Backpacker 'lucky to be alive'

The teenager made her own way to safety

Police say backpacker Louise Saunders is lucky to be alive after three nights lost in dense Australian jungle.

The teenager was fortunate the weather has been so fine since she got lost on a hike up a mountain on Tuesday, said Inspector Paul Taylor, of Queensland Police.

She was smart in following the stream

Sgt Kim McComb

He also put her survival in the rainforest of northern Queensland partly down to the teenager's "high spirits".

Louise, from Kidderminster, Worcestershire, managed to follow a river to reach the outskirts of the town of Tully.

"For a 19-year-old girl she has done extremely well, " he said.

He said things could have turned out much worse given the extreme conditions of wet tropics and thick rainforest of Mount Tyson.

"The mountain is so near Tully that it is a temptation for people to climb it.

"But some people aren't experienced to take it on and often they require rescuing."

Keeping warm

The trainee beauty therapist had only chewing gum to eat and water to drink.

Although the days were warm there were freezing conditions overnight.

The teenager described how she had covered herself with leaves to keep herself warm.

Meanwhile a rescue team of experts and volunteers had spent three nights searching for her using helicopters and heat-seeking equipment.

But they were unable to locate her in the dense undergrowth.

The teenager's own actions may have saved her, say police.

After waiting one day by a waterfall hoping to be found she followed a water course down the mountain until she reached the outskirts of Tully.

Sgt Kim McComb told the BBC: "She was smart in following the stream. It was probably one of the things that saved her life."

Louise had told reporters: "Hearing the helicopters kept me going the whole way."

But Ms McComb said she believed Louise's experience would serve as a warning to others contemplating such a walk alone.

"It was probably not a good idea to go up the mountain by herself but I am sure she has learnt from her experience and a few other people will have learnt from her experience."

Treacherous terrain

She said searchers had been worried after three nights had passed seeing that most people who get lost in that area are found within around five hours.

The paths between Townsville and Cairns are popular with tourists and very well marked out, according to the BBC's correspondent Phil Mercer.

But the terrain of sheer cliffs, rocky ravines and poisonous snakes could be treacherous.

He said: "The authorities say the big danger is falling down and getting hurt and never being found".

Fortunately for Louise she made her own way to safety four days after becoming disorientated in the jungle, with only minor cuts and bruises to show for her frightening ordeal.