Timothy Marsh, a veteran of the first Gulf War, still wasn't totally at ease with his recent relocation to Oregon when he got lost and ran out of gas while driving through the state's heavily forested coast on Saturday, Nov. 7. Marsh had been on his way to a family member's home, his 12-year-old golden retriever Rusty tagging along in the passenger seat, when he began to feel disoriented. Within moments he had blacked out.
"I had some sort of medical issue. I didn't take my medicine," Marsh told Katu.com, a local news site. When Marsh woke up, his truck's fuel gauge read empty and he found himself stranded on a hillside somewhere in a forest he knew little about. There was nothing to drink, and nothing to eat besides a can of Rusty's dog food.
Marsh's family soon reported him missing, according to Reuters, and the local search and rescue teams set out looking for him. Meanwhile, Marsh was trying desperately to attract attention. He used sticks to create help signs and left notes where he could. As the days went by, he survived by drinking puddles of rain water and splitting dog food between Rusty and himself. But the situation was getting desperate. Marsh told Katu.com that he didn't expect to live through another night among the wet, frigid trees.
On the fourth day though, a man out hunting nearby heard Marsh's shouts for help. The man, also a veteran, contacted the county sheriff as quickly as he could. Within two hours, the search and rescue team had found Marsh and Rusty. They were cold and disoriented, but they were alive.
Marsh was released from the hospital on Veterans Day.