There is so much more to Mike Atkinson (aka Outback Mike) than what we saw of his 64 days, toughing it out in the wilds of Tassie’s west coast, on the first season of SBS’ Alone Australia (season 2 kicks off 27/3/23). He’s been having epic expedition style adventures since his first long hike at 11 years old with his family and building towards his first solo trip, skiing from Mt Kosciusko to Canberra, aged 17. Watching him on ALONE, I was drawn in by his problem solving and seemingly endless tinkering to build a better existence out in takayna/The Tarkine. As you’ll hear in this episode (and ..read more

What better way to wrap up 2023 and season 1 of the Rescued Podcast, than by loading you up with fresh stories and podcasts for your Aussie Summer Christmas road trip listening. I'm delighted to introduce you to Ashley Saupe and her immense library of work on The Sharp End podcast. Download the Transcript here LINKS The Sharp End - Episode 53 // The Sleeper Wave (Hawaii) - https://www.thesharpendpodcast.com/episode-53 The Sharp End - Episode 76 // Live with Arc’teryx Athlete Adam Campbell (avalanche) https://www.thesharpendpodcast.com/episode-76 The Sharp End - Episode 26 // Live with Quinn Br ..read more

In what must be the most basic of human fears, James woke up to find himself buried alive. Outside, the wind buffeted the Main Range, out past Mt Kosciusko, but all was quiet inside his cosy, white snow cave. In this episode of Rescued, we hear from James and his mate Dylan, as they talk about their two very different experiences of this epic backcountry adventure and how escape was just the beginning. Sincere thanks to James for sharing his very personal story. Thanks to sponsor Paddy Pallin Transcript and show notes TBC at https://lotsafreshair.com/category/podcast ..read more

We venture into wild places to get away from it all. But when it comes to calling for help, letting someone know that we’re delayed or even just giving our loved ones peace of mind, we have to rely on satellite communication methods - because mobile phone coverage often doesn’t reach to where we want to go. In this episode, I speak with Linda Berryman from AMSA (that’s the Australian Maritime Safety Authority) in Canberra. We do a deep dive into Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs), along with 2-way communication devices (such as Zoleo, InReach or SPOT trackers). And yep, we also talk about the sat ..read more

We all know the importance of having solid first aid skills when we head off into the bush. A good remote area first aid course not only gives us the technical know-how of what to do in an emergency, but confidence to step in and act when someone suffers an injury. However, there’s something that first aid courses can’t really prepare us for that can leave us feeling vulnerable especially when travelling solo. In this episode, I hear from experienced bushwalker, cross-country skier, runner and all round adventure traveller, Owen, on what happened during day 24 of the 650 km Australian Alps Wal ..read more

Closer to Morocco than Madrid, the resort town of Nerja on Spain's southern coastline, draws visitors to its beaches, historic caves and mountainous national park that surrounds it. In this episode, experienced hiker Jane takes us high up into the Rio Chilla, a beautiful, clear water walk-in canyon that's popular with families and tourists with a name that translates as "Screaming River".  It's a trip that should have taken about 4 hours. But as you'll hear, took much, much more. Well-prepared and loaded with research, Jane shares her story of what she learned from a long, painful and lon ..read more

In 2020 over 3.7 million people from Australia and overseas visited the Blue Mountains - The most visited National Park in New South Wales. They're drawn to the dramatic clifftop views, deep valleys and diverse habitats that stretch over the 1 million hectares of this world Heritage sandstone plateaux, a landscape that is constantly being carved by water and reveals itself through waterfalls and canyons. Today, I have the honour of welcoming back to the podcast Matthew U’Brien, who in the last episode shared his powerful story of life within his 17 year policing career. Most of that was in Pol ..read more

Matt U’Brien’s story is powerful. During his 17-year policing career (mostly within the Police Rescue Squad), he’s done literally hundreds of rescues and saved countless lives whilst risking his own. What’s unique about Matt, is that during this time he also found himself in the critical position of needing to be rescued himself. For this, and many more reasons, I’ve asked him to join me for a special double episode to share his experiences from both sides of the rescue coin. We talk about what led him to join Police Rescue, his love of the bush and canyoning, and some of his insights from yea ..read more

When we hear the whisper to step off the concrete, away from the built environment and into the bush, we step into a world and a place that speaks to the very heart of what it means to be alive. These places, away from the constraints and controls that are part of our day-to-day lives, connect us to a place that is proven to be fuel for our bodies and the salve for our souls. By walking away from the cement, we open ourselves up to the proven benefits to our mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health; but in doing so, we also expose ourselves to environments, places and conditions that r ..read more

What better way to wrap up 2023 and season 1 of the Rescued Podcast, than by loading you up with fresh stories and podcasts for your Aussie Summer Christmas road trip listening. I'm delighted to introduce you to Ashley Saupe and her immense library of work on The Sharp End podcast. Download the Transcript here LINKS The Sharp End - Episode 53 // The Sleeper Wave (Hawaii) - https://www.thesharpendpodcast.com/episode-53 The Sharp End - Episode 76 // Live with Arc’teryx Athlete Adam Campbell (avalanche) https://www.thesharpendpodcast.com/episode-76 The Sharp End - Episode 26 // Live with Quinn Br ..read more