Dusty Langby Arrives in Canberra After 16-Day Walk for Rural Paediatric Care

Twelve-year-old Dusty Langby has completed a 500-kilometre, 16-day walk from his hometown in western New South Wales, raising more than $400,000 to deliver paediatric care to bush communities. He met with the prime minister to discuss the issue.

Dusty's journey, which began in Warren, NSW, on August 30, took him and his crew - including his mum Sarah, local nurse Christine Letton, Little Wings nurse Nichole Callan, and Little Wings chief executive Clare Pearson - through various towns and communities before finally reaching Canberra.

The charity Little Wings provides free flights for children who are seriously ill, or who need specialist care in rural and regional NSW, ACT and QLD. Dusty and his brother have both benefited from the service, flying from Warren to Sydney for specialist medical appointments.

"It's just such an amazing cause," Dusty said, wanting more children to be able to access the service. "The pilots and the volunteers are such kind people, and they all are just really kind, and I wanted to help."

Dusty's goal for his meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was to ask the PM to match every dollar he's raised for the charity. In total, he raised $423,000, which he said was "going to change heaps of rural family's lives" and "just help more kids".

Preparing for the long walk was a challenge for Dusty, who is used to running rather than walking. "I don't really walk, I normally run. So it took me a long time to get used to walking, not running," he said.

The team faced varying conditions and challenges along the way, with each day bringing different experiences. "At the start we were just chatting all the way, we weren't listening to music, we were just chatting away," Dusty recalled. "I had a couple of my friends join me, and we were chatting. I think it was the third day where we started to walk in silence."

Dusty's mum, Sarah, reflected on the journey, saying each day was rewarding in itself. "But all rewarding in itself, each day and every community we enter just welcomed us so gracefully and so humbling, and we are just amazed."

The family will now take some time to 'decompress' and enjoy each other's company, with plans for a camping trip. Dusty said his feet have been spared from blisters and he was feeling "really good" after the 16-day mission, but his family was not faring as well.

"When we were walking to Canberra today, we saw there were flags at the top of parliament," Dusty said. "And we all nearly started crying because we knew we were nearly there."