Piliga Scrub encounter

[Wolf]

Just spoke to a customer I deliver groceries to who related an encounter he had in the infamous Piliga Scrub.
The Newell highway stretches straight as an arrow through this area for many miles.
Truckies refuse to stop if they can help it for many have reported seeing large, hairy figures feeding on roadkill beside the highway at night.
However because the highway stretches for hundreds of miles sometimes drivers have no choice but to stop for some sleep.

This fellow was accompanying a driver who when he stopped would always sleep in the cab with the doors locked. The bloke laughed at his mate and unrolled his swag in the back of the truck they were driving.

Sometime in the wee hours he woke to a loud thump followed by footsteps approaching the vehicle. He said it sounded like someone very heavy had jumped down off a bank of earth that had been piled behind the stopping area.
At first he thought it was his mate and called out for him to stop trying to scare him but there was no answer. Instead the footsteps got closer until he could also hear heavy, raspy breathing beside the truck.

All he could do was wrap himself tightly inside his swag and hope it went away... which it eventually did.

He said he was absolutely terrified and too scared to move or get out of his swag. He did not sleep a wink for the rest of the night and if he ever was forced to stop in the Piliga again he made sure to sleep in the cab with doors locked.

[JohnEagjehawk]

I drove interstate semis for 11 years and was always going through the Pilliga heading to Brisbane or Townsville. Saw plenty of pigs and roos, but never had a Yowie encounter.I could even point out the grave of the Pilliga Princess as I drove past. I've even slept in the truck in the middle of the Pilliga. But going for a walk through the bush up there is a different feeling than other areas of Australia. Very erie feeling.

[BushcraftAndCampingA]

With all this activity in the Pilliga, i really want to head out there one day. Would I be right to say it is THE hotspot for Yowies in Australia? Seems to be. Cool story though - i get so jealous of people who have encounters, even if they were terrifying

[Austral]

I drove interstate semis for 11 years and was always going through the Pilliga heading to Brisbane or Townsville. Saw plenty of pigs and roos, but never had a Yowie encounter.I could even point out the grave of the Pilliga Princess as I drove past. I've even slept in the truck in the middle of the Pilliga. But going for a walk through the bush up there is a different feeling than other areas of Australia. Very erie feeling.

Hey john, sorry to change the subject but what’s going on in your Whipstick area ?

[JohnEagjehawk]

If there's any in the Whipstick they're playing hard to get! I should put some pics on here of the tree knawing I find. I don't know if it's birds or kangaroos? I won't hijack this Pilliga thread though, it is a strange bit of bush the Pilliga.

[JohnEagjehawk]

Getting back to the Pilliga. When I was trucking I heard of some stories of stock truckers pulled up in the middle of the Pilliga. They'd get woken in the middle of the night with something big jumping on the side of the trailer trying to get the animals inside. Not much scares us lorry drivers as we've seen alot. But these guys had the trucks fired up pretty quickly and sent them out of the Pilliga finding a bit of damage to the trailer when they got to Coonabarabran or Narrabri. And they'd vow never to sleep in the Pilliga again.

[JohnEagjehawk]

And another story that just came to mind. I woke up one morning after sleeping in a little parking bay on the side of the Newell in the middle of the Pilliga. I had no idea about Yowies at this time. But I went for a little walk into a track to have an explore. I get this smell of of wet fur. Like wet dog but alot stronger. I didn't hang around long as I guess it was some kind of animal. I heard later on in life that you get that smell when a Yowie is nearby? Maybe someone on here that has had an encounter can verify the stinky hair smell.

[Wolf]

That's very interesting.
I wouldn't be hanging around either

[Dudlow]

I heard later on in life that you get that smell when a Yowie is nearby?

Same thing with Sasquatch/Bigfoot here in North America. Drs. Krantz and Bindernagel, Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey have each discussed the large apocrine glands responsible for the powerful fear odor emitted by gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees and Sasquatches. I can see no reason why the Yowie would be any different.

[JohnEagjehawk]

That's interesting about the glands. The parking area I was in was about 20kms south of Narrabri. On the eastern side of the Newell. I'd walked down a track for about 5 minutes then got that wet dog smell all around me. I couldn't pin point an area it was coming from. It wasn't dead animal smell either, as I know what that is. This was a smell I've never encountered before. And I've never smelt it since that day. I probably hung around there a few minutes then thought it was best to head back to the safety of the semi.

[Dudlow]

I believe the acridity of the odor may be related to the maturity and gender of the specimen in question. Young versus old, male versus female; but especially the degree of distress, anxiety or stress the creature feels in the moment.

[Outback lurker]

So a bit like “nervous sweat”?

[Wolf]

Very much IMO.
If they stunk all the time they would not make very good hunters as prey would simply smell them coming.
Going by encounter stories the smell seems directly related to them being surprised.

[David]

Perhaps it's a gland that can be activated at will?

[Cricket]

If you think about how you sweat... You are hot at work but not exercising etc your sweat isn't that bad a smellm you sweat because U are nervous and have to do a speech in front of lots of ppl your sweat stinks. Must be similar to humans then re the smell... IE relaxed not so bad vs super stressed/ fight or flight mode smelly

[Yowie bait]

The warning pong must be seperate from the natural smell from what i observed and is very off putting. We could smell it very strongly from 20 or 30 metres away but up close you can smell the strong animal or "wet dog smell" but still the other totally different funky smell hanging around. Hope thats a help!

[Yowie bait]

And another story that just came to mind. I woke up one morning after sleeping in a little parking bay on the side of the Newell in the middle of the Pilliga. I had no idea about Yowies at this time. But I went for a little walk into a track to have an explore. I get this smell of of wet fur. Like wet dog but alot stronger. I didn't hang around long as I guess it was some kind of animal. I heard later on in life that you get that smell when a Yowie is nearby? Maybe someone on here that has had an encounter can verify the stinky hair smell.

We had a visitor while parked on the side of the newell too. Walked up behind my mate when he was taking a piss behind the van and slapped the side of the van. Seen these things running beside the car and across the road as well. Bloody freaky road at night.Im suprised more researchers dont park along the newell. Sure to get some action!

[GregP]

Agree, park up overnight with a truck full of fat tastey sheep, covered in cameras. No need to go bush bashing. Let the yowie come to you. What will win, hunger or fear of cameras?

[Wolf]

Agree, park up overnight with a truck full of fat tastey sheep, covered in cameras. No need to go bush bashing. Let the yowie come to you. What will win, hunger or fear of cameras?

Fear of cameras will win.
These animals aren't stupid, and have been surviving just fine without fat, tasty sheep far longer than Europeans have been stumbling about on this big island... and far longer than the first aborigines stepped ashore too.

[gregvalentine]

Agree, park up overnight with a truck full of fat tastey sheep, covered in cameras. No need to go bush bashing. Let the yowie come to you. What will win, hunger or fear of cameras?

Fear of cameras will win.
These animals aren't stupid, and have been surviving just fine without fat, tasty sheep far longer than Europeans have been stumbling about on this big island... and far longer than the first aborigines stepped ashore too.

Can't pull the wool over their eyes, eh (sorry . . .) ?

A bushwalking acquaintance informed that she was doing multi-day work with others for the NPWS in the Pilliga Scrub earlier this year. She didn't really say that they camped out (but I expect they did), and didn't add anything about anything strange being observed and/or heard. I should have perhaps tried to gently broach the subject.

[grooveyguru]

I stopped there one night. I was driving from Victoria to Qld. Pulled over in a side road, not far off the highway. Got moved on in the early hours by something loud and angry “yelling/bellowing “at us. Went quiet after that and stalked the full perimeter of our cars. Left shortly after not hearing anything for a while. Threw everything in the Ute and packed it away in Narribri. Would of looked like the Beverly hill billies driving into town on daylight

[Wolf]

I stopped there one night. I was driving from Victoria to Qld. Pulled over in a side road, not far off the highway. Got moved on in the early hours by something loud and angry “yelling/bellowing “at us. Went quiet after that and stalked the full perimeter of our cars. Left shortly after not hearing anything for a while. Threw everything in the Ute and packed it away in Narribri. Would of looked like the Beverly hill billies driving into town on daylight

LOL, nothing like the feeling of being reminded how small and vulnerable we are...