Ex-wrestling star saves man lost in Quebec woods

Raymond Rougeau is no stranger to the spotlight, but the once world-famous wrestler is now garnering attention for a good deed outside the ring.

Earlier in September, Rougeau — one half of the WWF's Fabulous Rougeau Brothers — flew his own plane on a rescue mission to find a hunting friend lost in the Quebec woods.

He discovered his hunting buddy, a 77-year-old man, in good health two days after he vanished near Lac Saint-Jean.

"He said, 'I ruined your hunting trip,'" Rougeau told CBC's Quebec AM.

"I said, 'To find you healthy the way you are now, it's the best hunting trip I've ever had.'"

The story started on Sept. 17 when Rougeau's friend failed to show up at a meeting spot near Lac Saint-Jean that the two have used for the last 12 years when travelling to their hunting camp.

Rougeau, piloting his seaplane, would ferry the two up to the remote spot that can't be reached by roads.

'To find you healthy the way you are now, it’s the best hunting trip I’ve ever had.' —Raymond Rougeau

But this time, his friend was nowhere to be found.

Rougeau started searching himself, but turned up nothing. Eventually, he called provincial police for help before heading to the camp himself for the night.

Police searched the area overnight, but found no sign of Rougeau's friend, who has artificial knees and had suffered heart trouble in the past.

When the former wrestler returned in the morning, he agreed to help with the search in his own plane, taking a provincial police officer up with him as headed out to scour the dense forest.

"At one point, I turned to the police officer and I said, 'You know, it's like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Look at the size of this. There's one guy here in the middle of 2,000 square kilometres,'" he said.

They checked out several camps and vehicles before, about 500 kilometres into the search, they located Rougeau's friend's truck.

The man was in good spirits and even suggested the pair could continue with their planned hunting trip once his truck was repaired.

"I said no, we stretched the elastic far enough … this story ends the best way possible," Rougeau said.

"We've had a great 12 years. Now you've got stories to tell your grandkids. Let's head back and call it a day."