Hiking safety in Australia

The short version of staying safe on Australian tracks. Covers emergencies, snakebite, heat, bushfire, storms, ticks and what to carry.

Last reviewed 12 November 2026

In an emergency

  • Call Triple Zero (000). If your carrier has no signal, your phone will try other networks.
  • Know where you are. The free Emergency+ app shows your GPS coordinates to read out to the operator.
  • No signal at all? Activate a PLB (personal locator beacon). Some newer phones can also send emergency messages by satellite. Learn how yours works before you need it.
  • Register your PLB with AMSA. It’s free, and rescuers can call your emergency contacts straight away.

Before you go

  1. Check park alerts for the specific park on the morning you go. Closures after rain and fire are common.
  2. Check the fire danger rating. Parks often close on Extreme and Catastrophic days. Don’t walk in bushland on those days.
  3. Leave a trip plan with someone you trust: where you’re going, your route, who’s with you, and the time they should call 000 if they haven’t heard from you.
  4. Turn back early. Plan to finish with at least an hour of daylight spare.

Snakebite

Most Australian snakebites happen when people try to catch or kill the snake. Give snakes space. They’ll move on.

If someone is bitten:

  1. Call 000.
  2. Keep them still and calm. Moving spreads venom.
  3. Apply a pressure immobilisation bandage. Start with a broad elastic bandage over the bite. Then bandage the whole limb, fingers or toes up to the armpit or groin, as firmly as you’d bandage a sprain.
  4. Splint the limb and keep them lying down.
  5. Don’t wash the bite, cut it, suck it or use a tourniquet.

Carry at least two heavy elastic bandages on every walk. They’re the most useful thing in your first aid kit.

Heat

Heat is the most common reason walkers get into trouble in summer.

  • Start at first light and be off exposed tracks by late morning.
  • Carry more water than you think. In hot weather, plan on roughly a litre per hour of walking, plus a spare litre.
  • Heat exhaustion: heavy sweating, headache, nausea, dizziness. Stop, get into shade, cool down, sip water.
  • Heatstroke is an emergency: confusion, slurred speech, hot skin that may stop sweating, collapse. Call 000 and cool them aggressively with water and shade.

Storms and flash flooding

  • Never cross a flooded creek. Wait it out or turn back. Water drops quickly after a storm.
  • Waterfalls look best after rain, and that’s also when rock is slipperiest and tracks close.
  • Lightning: get off ridges and summits, and away from lone trees.

Ticks and leeches

  • Paralysis ticks live along the east coast. Freeze it, don’t squeeze it: use a freezing spray from a chemist and let the tick drop off.
  • If you’re allergic to ticks, carry your adrenaline autoinjector and seek medical help.
  • Leeches are harmless. Flick them off. Salt or insect repellent on your shoes helps keep them away.

What to carry on a day walk

  • Water (see above) and food, plus extra
  • First aid kit with 2+ heavy elastic bandages, blister patches, tape, a triangular bandage and any personal medication
  • Map or offline map and a charged phone, plus a power bank
  • PLB for remote walks or anywhere without reliable reception
  • Rain jacket and a warm layer, even in summer at altitude
  • Head torch
  • Sun protection: hat, sunscreen, sunglasses
  • Whistle

Get trained

A first aid course is the best thing you can do for your hiking group. In Australia, look for:

  • HLTAID011 Provide First Aid (the standard one-day course)
  • HLTAID013 Provide First Aid in Remote or Isolated Site (worth it if you walk off the beaten track)

Sources