A lost nature photographer, bitten by a snake several days before she was found in dense bushland in the Australian Alps, is fortunate to be alive, police say.
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Swedish-Australian Lovisa Sjoberg, 48, was being treated in hospital on Monday after an extensive search and rescue operation in the Snowy Mountains region.
The alarm was raised on October 21 nearly a week after she was last sighted in a car in Kosciuszko National Park.
A park ranger found Ms Sjoberg "dazed and injured" on Sunday afternoon on Nungar Creek Trail at Kiandra.
"She advises that she was bitten by a snake approximately four days prior, and had rolled her ankle and was dehydrated," Superintendent Toby Lindsay told reporters on Monday.
"She's, in fact, pretty fortunate to be alive and went through a pretty tough time."
Ms Sjoberg, who is also known as "Kiki", was taken to Cooma Hospital in a stable condition.
She was officially reported missing after a rental car was not returned and the company alerted police.
Local horse track operator Peter Cochran, who was involved in the search, said the photographer would often head into the wilderness and take images of brumbies in the area.
He said tracking Ms Sjoberg down was the result of an intense effort by volunteers and community members along with authorities.
"The scrub is incredibly thick ... you could ride within five metres and not see (a person) because the regrowth as a consequence of fires in 2020 has left an incredible amount of scrub up there, dense scrub that you've got a job to ride through," Mr Cochran told ABC radio.
"Kiki was a devout supporter of the brumby cause and photographed many of those horses which are now deceased, so it was no doubt an emotional drain on her and all of us involved."
Police urged those entering the national park to complete a simple online trip intention form for every journey.
Australian Associated Press
