In case you missed watching it or you are keen for a rehash – here is my summary of Episode 3 – where we lost our first participant.
Alone Australia Episode 3
Alone Quote: “We are the sum total of our hungers” – A W Tozer
Day 10
7.30am Matt – is in great mood ‘What a beautiful morning’ – Sings la la la lah. Last night he got an eel after 9 days of consistently trying. Thinks if he can catch one eel or one fish a week he has a chance of going deep in this competition. He has been eating saw sedge up until now – The Eel is now cooked and ready to eat. ‘Moment of truth’ as he goes to eat it. ‘Yum’. What a beautiful moment – a big moment – the sun is out – he just wishes his wife and kids where there. He gets surprisingly full from the one small eel. He drinks the broth too. “Spirits are high’. He feels like he is thriving. ‘Whooah! Burp’. Eel is a calorie dense food.
Eva 6.2km away. Joyfully drinking a warm cup of water – then a Spotted Tail Quoll ran past – she was in awe of seeing it and really curious about why was this nocturnal creature out at this time of day ‘What is his story?’. She is reflecting on how high the highs are out here and how low the lows are. Last night she thought she would have the best sleep because she had finished her removable door and would be cosy as but she had a visitor in the nightthat kept her awake – A bush rat thought the shelter was top notch and decided to move in AND steal Evas toothbrush while he was at it. In the morning she could hear the rat so she snuck up on it, picked up a rock and then suddenly threw it – trying to hit the rat – but sadly missed – said ‘Let’s be honest – I wouldn’t mind eating him’.
6.9km away – Corinne – enjoying the place ‘so nice’. She wonders if she has lost weight and knows she has because her pants are much easier to do up. She has been eating Gahnia leaf bases and has lots of plants around her that she can eat – and she reckons she could survive on a vegetarian diet but she wouldn’t be happy. She found a grub and is wanting to eat it but is struggling with the killing. She knows she needs to get over her adversion to killing things but if she can’t kill a grub what hope has she got. She knows she needs to adapt to be able to survive out here. She suddenly threw the grub into her mouth – wasn’t too painful for either of them.
8.3km away Ceilidh. It is silent around her and that keeps her calm because she was born into silence. Some people think that is sad but she likes the silence. Still she is getting hungry and is feeling weak and shaky – 10 days without food and she can feel that her body doesn’t have many days left in it. She has made a great fishing net and has set up a very cool pulley system that she set up by wading out naked up to her neck into the very cold water – 8 degrees – to set it up around a tree. She had a wash and felt very alive afterwards. ‘That was something else’. Proud that she did it.
53km away – Shay. He had planned to get food straight away but that hasn’t happened. He didn’t hear the wallaby last night so he is hopeful that it is in the trap. As he heads out to the trap he is feeling the same excitement that you get at Christmas as you go to look under the tree. His trap had been triggered but had failed. It was a big Pademelon – two of them- that had triggered it. Shay was heartbroken. He had put so much care into setting that trap, and that was a big feed that got away. But he realised that it is early days and at least they are around. Shay is wearing a very cool possum skin vest.
Day 12 1.30pm Matt. For the first 10 days he struggled being away from his family but the eel changed things, even though it was small – about the size of 3 sausages. It is a half moon and eels are nocturnal so it makes sense to do some night fishing but hard as he was comfy in bed. Matt takes his hat off to the Palawa people who thrived out here in Tasmania. He is now super passionate about his Aboriginal culture. He missed a lot of connection to his culture growing up as his mum who is Aboriginal left when he was 7. Now he often connects with Aboriginal people by going fishing and sharing stories and information. He is fishing and he gets his 2nd Eel and is very happy. He was close to calling it quits but is so glad he didn’t.
Day 13
Muzza. Beautiful day – he is feeling happy and content. He has caught 4 trout and 3 eels in the last 8 days. He made a cool smoker and cooked up his fish in a stew. ‘Liquid heaven’. He feels like he is living like a king. Yum! Burp! He has 3 days of food left and then he caught another trout, with eggs – fish fry. He ate it straight up. He hopes that the rest of the crew out here are enjoying themselves because he is.
Day 14
Karla.A folding saw was one of her 10 items. Made a very cool shelter with windows and walls made of samplings wedged between two poles – clever. She worked hard today to get it done – and reminded herself to work smarter not harder. She is very hunger and wants to eat. She went fishing using an earth worm as bait and she got a huge eel. She has food and can’t believe it ‘Oh My God’. Very very happy.
20.7km away Ceilidh – Feeling very hungry and weak. She tries several time to cast a line but it keeps getting caught. She is feeling despair and is embarrassed and frustrated. She is worried about another day without food but is making herself stay active.
Day 15
Ceilidh – She has made a sturdy and cosy looking A frame shelter – feeling weak and her lips are blistered – but she forces herself to go. Fishing is her thing but she hasn’t caught anything –gotta keep trying. She is losing some coordination. She has made a terrific fireplace, a cool net scoop and an amazing woven funnel trap out of Gahnia. She made herself go to the creek – she is wondering if the land wants her there. She saw a trout swimming up the creek and she tried to spear it but missed. She gives herself a lot of positive self-talk. She made a rock wall across the creek and put the funnel trap in a hole of the wall. It is raining. She saw a trout swimming near her trap and then it went it and she got it. She can’t believe it. She got a brown trout – now she is with the land – Thankyou Lutruwita.
Day 16
Matt. Having a real battle. Thinking of his children – Remi – 3 years and Lani – 1 year old. Enjoying the million dollar view and the mist rolling down is magical. Even though he had half and eel for dinner he is ready to leave. He is very proud and in the end his heart won and he is feeling a lot of joy – Family is home. He has a laugh and makes the call to tap out. Cant think of a better reason to leave. He is walking away with a life changing experience – life changing perspective of what is actually important. Family is home – wherever they are – that is his home.
9 people remain.
