SISTERS, Ore. -- The search for a missing 70-year-old Sisters man who became separated from his wife during a hike near Three Creeks Lake and the Tam McArthur Rim Trail south of Sisters ended happily Thursday morning when he was found in good condition.

Gregory Pozovich told Deschutes County sheriff's deputies that after he became separated from his wife Wednesday afternoon, he spent the night huddled next to a log, trying to stay warm, said Deputy Rhett Hemphill.

When it became light enough to see, Pozovich said he began walking and eventually got to Forest Service Road 370, where he got a ride from a passing motorist and was found by searchers around 10:30 a.m.

"Pozovich was in good condition, besides being cold and hungry," Hemphill said in a news release. "(He) was reunited with his family members, who were waiting nearby."

Deschutes County Sheriff's Search and Rescue got the call around 5:45 p.m. Wednesday that Pozovich was missing, and that brought deputies and sheriff's Search and Rescue members to the Tam McArthur Rim area of the Deschutes National Forest, about 17 miles south of Sisters and just east of the Three Sisters Wilderness Area.

Pozovich said he had been hiking with his wife, Shannon, and left the Tam McArthur Rim Trailhead near Three Creeks Lake around 11:30 a.m., Hemphill said.

Around 2:15 p.m., they became separated near the wilderness boundary, at which time his wife returned to the trailhead and called for help.

About 30 SAR members responded to begin the search with ground search teams and tracking teams, working through the night, Hemphill said. More resources were called in Thursday morning, including Crook and Jefferson County search teams, working in an area of roughly 16 square miles.

Pozovich reportedly was fairly well equipped, but had no cell phone. His wife said they became separated when he stopped to look at something, and she decided to walk on and meet him at the end of the trail, but he never showed up.

Sheriff's Search and Rescue had a helicopter fly over the area before nightfall Wednesday evening, trying to find him from the air. The search on foot continued through the night.

Fellow hikers like Eric Beck, who'd heard helicopters searching Thursday morning, confirmed the trail was made up of rough terrain.

"There's spots where it would be easy to get off of the main trail, and there's also spots where people have created multiple trails up there, I think going around the snow," said Beck. "So we had some route-finding to do ourselves when we were up there today."