First time winch used

[Wizard52]

Been over on Fraser for a week or so and had to use the winch for the first time except for a bit of wire fencing tension.
On track back to barge at Wanggolba Creek and found this Mazda CX5 with 4 Japanese girls hopelessly bogged after about 7lkm.
Not sure how long they had been there but got them out and turned around to go back home. Spoke to driver and told her to follow me and I would watch her to make sure she was ok. Also told her to drive like a rally car and not to slow down or stop for anything. She did exactly that and once I saw her going through some very loose sand close to the barge like a boat through a wave with a big bow wave of sand coming up either side of the car.
They were very grateful and learnt to take advice of barge operator who said not to go. I bet their social media would have been interesting once we got in phone range.

[VK2FMIA]

Had a similar experience a few years ago on Fraser. A hired Troopy full of French backpackers bogged on one of the inland tracks. Didn`t need the winch though, just needed to put the Troopy in 4WD..............

One of the Tour bus drivers pulled up as well & after moving the troopy off the track he walked up to me & said "when you get up the track a bit, pull over so I can get passed". I thought to myself "Gotta catch me first". Well he had me rounded up in about 200 meters. Those buses get along pretty well!

Seems they let anyone drive on the island as long as you pay your money whether you know what you are doing or not. No wonder there are so many accidents there.

[Wizard52]

Since they introduced the tag along policy, I don't think any backpackers have been killed or even seriously injured.

These days it is the dual cabs with all the fruit that seem to be the trouble. One night last week, there was a convoy of about 6 or 7 vehicles travelling up the beach after dark and I presume they were all afraid of the dark as the were about 30 or 40 metres apart line astern and all had their useless light bars on. Not much light on the beach but would have been blinding for vehicles ahead of each other.

Also overheard on radio a pair of dual cabs going over Nagala instead of driving straight ahead on the beach as there was plenty of sand over rocks. Heard one say that they had to go hard as soon as they hit the sand as he saw it on the video. When the second one was going full steam ahead,he called out to the first one that he had done a tyre as he could hear the air escaping. He did not stop and soon I heard his girl friend/partner call over radio that it was ok, it wasn't a tyre it was only the gas bottle. I'm glad I was not in that vehicle with gas leaking.