A mother and her ten-year-old son have been found alive after spending ten days lost in the Australian bush, using survival techniques learned from television adventurer Bear Grylls, police have said.
Michelle Pittman and her son Dylan were discovered in Mount Royal National Park, New South Wales, on Thursday, dehydrated but otherwise healthy. The pair had set out for a trek on Monday 2 October and were reported missing by their family the following Friday, prompting a large-scale search.
Hunter Valley Acting Superintendent Rob Post described their survival as 'amazing', noting that Dylan emerged with only insect bites and appeared fit enough to 'do the whole thing again'. He explained that the pair had gathered water by licking it off plants, digging holes, and using leaves to collect it—methods they had learned from Grylls.
Police believe they became lost after mistaking dried-up creeks for walking tracks. The search, which covered 17,000 acres, was sparked after officers found a note in Ms Pittman's home listing walks she intended to do with her son. Tracks were located on a creek bed, and the pair were eventually found crawling onto a road and picked up by a passing police unit.
Both have been taken to Singleton Hospital for treatment for dehydration and insect bites.
