My step out of reality.

[Bally002]

Hello Ninurta,  Thanks for asking

!) I was using map, compass and protractor and line of site to landmarks.  We weren't issued GPS back then.  Closest tech we had was a Sat phone about the size of a laptop.

"So you could shoot azimuths to landmarks and triangulate your location, but the bluff at your location were not on the map. That's interesting. Did you record the grids to that location for later use in Google Earth or something like that?"

BTW - your cell phone sometimes records your location in photos you take. Just a head's up - be careful of the photos you post. Your location can be gotten from the EXIF data in some of your photos. One of the ones you posted of Girlie had that data still in it. There is a free program called Irfanview that, among other things, can read that EXIF data and open the location up in Google Earth if you have that installed. I think it will also open the location in Google Maps on the internet if GE is not installed. On the plus side, Ifranview will save a cropped out section of the photo WITHOUT that pasky EXIF data, keeping the location of the photo secure.

2)  I stepped off the trail and walked back to the first bluff and rounded the slope.  That's when we spotted each other.  He'd driven right past me around the slope and pulled up.  Out of my sight at that point.

Hope that helps.  

Thanks for reading.

Bally:)

This is not the first time I've heard of people disappearing when they stepped on a path, or reappearing when they stepped off of it. I think that trackway was integral to your account.

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"So you could shoot azimuths to landmarks and triangulate your location, but the bluff at your location were not on the map. That's interesting. Did you record the grids to that location for later use in Google Earth or something like that?"


To put it into perspective, this was basically a patrol.  In a quieter period hence I had time to explore. Our days and nights could be long.  Sometimes up to 3 days at a time.  

The occurrence, forgive me, was, at that time to me, just that.  I was very particular with my diaries but not so much that I spent a long time putting in co-ordinates and truthfully due to other operations the matter was put to the back of my mind but it lingered and now to this time where I put it on here.  

As we always say we were short staffed and very little in budget for going out exploring but I did.  If I do remember correctly I put it down as a patrol to and from just using the route without co-ordinates.  This would not be the case if there was an actual incident like person/s lost/missing, late arrivals, vehicle accidents, violence, real searches, prisoner transfer, community riots and the list goes on.  My wife and young ones at the time, very rarely had time with me except for 'leave.'

We had no google, restricted internet, no mobile phones and relied on the UHF and VHF primarily for contact.

Later, yes, nowadays I have looked at google but can't be sure of that precise location.  I'm talking some 20 years later.  Important things back then took precedence and my own indulgences weren't included in that lot.  I had others under my command and several communities and a family to look after first.  When opportunity presented itself I undertook some looking around and came across some interesting things.  At times it may have been while I was conducting investigations such as in the 'Falconio Disappearance' sometimes testing the patience of my off-siders.  

Kind regards,

Bally:)