Except for a strained muscle in his knee, Chris Cloutier said he feels great after three days lost in the woods.
He said a misunderstanding between he and two friends left him alone at a campsite Saturday night.
On Sunday morning, he still couldn't find his friends so started walking.
He thought he could walk along the shore of Shoe Lake to the spot he and friends had parked at in Nopiming Park.
He got lost and says he went into survival mode.
Cloutier rationed his only food, a large bag of all-dressed chips and a jug of orange juice. He collected rain water to drink, saying he didn't want to drink ground or river water in case it was unsafe.
He slept each night until it was light, then walked all day.
Cloutier had two lighters which he built fires with for warmth and to create smoke signals when he heard aircraft.
He also positioned logs as arrows, pointing the direction he went.
He said he learned those tips from one of his favourite shows, Survivorman.
Cloutier said he never let himself think about not making it. He kept concentrating on moving forward.
His only worries were wolves, though he never saw any wildlife except birds, and getting injured.
On Tuesday that happened.
He hurt his knee climbing up some rocks and became concerned. He understood an injury could ruin his chances of making it out alive. He continued limping on and eventually found a quad trail which led him to a road, where a Winnipeg man driving by picked him up.
Cloutier is overwhelmed with the support he's received since returning and everyone who searched for him.
He has time off work to recover but plans to return next week.
He's keeping his grubby torn up clothes, backpack and remaining chips as souvenirs but jokes he never wants to eat all-dressed chips again.
