Darrel Roche was born in the western suburbs of Sydney. After leading a short expedition in the remote highlands of New Guinea in 1969 at the age of 20, he embarked on an Australian adventure travelling throughout the Aussie Outback. He achieved the Queen’s Badge and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award with Boys’ Brigade Australia, was awarded the Australian Defence Medal for six years’ service in the Australian Army Reserve, spent twelve years working with Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders in the Kimberley deserts of Western Australia, Outback Queensland, and the Torres Strait Islands, and served for four years as a Commonwealth lighthouse keeper on Queensland’s remote islands and headlands. Darrel has a Bachelor of Arts degree with double majors in Ancient History and Studies in Religion and is a founding member of the Toyota Land Cruiser Club of Australia.
