Missing Craig hunter found alive on Prince of Wales Island

A 61-year-old Craig hunter who spent a night lost in steep country on Prince of Wales Island was found alive early Saturday and flown out for medical care.

Robert Patten started up Red Bay Mountain around 7:30 p.m. Thursday with two companions, planning to camp in the alpine for the deer opener. Health conditions turned him back toward the logging road on his own while the other two pushed on. When they came down the next day, he was gone. Their own search turned up nothing.

Troopers were notified Friday evening and called in the Coast Guard, citing Patten's health, the terrain, and the hour. A crew located him around 2 a.m. Saturday. Weather closed Klawock to the aircraft, so they diverted to Petersburg, where he is being treated.

It's the second search on the island this summer. On July 2, a Klawock Search and Rescue drone found 23-year-old Sean Joseph, uninjured, on Sunnahae Mountain near Craig before midnight.