Survival & Adventure Podcast
Survival 🪓 Adventure 🏕 How-To
Episode 31: James Morrill – 1846 Shipwreck Survivor Account, Part 2 of 2
Shipwreck survivor James Morrill washed up on the Far North QLD coast in 1846, living with Aboriginal people for 17 years before re-assimilating into European society.
In this second episode of reading James’ book about his experience, published in 1864, James outlines his observations of pre-European Aboriginal life, what they ate, language, how they dealt with the dead, spiritual beliefs and his appeal for land to be set aside for them. I continue to add my experience living off the land trying to escape his predicament in a homemade dugout canoe.
Listen to my Modern-Day Castaway audiobook about my journey up the Great Barrier Reef in a dugout canoe to escape James predicament.
Hard copy books containing James account
Captive of Empire – Bruce Breslin (this is the one I mentioned that delves into the Aboriginal context and issues of the period)
Mogoer Munya – John Elliot
Listen to the Castaway audiobook by Robert Macklin detailing the experience of Shipwrecked cabin boy Narcisse Pelletier
Episode 30: James Morrill – 1846 Shipwreck Survivor Account
Shipwreck survivor James Morrill washed up on the Far North QLD coast in 1846, living with Aboriginal people for 17 years before re-assimilating into European society.
In this episode I read out James’ book about his experience, published in 1864, and compare it to my own in 2021, where I tried to escape his predicament in a homemade dugout canoe.
This episode is split into two parts due to the length of material.
Listen to my Modern-Day Castaway audiobook about my journey up the Great Barrier Reef in a dugout canoe to escape James predicament.
Hard copy books containing James account
Captive of Empire – Bruce Breslin (this is the one I mentioned that delves into the Aboriginal context and issues of the period)
Mogoer Munya – John Elliot
Listen to the Castaway audiobook by Robert Macklin detailing the experience of Shipwrecked cabin boy Narcisse Pelletier
Episode 29: Heston Russell – Surviving War and Trial by Media
Former Australian commando Heston Russell fought in Middle East. After returning to ‘normal life’ had to fight to clear his name and those under his command. We unpick what happened and the media and government landscape that allowed it.
Heston Russell- Forging The Will To Fight (Book)
Follow Heston on Instragam,an Facebook and YouTube
Hestons proposed Veterans Protection Act
Episode 28: Cam Bostock – Thru-Hiking Guru
Cam is a full-time thru-hiker, trekking some of the worlds longest and most spectacular trails. He just finished his hardest challenge yet, shared with his million followers across Instagram and TikTok.
Listen on: Apple or Spotify
Episode 27: Life of an Outdoor Content Creator – Scotty’s Gone Walkabout
Scotty make stunning YouTube videos with professional videography skills. Travelling far and wide from his base in NSW he’s forming stronger opinions on how our wilderness areas should be managed and how to best live a life grounded in outdoor adventure.
Listen on: Apple, Spotify
Episode 26: Sam Birch – Growing Up in the Kimberley Bush
Sam Birch grew up in the remote Kimberley bush, living a wild and often tumultuous life. Five years ago he changed his life. This Balanggarra Traditional Owner now runs a successful guiding business and men’s group to help others through the dark times that he fought, and won.
Follow Birchy on Instragam, Facebook and check out his tour guiding business, birchysfishingtours.com.au
Episode 25: Robert Bogucki’s story (Erin Parke) – 43 Days Alone in the Desert
I interview ABC journalist Erin Parke who spent years gaining the the trust of Robert Bogucki, whose edge-of-survival spiritual quest into the Australia outback sparked a international search effort and media frenzy. Travelling to Robert’s cabin in the Alaska, Erin gets to the bottom of why this mysterious but well-considered bloke set off alone into the wilderness to find answers.
Listen to Expanse, Erin’s six part ABC podcast series about Robert Bogucki.
Episode 24: Valerie Douglas – Malcolm Douglas’s Wife
I chat to Valerie Douglas, wife of the late Malcolm Douglas, about their life together and what Malcolm was like as a person behind and in front of the camera.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple.
Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park: https://www.malcolmdouglas.com.au/
On The Sauce Podcast interview of Malcolm’s cameraman Mark Jones.
Episode 23: Ranger Louie – Camping in NSW National Parks
NSW National Parks have proposed expensive (in my opinion) new fees across the majority of campgrounds, which will price many Australians out of camping. In this episode I speak to former NPWS ranger, Louise Anderson (Ranger Louie on Instagram) to get her thoughts on life as a ranger and the effect these fees will likely have if the NSW Labour Government allows them to go through. Please note, Louie is not a spokesperson for the NPWS. These are just her opinions.
Here’s the ePetition I created to NSW State Parliament titled Keep Camping Affordable for All Australians In NSW National Parks. Please consider signing it.
Only NSW residents can sign. Non-NSW residents can have there say by messaging the NSW Environment Minister direct.
Follow Louie on Instragram
Episode 22: Astronaut & Polar Adventurer – Eric Philips
Eric is one the worlds most experienced polar adventurers. His 30+ expeditions to the North and South Poles, icecap crossings of Greenland, Iceland and Patagonia, and a childhood love of space landed him an even more out-of-this-world adventure – a world-first, polar space flight orbiting the poles.
Episode 21: Adventure To Treat Mental Illness – Bailey Seamer
Facing suicidal thoughts and electro-shock therapy for severe depression, Bailey turned to adventure as a last ditch effort to manage severe mental illness. 5500km later, after walking the entire east-coast of Australia (along the beach!), she found not only an effective management strategy but a new direction in life.
Follow Bailey: Instagram, Website
Episode 20: Surviving a Cylcone in 4m Boat – Hamish Felton-Taylor
Hamish survived a category 2 cyclone in a 4.2m boat off the coast of the Northern Territory. The hairy escape from the sea was one thing. The overnight self-rescue mission another. I’m familiar with his story because I was there too!
We unpack this ‘incident’ which scared the crap out of us and taught us valuable lessons.
Episode 19: Adventurous Jobs – Andrew Tomkins – Calling from Antarctic
I chat with my life-long friend Andy about career paths that allow epic adventures in work time. Calling from a tent in Antarctica, he’s halfway though a five-week expedition searching for meteorites.
Episode 18: Hitchhiking Adventures – Best & Worst Experiences – Claudia Fischer
I chat with seasoned hitchhiker Claudia about our best and worst experiences thumbing rides across the world. Including Canada, Alaska, Mainland USA, Middleast Europe, Russia, Asia, Iceland, Australia, NZ, South America, and Africa. We discuss tips, tricks and how to deal with the worst case scenarios.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Claudia: Website, Instagram.
Episode 16: Jemima Robinson – The 10 Best Adventure Films of All Time
Jemima Robinson has run the Banff Film Festival Australian Tour for 17 years. She shares her top ten films and we explore what makes an adventure film great, ultimate tragedies and the effect of AI moving forward.
1.Crossing the Ice 2012 2. North of the Sun 2012 3. Free Solo 4. Kadoma – 2011 can’t find online 5. Birdman of the Karakoram. 6. Danny Macaskill – Wee Day Out. 7. Sea Gypsies 8. The Accord 9. Sur le fil des 4000 10. On the trail of Genghis Khan – 2014 10000km along the silk route
Other films mentioned: Kon Tiki, Alone Across Australia, Ice Maiden,Doing it Scared by Paul Prichard – Couldn’t find a viewing link, The Alpinist (like Free Solo but for ice climbing), Corner of the Earth Kamchatka, Wee Day Out, Danny MacAskill
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Banff Australia: Website, Instagram,
Jemima’s Ultimate Aussie Adventure Map. Ocean Film Festival (which she also runs)
Episode 15: Tom Williams – Alone UK Winner
Hiking the North Magnetic Pole, founding a survival tour company and winning the Alone UK TV series; these are some of the experiences Tom ponders when philosephising (I had to google that word) the benefits of an outdoor life.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Tom’s company www.desertislandsurvival.com (Offer Code Mike100 to receive $100USD discount)
Follow Tom: Instagram, Facebook, Linked In, personal website.
Thanks so Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode.
Episode 14: Elise Richmond – Professional Adventurer
Crossing the Gobi Desert on foot, mountaineering in Nepal, paragliding in Bolivia; Elise goes from one epic adventure to the next, squeezing the most from each finite year of life. Strap in as she re-lives the dream so far including odd turns and hardships.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Elise: Website, Facebook, Instagram,
Elise’s Book: Take it Outside
Episode 13: How to Survive in Croc Country
How close can you camp to water ? Is it safe to fish from the bank? I answer these and other questions with experienced northern fisherman and Youtuber Andy, from Andy’s Fishing Wild Cook.
Plenty of no BS croc warries too.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Andy: Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, TikTok, website.
Thanks so much to Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode.
Episode 12: Luke Richmond – Professional Adventurer
Luke lives by the motto ‘One Life One Chance’, where he pursues adventure as if he had five years left to live. Climbing mountains, rowing oceans, base jumping, the list is endless and in between he writes books and speaks about them to recharge the bank account for the next one. He’s just published his third adventure memoir and they’re all highly worth a read.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Luke: Website, Facebook, Instagram,
Episode 11: Sophie Matterson – Solo Camel Trek Across Australia
In 2020, Sophie Matterson started a solo trek across Australia with five camels that she caught from the wild and trained herself. Two years later she made it to the other side, with more just tales to tell!
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Sophie: Instagram, website,
Sophie’s Book – The Crossing
Thanks so much to Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode.
Episode 10: Michelle Lee – Rowing the Pacific Solo
In 2023 Michelle Lee rowed solo and unassisted across the Pacific Ocean. Five years earlier she crossed the Altantic. For someone who never saw themselves as an adventurer she’s come a long way and done some truly amazing things!
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Michelle: Website, Facebook, Instagram,
Episode 9: Callie Russell – Surviving Frozen Canada Alone for 89 Days
Callie has been camping in the North American woods for the last 12 years… straight! Tragedy, the call of the wild and courage to commit to the unknown have shaped her differently. She is also one of the most prominent and much-loved characters on the US Alone TV show, appearing in Season 7 and Alone Frozen.
Oh yeah, and she lives with 11 goats.
You don’t want to miss this one!
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Callie: Instagram, YouTube, website
Thanks so much to Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode. Buy one here via my affiliate link
Episode 8: How To Hike Overnight with Kids
These tips come from personal experience with my own kids (from babies to teenagers) on adventures such as a week-long unsupported hike through remote Tasmania, a fourteen-day high altitude trek in Nepal, and a four-day ski traverse through the Snowy Mountains in a blizzard.
Learn what works and what doesn’t from the technical side to parental regret (OK, I hammed that up).
Episode 7: Lisa Blair – Solo Antarctic Circumnavigations
Lisa sailed solo around Antarctica (twice!). The third person ever to have done it, and the first woman, she broke the world speed record on the second attempt. Narrowly escaping death during a complete dismasting she was impacted by the ship that came to her aid and survived countless rollovers and knock-downs on the planets roughest ocean (even during winter months when it’s at its worst!).
She shares her epic struggles and how she managed to survive.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Lisa: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website
Thanks so much to Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode. Buy one here via my affiliate link
Episode 6: Tom Robinson -Pacific Ocean Rescue & Incredible Survival Story
24 year old Tom built a plywood boat in his Brisbane backyard, shipped it to Peru and rowed solo back toward Australia across the Pacific. A totally authentic, epic adventure ensued until…. on the final leg he was capsized by a rogue wave. In gale force winds, naked and freezing, he secured himself with a single rope to the upturned hull and activated his EPIRB. As night fell the enormity of his situation hit…..
The epic survival story and rescue that followed have featured widely in international media over previous weeks. Hear the full story now, for the first time, on the podcast! It’s epic!
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Tom: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website
Episode 5: Liz and Clay Hayes: Attaining Freedom
The Hayes family live a very different life. With three YouTube channels in one family they have the freedom to go where their outdoor passions take them.
First I chat to Liz about the pros and con’s of such a life and then Clay (winner of Alone season 8). We dive deeper into the ethics of bowhunting in the US and raising kids in such a unique way.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, RSS
Follow Liz: Instagram, Youtube
Follow Clay: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website
Follow Fenn (11 year old son) – YouTube
Thanks so much to Zoleo Satellite Communicators for sponsoring this episode. Buy one here via my affiliate link
Episode 4: Clay Hayes – Alone Season 8 winner, Ecologist, Author, YouTuber
Clay is a highly experienced American woodsman. We chat about his upbringing and the experiences that prepared him for the show, like hunting and fishing as a kid, his masters in wildlife ecology, 17 years in the Idaho Fish and Game Department and the YouTuber lifestyle that allows his family to ‘live the dream’ in wild and remote places.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, Google, RSS
Follow Clay: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website
Episode 3: Lucy Barnard – Hiking Alone Across the World
Lucy is halfway through her 30,000km hike from the southern tip of South America to the northern tip of Alaska.
I’ve known Lucy for a while now and we unpacked her adventure on a three day hike up an active volcano in Guatemala while her hiking companion, Wombat (blue heeler cattle dog), was recovering from a foot injury at a local vet.
Listen on: Spotify, Apple, Google, RSS Feed
Follow Lucy: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website
Episode 2: Naomi Allsworth (Part 2)- Coping mechanisms, Bisexual polygamy, Trauma, surviving Panama (with me😊)
I got to know Naomi closely as we worked together for two weeks as survival instructors for Desert Island Survival on an uninhabited island off Panama. This is a summation of those deep convos in our hammocks after ‘work’.
Episode 1: Naomi Allsworth (Part 1) – Alone UK Season 1, Bear Grylls Survival Academy Instructor, Sustainable Fashion Designer
Naomi has experienced amazing things in the survival world despite finding her passion recently and still being in her twenties. Labelled ‘Bushcraft Barbie’, she doesn’t fit the fashion-designer stereotype…….at all.
From bear encounters (bear and Bear), to dealing with the media, to post partum depression she’s open and honest about her fears and failures.