[Gary]

Early 1990s, hunting pheasants in the Brooks area on a large piece of land that I had access to. The farmer and I used to go to school together and he knew my vehicle so said there was no need to contact him, just go in anytime and park behind some bush on the property. The area was as remote as you can get in the EID. On this particular day, I had 2 friends and their dogs hunting with me. I stepped into a badger hole that was hidden by weeds. My heel went down, toes were bent up and I was locked in place. I could not get my foot out, nor could I reach down to try and dig the frozen ground away. I often hunted this area by myself. After my friends dug me out of the frozen ground, we had a discussion about the ramifications of being out there alone. It was about 4 degrees C during the day and my clothing was suitable for the daytime, but nighttime temperatures were in the -5 to -10 C. I dread to think of the outcome if I hadn't had friends with me.