A 36-year-old Colombian national missing in the remote rainforests of far north Queensland for five days has been found alive.
Juliana Castrillon, who has lived in Australia for a decade, was last seen on Saturday morning when she set off alone on a 14km hike after attending an unofficial rainforest party south of Cooktown.
Castrillon had spent several days in Cedar Bay with dozens of locals, backpackers and others who had previously attended the nearby spiritual electronic music festival Orin Aya on the weekend of 3-4 September.
Family and friends had held grave fears for Castrillon after she failed to arrive at her destination of Home Rule on Saturday evening. They said she was reliable, responsible and determined to return to Byron Bay by Monday to open her shop Byron Bay Traders.
After two days of aerial searching failed to locate Castrillon, police and the SES began a ground search on Wednesday, stating crocodiles, venomous snakes, deep ravines and treacherous waterways were all “concerns in relations to survivability”.
On Wednesday afternoon, SES volunteers found Castrillon alive. Queensland police said Castrillon was “being walked to Home Rule where a medical assessment will take place”.
Earlier on Wednesday, Insp David Perry had told reporters Castrillon did not have supplies with her.
“[But] the fact you have access to clean water, survivability is very high, I wouldn’t be concerned in relation to survivability,” he said before she was located.
“It’s more the wildlife we talk about, whether it be venomous snakes that are in the area, [or] … crocodiles that might be in the area. There are some quite deep ravines and dangerous waterways in the area as well so they are all areas of concern.”
Castrillon was last seen on Saturday when she set off to hike the rough 14km track from Cedar Bay back to Home Rule, where the electronic music festival Orin Aya had been held.
Castrillon and other festivalgoers had walked from the inland festival site to the coast last Wednesday to gather for a separate communal celebration.
Byron Bay’s Clau Coñuecar said Castrillon was like a sister to her and the 36-year-old’s disappearance was out of character. She compared the situation to “a nightmare” or a “scary movie”.
“She’s not like a party girl at all,” Coñuecar said. “She’s a very reliable and responsible person. She doesn’t do drugs or anything like that … I can’t believe it is happening.”
Coñuecar said Castrillon had emailed family and friends before embarking midweek on the 14km trek to Cedar Bay. She let them know she was going to “a sacred place” and would have no reception until her planned return on Saturday evening when she would be in touch.
Castrillon was determined to be back in Byron Bay by Monday to open her store, Coñuecar said.
Dutch backpacker Lisa Heisen said she met Castrillon at Cedar Bay where they loosely arranged to hike back to Home Rule together.
But Heisen decided to stay for a full moon ceremony on Saturday night, so Castrillon set off alone.
Heisen later got a lift on a boat that had brought food and supplies. She made her way to a property where Castrillon had stored some belongings and waited to make sure the Colombian picked them up safely. When she didn’t arrive, Heisen reported Castrillon missing on Sunday.
She said there were about 60 people at Cedar Bay. The gathering was “very free” and “people walk around naked”, she said. The backpacker noted the “vibe was positive” but at least one person “made her feel uncomfortable”.
She said the track between Home Rule and Cedar Bay was marked by pink tape and involved several crossings of clear but fast-flowing water.
