Bush Tucker Man Season 1 Northern Queensland Coastline

Major Les Hiddins of the Australian Army explores Arnhem Land, northern Australia, and learns Aboriginal survival methods. He's on a mission to record the many bush foods and medicines of northern Australia. Les travels to the closed Indigenous community of Ngukurr, where locals share some remarkable bush tucker secrets.

Northern Territory: south west of Darwin - Daly River to Port Keats - monsoon growth after 4 weeks rains - the wet January to April - mud 'roads' under water for miles and miles - excellent Land-Rover scene running along flooded tracks - everything comes to life - high grass growth and lush bush, fruit growing everywhere - wet weather, well sourced base camp needed - rebuilds favorite base camp at Port Keating - sets up sappling racks, benches, roof supports, clothes hangers, clothes line, bush strainer - works on foot - best way to gather specimens despite rain and - leeches caution - fish handline and bait/fruit from Syzyieum tree - fruit is tangy - polynesian arrowroot bulb - native grapes - root is local snake bite cure untested - clear sunny mornings mostly leading to afternoon rainstorms - high daytime temps, mid 40°C, builds sauna conditions - perspire 4 litres daily - lightning show every evening during wet - locals compete with birds and animals to harvest fruit, bird eggs etc - basis of nomadic culture relates to food chain - local Johnnie Tchula and family from Wadeye - excellent Land-Rover scene, tackling mud on boggy track - show tucker gathering in mud 'n mangroves - mud crabs - eats Teredo or mangrove tree worm (mollusc) - Les not impressed - back to base camp - considers this time of year so stirring - "When the time comes to leave, I'll be flat-out dragging myself 'way from th' place..."

Northern Territory: central Australia west of Alice Springs - Papunya - desert types - dry times - no wet season for some years - need tribal knowledge to find water - fierce competition for food - Honey ants well adapted - also part of local women's culture, Kaparis fruit - blue tongue lizard, goanas - water signs - tribal engraving for waterhole - Yuendumu and local stories - Harts Range and small water catchment with bush bananas for midday meal with locals - melting spinifex resin to repair jerrycan - firestarting lesson using condey's crystal and sugar to ignite cotton wool - shows use of a signal mirror - using eucalypt tree wraps leafy branches in the sun and waits for condensation inside the plastic - catch life-saving water without expending much energy. Last scenes on fringes of Tanami Desert - Lajamanu - local men do the hunting but women do the food gathering... so Les does most of his research using knowledge learnt from the women - wichety grubs cookup.

Northern Western Australia: (end of wet season - start of dry) by chopper into the Kimberly sandstone plateaus - Prince Regent River gorge - boab tree and nuts - carved history on trunk by sailors from HMC "Mermaid" 1820 (Capt. King) - bush passionfruit introduced from Argentina scattered around all over northern Australia - ill-fated exploration in 'The Wet' by George Grey expedition from north to south WA - kept journal but didn't use bush tucker such as mangrove snails - Les climbs escarpment escaping the salt water crocodile - superb lookout over huge St George Basin - isolation and stillness - tucker amongst lush vegetation in the gullies - famous Vitamin C content in Terminalia fruit - eating lemon/lime ants - also the superb Kalumburu almonds Les' favorite bush tucker - food water and shelter needs - rocky overhangs littered with ancient tools and indications of life - bush tucker of the area baby pandanus - vine growth pointing to underground yam (tuba) - dogs nut berry called 'rubbish tucker' by local men - Grey's journal - mystery of the wandjina paintings - bush secrets lost forever - so much to explore - King's Cascades - uses lure in the waters of the gorge for barramundi whilst awaiting chopper ride out.

Far North Queensland: dry season in rainforest near Cooktown, similar to where Les grew up and started Bushtucker studies - Les used rainforest experience in Vietnam - Meg Waterfall, fast flowing river drops 1000m to coastline on horizon - abseiling - Tin mining ruins, edges of "Big Scrub", north of Townsville - lacked understanding - tried to grow bananas, chilli - local food, water, shelter - ginger pips - ginger roots as strong flavouring - but in general the looks of fruits etc can be deceptive - looking for something to add to stew - caution on rainforest stinging leaves - travels further north, out of rainforest near Cooktown, Black Mountains volcanic granite - caves and crevices - legends of convicts and lost tribe of locals - mud road to Cape York - excellent Land-Rover scene crossing Cape York creek - open savanah country, Iron Range a great undisturbed rainforest - makes natural shelter in cane frame and banana leaves - leaves a yabby trap in the creek a few hours - eels, turtle, fish, yabbies, water snakes, nocturnal animals - boils the billy and makes yabby stew with rice and ginger - candle nuts as high energy food and 'candles' - sets up candle nuts.

Crash survivors could have prevented starvation. In this episode, Les Hiddins is in the Gulf Country of Queensland around Doomadgee. In 1942, an American bomber crashed not far from here. Les relives the extraordinary story of the crash's survivors as he moves through the region. Those American airmen, like the majority of Australians, had no knowledge of native bush food or survival. The men starved to death surrounded by abundant food.

Les Hiddins joins a group of soldiers on an expedition into the Bush to learn first-hand about the survival techniques of Aborigines