DEBAR MOUNTAIN WILD FOREST -- A 26-year-old man from Cornwall Island, Ontario reported missing by his hiking partner on the evening of March 13 was found the next day near the summit of Azure Mountain in good condition.

The unidentified man left the Azure Mountain Trailhead at 6:30 p.m. with his hiking partner to watch the sunset from the mountain’s summit.

According to state Department of Environmental Conservation rangers, the partner turned around before the summit and returned to the trailhead and their vehicle to await his return.

When the man did not return to the vehicle by 8:30 p.m., the hiking partner called for help.

Two DEC rangers responded and searched the trails until 3 a.m. Search efforts continued at 7 a.m. March 14, with eight rangers on the ground and a ninth ranger on board a State Police Aviation Unit helicopter.

At 7:40 a.m., the team from the helicopter spotted the lost hiker near the summit.

Rangers on the trail reached him by 7:50 a.m. and determined he was in good condition, DEC reported.

The rangers escorted the hiker and returned him to his hiking partner and vehicle at the trailhead by 9 a.m.

“Across New York, DEC’s Forest Rangers’ are on the front lines helping people safely enjoy the great outdoors,” said Acting DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. “Their knowledge of first aid, land navigation and technical rescue techniques are critical to the success of their missions which take them from remote wilderness areas, with rugged mountainous peaks to white-water rivers, and throughout our vast forested areas statewide.”