Cowboy spent six nights in tree to flee crocs

AN AUSTRALIAN cowboy told yesterday how he spent six nights up a tree for fear of being attacked by a crocodile after accidentally riding his horse into a swamp.

David George, a 53-year-old manager on a cattle ranch near Coen in the tropical north of Queensland state, was the subject of a six-day search after his horse wandered back to his homestead without him, police said.

George told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio he had been dazed from a fall after his horse veered into a crocodile-infested swamp.

George said it was almost nightfall when he climbed up a tree.

He said he spent the first night in a fork 2.5 metres (8 feet) above the ground, saying he was stalked by two large crocodiles that lurked beneath his tree every night.

George said the crew of an army helicopter spotted him in a tree top waving his shirt on August 8.

He was taken to Coen hospital for treatment for minor injuries and was released within hours.