BRADLEY, Maine — A 69-year-old Lincoln hunter reported lost Friday was found safe Saturday afternoon after spending the night in the woods, according to the Maine Warden Service.
Ronald Freelove was reported lost late Friday by his son Keith Freelove of New Hampshire after the elder Freelove failed to meet up with him back at camp at 4 p.m. as planned.
A ground search was started with members of the Maine Association for Search and Rescue, Milford Rescue and the Maine Warden Service.
He was located at about 12:30 p.m. Saturday by Jake Letendre from MESARD and his K-9 Reese.
During the night, Ronald Freelove kept walking to stay warm because his lighter wasn’t working and he couldn’t start a fire, the warden service reported in a release issued Monday.
He lost his hat, which had a compass pinned to it, and later lost a second compass when a lanyard it was attached to caught on a bush, dragging the compass from his pocket along with a whistle and pair of gloves, according to the release.
The elder Freelove also used all his ammo trying to signal for help throughout the night. He was located approximately three quarters of a mile from where he started and was assisted out of the woods by searchers. Freelove was checked out by medical personnel from Milford Rescue and Old Town ambulance crew before going back to camp.