A hiker from Kuna nearly lost his life after spending last Tuesday night outside near Redfish Lake in central Idaho with nothing but thermal underwear, gloves, a hat and mittens to keep him warm during freezing conditions.

When venturing into the Sawtooth Forest during winter, Sawtooth Search and Rescue Commander Gary Gadwa said preparation is key. If someone falls into a body of water when it’s cold, as the hiker did when he soaked himself in Outlet Creek around 3 p.m. Dec. 7, Gadwa said they need to be able to warm themselves. All of the hiker’s clothing was soaked after the water encounter. He had only some snacks and water with him, Gadwa said. When the man fell in the water, the National Weather Service reported the outside temperature was 38 degrees and dropping fast.

Gadwa said it didn’t help that the man had parked his vehicle a few miles away at the Redfish Lake Road turn on Idaho Highway 75 and was without a cellphone. The hiker, who Gadwa chose to not identify, was in his early 20s and inexperienced with winter in the Sawtooths.

Desperate to dry his clothes and boots, Gadwa said the hiker “stripped down to his long johns,” which dried quickly, and set everything else to dry on the beach. Despite the freezing temperature, Gadwa said the hiker thought because the sun was out his clothing would dry.

The opposite happened and the clothes froze solid, Gadwa said. “He couldn’t put any of it back on,” Gadwa said. “He even tried to cut open his boots with this huge knife.”

The only wearable items the hiker had besides his thermals were winter gloves for his hands, a fur-lined hat and mittens for the front half of his feet, Gadwa said. The mittens didn’t reach his heels and ankles, Gadwa said, which left them exposed.

With no means to safely hike out or to warm himself, and no one nearby to hear him yelling, Gadwa said the hiker spent the night walking in circles near Outlet Creek, unable to rest on the cold ground. That night, the temperature dropped as low as 19 degrees in the region.

The next morning, Gadwa said, the hiker got lucky. A couple was out for a hike in his area and heard his screams. They reached him, but like the hiker they didn’t have cellphones. Gadwa said the couple promised to go to the Sawtooth Ranger Station and use the phone there. According to Gadwa, the hiker was in such a state that when the couple left, he became paranoid and thought they had abandoned him as a joke.

The couple contacted Gadwa, who after hearing the details decided he could handle the rescue himself. He trekked to Outlet Creek and met the hiker where the couple had left him. Once Gadwa found him, the hiker begged him not to leave. Gadwa said he had to if he wanted to get back to his vehicle and drive it to the man. Once he got the gate at the turn onto Redfish Lake Road unlocked, Gadwa drove to the hiker and brought him out.

The hiker was suffering from hypothermia, but Gadwa said he should recover. After getting some tea in him and warming his feet, Gadwa said he told the hiker it’s a good idea to carry some kind of fire starter when outside in winter.