By Isla Evans and Floss Adams, ABC News
Bohdi Jackson was rescued after going missing in the rugged NSW Snowy Mountains. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Bohdi Jackson was meant to run a simple 8 kilometres on Tuesday morning.
Instead, he took a wrong turn and ended up travelling nearly 50km through the rugged terrain of the NSW Snowy Mountains.
It sparked a seven-hour search effort, unbeknown to the 17-year-old.
"I just wanted to go home and have a choccy milk," he said.
The Sydney teenager was on a morning run in the Kosciuszko National Park while during a triathlon camp when he sped off from his group and took a wrong turn.
Bohdi Jackson has been on a triathlon training camp in the NSW Snowy Mountains. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
"I went a bit too far and forgot to turn around and kept on running," he said.
"And I got lost."
Distracted by "very loud" rap music blasting from his speaker, it took him a couple of hours to realise he had gone the wrong way.
"At like 12km in, [I realised I was lost] and I wasn't going to turn around there because then you have to do 24km," he said.
"I just kept on going."
The teenager was greeted by his friends after being rescued. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Meanwhile, the teenager's small running group rang emergency services when he failed to return to the entrance of the Cascade Trail near Thredbo.
But Bohdi was still running.
With no reception, he kept going with the idea that he could make it to a road and find a ride back to his friends.
"I took a bunch of breaks, it was like every 2kms," he said.
"I was swimming in the river water a bit to cool down.
"Apparently, it's not drinkable water though. I might have diarrhoea."
Bodhi was told by paramedics to monitor for signs of dehydration. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Large search
While he was running, a search involving NSW Police, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, and the NSW Rural Fire Service was underway.
A geo-targeted text was sent out to phones in the surrounding areas to keep an eye out for the teenager.
"I was scared that I wasn't going to find anyone, and I was going to be stuck there," he said.
Bodhi was missing for about seven hours on Tuesday. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Bohdi was preparing to find a place to sleep for the night when he was found by a mountain bike rider and used her phone to call authorities.
At that point, he was 30kms away from where he started his run earlier that day.
He was flown back to his friends by helicopter just before 5pm.
"They hooked me up and they pulled me up onto the helicopter," he said.
"It was very cool - it was very loud."
The teenager was flown out of the terrain on Tuesday afternoon. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Bohdi's relieved group of mates met him back at the entrance of the Cascade Trail along with emergency services.
He was briefly assessed at the scene by paramedics for signs of dehydration.
"My legs are very tired but I actually feel alright," he said.
He said the plan was to have "steak and a choccy milk", joking that he may back it up with "a long run tomorrow".
Record run
Bohdi said he ran 30km and walked another 20km over the course of the day, at one point turning around to try and find his way back.
Having never run that far before, the upside for the 17-year-old was his new collection of running personal bests.
"I've got a 20km PB, a 25km PB, and a 30km PB," he said.
"I don't normally run that far, unless I get lost."
The Cascade Trail is located near Thredbo in the NSW Snowy Mountains. Photo: ABC South East NSW / Floss Adams
Plan ahead in mountains
NSW Police said the incident was a reminder to prepare before venturing into the alpine region.
"While the Kosciuszko National Park is in a beautiful place to enjoy bushwalking, it can be a dangerous place if you do not plan your trip carefully," Detective Inspector Ritchie Sim said in a statement.
"It is also strongly advised to carry a personal locator beacon (PLB) with you when venturing in the park.
"You can't always rely on mobile phone reception."
Bodhi said the ordeal also taught him a valuable lesson about paying attention to his surroundings.
"Find out where you are running and what trails you are running on, so you know where to go," he said.
"And don't get lost."
- ABC
