malnourishment, the Brisbane Times notes. Missing Man Survived for Month on Butterflies - Stephen Currie found 30 pounds lighter after month in Australia bush
This is what should be a required course in schools, edible flora/fauna and survival skills. Not how to operate an iPad.
A button compass, an elementary knowledge of navigation, and some basic local knowledge would have seen him back home much sooner than it took him. There is a major road and railway track running roughly SE to NW through Chillagoe...it oughtn't be too difficult to find if one isn't wandering around mindlessly in circles. chillagoe map - Google Maps
It seems that there are some skeptics in Chillagoe...... I'm waiting for the ghost written book, and the three part TV mini series...
Bogong Moths have been a seasonal staple for some Australian Aboriginal tribes for many centuries (if not millennia)... Need energy boost? Give bogongs a whirl, they're flavour of the moth Bogongs migrate south ⺠Nature Features (ABC Science) Bogongs would not have been any help to Currie though...he's too far north for the Bogong migration flight paths to be of any comfort.
I've seen some documentaries and survival type shows which provide a look at traditional Australian aboriginal fare. I'd have to be really, really hungry to stomach some of what I've seen them eat.
That's what I'm using to convince my mother of the 'necessity' of a pressure canner/cooker so I will be able to can meat. She wants to just buy storebought canned, I'd prefer buying the meat and canning it myself without all the extra crap they put in the pre-canned meats. I don't wanna have to eat bugs, and neither does she(she always wanted me to fast forward those parts on Doomsday Preppers).
