A lost Hudson Valley hiker was found after spending a freezing night in the woods.

On Jan. 22 just before 9 p.m., New York State Department of Environmental Conservation central dispatch received a call from Ulster County 911 reporting a lost a hiker.

The man had been bushwhacking with a group of 17 other hikers who made their way to Fir Mountain and then on to Big Indian Mountain.

Around 1 p.m., at Big Indian Mountain, the hiker got tired and was left behind by the group, officials were told.

Around 5 p.m., the group of remaining hikers left the trail at McKinley Hollow Road and noticed their friend's vehicle was still parked

Four Region 3 Forest Rangers searched the Big Indian Wilderness Area throughout the night, but couldn’t find the lost man.

Eight additional Forest Rangers were requested to look near the Belleayre Mountain maintenance building the next day.

On Jan. 23, Forest Ranger's focused on the trails and stream beds. A crew working from the McKinley Hollow Trailhead found the lost hiker about a mile above the lean-to and escorted him out of the woods.

During an interview the man said slept in a protected drainage for the night and began hiking again at daybreak.

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