German backpacker's extraordinary revelation after being lost in the vast West Australian Outback for 12 days
The 26-year-old is still recovering at Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, where she is in 'high spirits' following her dramatic rescue on Friday afternoon after she flagged down passing station owner Tania Henley on a remote dirt road.
Her van had become bogged and, after spending one night with the vehicle, she took off on foot heading west by following the sun. She endured hot days and nights below freezing as she drank water from puddles and took shelter in caves.
Acting Detective Inspector Jessica Securo from WA Police said on Sunday she had spoken to Ms Wilga - who has spoken to her family back home - and that she told her that she 'loves Australia' and that she 'still has so much travel to do here'.
'She hasn't made it over to the East Coast yet, so that's still on her bucket list. So I think if she has the ability to stay, she definitely will.'
'She's had a good night's sleep. She's had a shower. We've got some food, which was a massive relief for her. She's just taking it one day at a time at the moment.'
WA Premier Roger Cook called the German traveller's ordeal an incredible feat of survival and said that she was recovering well considering what she had gone through.
'She's still in hospital and in good care, and I understand her spirits are high, but obviously she has to get over a very difficult, physical ordeal,' he said.
The premier said the entire state was relieved that she had been found safe and well.
'I can't imagine how traumatic it was for her, and I can't imagine the elation that her mother and her family, and her friends, must have felt when it was reported that she had been found safe.'
Five of the backpacker's friends gathered outside the hospital over the weekend.
One, known as Miranda, said she has told Ms Wilga's parents the good news.
'I was actually in contact with her family every day almost (that she was lost) and they're very happy. They almost couldn't believe it, but yeah, they were just overwhelmed with happiness,' she told 7News.
Another friend in the group described Ms Wilga as a 'surf chick' who loves adventure.
'She's very friendly as well, she talks a lot, she's a very nice person.'
The station owner who was flagged down by the 26-year-old said Ms Wilga had cried when she realised she was saved.
She had suffered sunburn, dehydration, had an injured foot, and was covered in mosquito bites, but was otherwise in decent health.
Mentally, however, had resigned herself to the fact that she would likely perish in the wilderness.
'She is still in disbelief that she was able to survive. In her mind, she had convinced herself that she was not going to be located,' Insp Securo said.
'[Spending] 11 days out there is significant. She got to a point where she thought no one was coming to find her'
Ms Wilga was last seen at about midday on June 29 at a general store in Beacon, a small town about 300km north-east of Perth.
Authorities found her van abandoned in the Karroun Hill area - about 50km northeast - on Thursday with fears the young backpacker may have met a grim end.
Ms Wilga then emerged from the thick scrub near Karroun Hill Nature Reserve, at about 4.20pm on Friday after hearing a passing motorist.
Over the course of 12 days, she had used the sun to navigate westward from her van until she finally stumbled across Mouroubra Road and Ms Henley.
'I pulled over and got out and gave her a hug,' Ms Henley said. 'It was pretty emotional.'
Police have revealed Ms Wilga was able to survive the 11 nights in the remote outback by drinking water from puddles and rationing the limited food she'd brought with her.
She found whatever shelter she could at night to protect herself from freezing conditions, including a cave.
'She was thin, fragile, everybody would be fragile you know 12 days to be missing out in the bush, it's usually not a good result,' Ms Henley said.
The station owner gave Ms Wilga an apple and called police to report her miraculous discovery.
The German was filmed boarding a police plane an hour later, dressed in a long skirt and jumper.
She had a scarf bandaged around her foot and walked to the cabin with a slight limp.
Ms Wilga was flown to Perth's Fiona Stanley Hospital, where WA Police Acting Inspector Jessica Securo said she would remain on Saturday.
'She still needs emotional support around her and some of her injuries attended to,' she said.
Ms Wilga was struggling to comprehend her ordeal and rescue in the hours after.
Ms Wilga was last seen at a convenience store in Beacon on June 29, after filling her van up with fuel the previous day 200km away in Toodyay.
Police were alerted to her disappearance after her family in Germany couldn't reach her.
The report sparked a massive manhunt, including homicide squad officers.
A PolAir helicopter found her van on Thursday. It had been bogged in Karroun Hill Reserve, around 100km from her last known location.
Ms Wilga later told police she made the decision to abandon her car after one night while in a state of 'pure panic'.
'She basically looked at the direction of the sun and tried to head west, thinking that would be her best bet of coming across someone or a road,' Insp Securo said.
Family and friends of Ms Wilga rejoiced at the news of her finally being found on Friday.
WA Police Inspector Martin Glynn told reporters it was sure to be a 'remarkable' story.
'As you can imagine from the trauma she's suffered for the last few days, she's been obviously through a great deal,' Insp Glynn said.
'She's obviously in quite a fragile condition at the moment.
'She's coped in some amazing conditions. (It's a) very hostile environment out there.'
Insp Securo called for Ms Wilga's story to be remembered as a warning to those travelling through remote areas.
'Invest in things like personal locator beacons, where you may be able to raise emergency services if you come into trouble,' she said.
'You're best off remaining with your car far easier for an aerial search to locate a vehicle than it is a person.'
'We never gave up hope that Carolina would be found safe and well, and this is truly the best outcome and best result we could have wished for,' Inspector Securo said.
'The support of our Western Australian community is our greatest asset, particularly in a state as vast as ours. The incredible result just reinforces how wonderful the WA community is.'
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