Peter Nelson, People: KINGSLEY (PEOPLE WILDERNESS 2026)

Kingsley did his first Operation Flinders (NFP) walk as a Team Leader on Yankaninna Station in the Gammon Ranges earlier this year. It is austere, ancient wilderness country. Team leading is a very, very demanding role, walking with ten young (often reluctant) participants for eight days and seven nights in a challenging wilderness environment, and without any home comforts, not even a tent. It is exhausting. Pushing through the challenges of the experience turns most of the young participants lives around. It inspires them, teaches them about survival and what they are capable of achieving. Some even say it saves them! Kingsley had a tough team. The night before the photo, they'd endured 7 straight hours of drenching rain, sleeping only under a tarpaulin for shelter. This was after a full day of high ropes experience, that I helped to run. One of Kingsley's participants had ripped the name tag from Kingsley's helmet and slapped it on his forehead. His reaction is so typical of this big-hearted man.... who still had five more tough days ahead of him with the team. I love this photo.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.