Daughter speaks out after 87-year-old’s incredible bushwalk survival

The daughter of an 87-year-old bushwalker who endured a freezing night in the south-west of Western Australia is speaking out in the hope her story will help others.

The bushwalker set off on Friday at a circuit near Donnelly River Village, 280 kilometers south of Perth, but took a wrong turn.

“Mum, who is unstoppable and has just got new hips, decided she really wanted to go for a walk,” daughter Jo said today.

The 87-year-old spent the night alone in dense bushland as temperatures dropped to 6 degrees.

“I thought I wouldn’t see my mother again,” Jo said.

“I really didn’t think she would come back.”

The alarm was raised at 8 p.m. on Friday evening. Family and emergency services combed the tracks, helicopters and drones searched overhead, but the thick canopy hid her.

“We covered all the paths and forest paths all night on our bikes and on foot, but didn’t find her,” said Jo.

She was eventually found – exhausted, dehydrated but unharmed – 2 kilometers from where she started, after her phone was able to call Triple Zero.

“She sat on a jarra log, waiting obediently, eating her packet of raisins,” said Jo.

Police warn that more and more people are moving unprepared to remote areas, prompting major rescue operations. Experts urge hikers to always tell loved ones their plans.

“Take extra water, take some extra food, extra clothing, maybe some form of shelter,” said bush survival expert Terry Hewett.

“…a four to six or perhaps eight hour walk could become an overnight event.”

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