Lost Snowmobiler Lucky To Live

In this photo taken on Oct. 20, 2011, Barry Sadler, of Mullan, poses at his reflection during a workout in Coeur d’Alene. Sadler, who went missing during a weekend snowmobile outing, says he had given up any hope of surviving when his friends found him. (AP Photo/Coeur d’Alene Press file photo: Shawn Gust)

A North Idaho man rescued Tuesday morning in a steep Montana drainage near the state line said he used heat from his snowmobile engine to stay alive. Barry Sadler, 54, went missing Sunday. Tuesday night, from his home 6 miles northwest of Mullan, said he had given up all hope of surviving when he was finally found. “It’s so painful to freeze to death,” Sadler said. “It’s one of the most brutal ways to die. … I was dying a little bit every day, getting colder and weaker.” He was dehydrated, and left with frostbite on his face, hands and feet. Sadler said he lost his way in a snowstorm around 3 p.m. Sunday and hurtled into an unknown drainage, eventually landing in a shallow creek/David Cole, Coeur d’Alene Press. More here.

Question: Have you ever been lost?