Australia is a very safe place to travel in. The chance of being exposed to a crime is very small in Outback Australia. Both black and white Australians are mostly extremely friendly to you, even if you now and then come across some rough guys. However, the harsh outback environment is not something that should be taken lightly. Respect it, but don’t be terrified. The first question you get when you talk to people about traveling in outback Australia is: "What about the snakes?". Well there are some very poisonous snakes in Australia, but they are a minor problem compared with other dangers. The biggest dangers are:
1. Yourself 2. Your vehicle 3. Drunk drivers 4. Road conditions 5. Big animals on the road 6. Crocodiles 7. Others nuisances like snakes
Yourself - the greatest danger Every time you hear about a serious incident in the outback, it’s mostly someone who has been inexperienced or acted extremely stupid.
Your Vehicle What’s a breeze in a Toyota Land cruiser in good condition, with good maps, lots of extra fuel, food and water, can be sheer hell for another ill equipped vehicle. Lifeline Use a lifeline. Phone someone that cares about you, tell them where you are, where you are going and when you are supposed to phone again. If you intend to be back at the Sunday, tell them to hold their horses until the Tuesday before a rescue operation is started. Always phone back. Rescue operations are expensive. Water To bring enough water can’t be stressed enough. You can survive for some weeks without food, but only a day or 3 without water. Calculate around 5 liters of water per person and day. Carry spare water for some extra days in case you get stuck. Familiarize yourself with emergency water producing techniques like putting a plastic sack over a branch of a tree or a bush. Food Carry extra food for a week. Use tins. Boring but safe. Don’t touch the emergency food unless you are in a real emergency.
How to Live A perfect day in the bush The flies wake you up at around six in the morning. Boil the billy, either on the gas stove or on the fire. Breakfast with tea and toast with cheese. If you are staying for a couple of days, proceed to the daily vehicle check. Otherwise clean up the camp. In either case, extinguish the fire with both water and by putting sand over it. Then either walk in the surroundings or drive somewhere for a morning walk, return around midday, look for a spot with as much shade as you can and sleep or read. In the afternoon around 4, you will either arrived to a new place and set up camp or start gathering firewood. Dig a hole, start the fire, burn it down to coals. Prepare food, cook food in the camp oven, eat food and drink cold beer. Then at six o’clock it is dark, very magnificent every day. The rest of the evening you can spent burning the fire and looking at the stars. Then put up the stretcher and sleep under the stars. Not a bad life, is it?
The dark side of outback travel Well, those are the good days. The bad days you drive and drive for hundred of kilometers on badly maintained roads. Refuel at remote and uncharming places. Have disgusting food at the roadhouses and eventually ended up in some grotty little place with rough people where I slept in a dust pestered caravan park run by Agony Aunt and her husband.
