Stockpile of supplies helps couple survive four days bogged on Nullarbor bush track
/ By Hayden Smith and Jarrod LucasCarl Jakeway limped into Busselton with an aching body, a mud-caked car and a cautionary tale.
On Saturday he and his wife Rose were rescued by West Australian police after spending four nights stranded on a Nullarbor bush track.
The pair, from Clare Valley in South Australia, were heading west to visit family when they decided to go "backtracking" south of Cocklebiddy Roadhouse.
Luckily they had stocked up on food and water, because things went downhill when they reached a damp stretch of track.
"Other vehicles had been through it," Mr Jakeway, 56, told the ABC.
"We got three-quarters of the way across what was probably a 40-metre area and the left-hand side of the car just sunk into the ground."
Over the next three days the experienced bush drivers tried various ways of digging out their ute, but to no avail.
"We've been stuck before, but mainly in sandy country," Mr Jakeway said.
"We spent days digging and digging, just trying to get this red clay out of there."
'We started saving urine'
At first they resisted the urge to activate their personal locator beacon, thinking they would eventually dig themselves out.
They had "quite a few days" worth of food in the car, but the couple did start rationing their water as the hours wore on.
"We started saving urine, thinking that in two or three or four days that we may need to use that," Mr Jakeway said.
"So, fortunately, we didn't have to."
On Friday morning, about three days after they became bogged, their jack broke.
It was then that they decided to activate their personal location beacon.
"There was no way I could jack up the vehicle anymore to try and get sticks and rocks under any wheels, to give us some clearance," Mr Jakeway said.
"Once the jack broke, that was it."
The distress signal sparked a large-scale search, but officers were unable to access the area on Friday due to heavy rain.
Finally, about 11.35am Saturday, Police Air Wing spotted the stranded couple.
"The plane circled, and we were pretty happy, I can assure you," Mr Jakeway said.
He thanked the police and staff at Cocklebiddy Roadhouse for their help.
'Didn't quite go to plan'
Mr Jakeway said the car was fine – after being retrieved from the mud – and they had now successfully made it to Busselton.
"The kids have currently relinquished my license to drive on a dirt road," he said.
"Things didn't quite go to plan, and we learned a lot."
Mr Jakeway said his personal locator beacon had proven to be well worth the purchase.
"We bought that many years ago and it's one of those things you buy that you hope you never have to use, but I'm very glad we had it there," he said.
He reiterated the importance of informing friends and family of travel plans.
Goldfields-Esperance Police Inspector Mick Kelly said the couple had done the right thing.
"The occupants stayed with their vehicle and had sufficient resources to be there for several days," he said.
But Inspector Kelly also urged Nullarbor travellers to refer to the Main Roads website.
"The ground is still quite wet from the heavy rains that we experienced," he said.
"It is still very boggy."