Australian posts map to alleged `Survivor' site

<br>NEW YORK (AP) _ CBS is finding some people willing to go a lo-o-o-o-ong way to spill its ``Survivor II'' secrets. <br><br>An Australian adventurer says he nearly got run off the road and had

Friday, October 20th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NEW YORK (AP) _ CBS is finding some people willing to go a lo-o-o-o-ong way to spill its ``Survivor II'' secrets.

An Australian adventurer says he nearly got run off the road and had to battle nettles and mites just so he could post a map on his Web site to what he says was the TV show's secret set.

The directions, to a remote gorge about a four-hour drive from the northeastern Australia city of Cairns, correspond with other published reports of the ``Survivor II'' location. Media magnate Rupert Murdoch's Australian newspapers have published aerial photographs of the area.

The series, being filmed this fall, will premiere after the Super Bowl.

The latest alleged security breach came from a fellow called Tim ``The Yowie Man,'' an Australian tour guide leader who says he is a ``mystery investigator.''

He said he attempted to drive on to the compound but two trucks with security guards nearly forced him off the road. He drove about 20 miles away, ditched his vehicle and walked along a river to the site.

He foraged for berries, bush bananas and fish. The forbidding territory is home to crocodiles, leeches and the unpleasant mites, he said.

``I wanted to see if I could survive looking for the `Survivor' site,'' Tim said.

He said he saw a tent city for crew members, and what looked to be a set for a tribal council meeting. A large platform jutted out from a cliff near a waterfall, he said.

CBS, which has tried to keep its outback location under wraps, wouldn't comment on ``The Yowie Man's'' directions.

``We will continue to let erroneous information be published about `Survivor,' not only in the print media, but online as well,'' CBS spokesman Gil Schwartz said Friday.

``The Yowie Man'' said he wasn't spotted by anyone, and left after an hour because he was afraid of being subject to a fine if captured.