A Vietnam war veteran says he is a living “miracle” after getting lost in Arizona’s wilderness for four days with precious few supplies – and ultimately being rescued by his own son.

“I’ve never felt so loved,” Mark Young said in an interview aired on Phoenix’s KNXV news station about the moment he realized it was his son who had delivered him from his plight. “My gratitude is inexpressible.”

Young, 76, spoke out about his ordeal after it gained widespread attention on corners of the internet dedicated to finding stories of human perseverance. As the sheriff’s office in Arizona’s Yavapai county reported, he had driven a rented vehicle deep into the rugged local back country to embark on a solo hiking and camping trip on 16 April ahead of a wedding that he planned to attend.

Young said to KNXV on Thursday that he became disoriented when his global positioning system, or GPS, lost its signal. It then became clear to his loved ones that his one-day trip had gone awry when Young failed to show up to dinner the next evening in the Yavapai community of Verde Valley, according to the sheriff’s office. His family reported him missing, and search crews began combing the area where he had gone hiking for signs of Young.

Searchers found Young’s car on a remote road by the morning of 18 April. He wasn’t there, and many of his belongings – such as his sleeping bag – had been left in the vehicle, the Arizona news outlet AZFamily reported, citing Young’s relatives.

Young counted on some survival training experience from fighting for the US military in the Vietnam war – and the otherwise seasoned hiker had a compass, some canteens, water purification pills and lighters, he later told the KPNX news station.

He spent the ensuing days in whatever shade he could find, including under a cedar tree where he slept and kept as cool as possible, he said to KPNX. Among the hardships he faced were battling dehydration, crossing paths with – and killing – a rattlesnake, and unsuccessfully trying to start a campfire.

Meanwhile, searchers continued looking for him, with his seven children reportedly flying in from out of town to join the effort. Beside a rattlesnake, crews encountered a mountain lion, a black bear, and difficult terrain, the sheriff’s office said. The agency said searchers heard “distant, faint yells for help” on 20 April – but the winds and jagged, canyon land impeded them from pinpointing exactly where the voice was.

Young himself heard what he initially believed were recreational hikers that day, too. A voice soon shouted to him, “Dad” – and Young recognized it was his own son, Josh, he eventually recounted to KNXV.

The pair “hugged and wept” after Young did a “double take” to make sure his eyes weren’t deceiving him, he said to the outlet.

The Yavapai sheriff’s office said Josh – using a satellite cell phone – sent an “incredible text message” informing searchers he had found his father: roughly six miles from where the rented car had been spotted.

A helicopter from the sheriff’s office in nearby Maricopa county was circling that area at the time. The chopper immediately moved in, hoisted Young from the canyon floor and airlifted him to a hospital near Phoenix, the Yavapai sheriff’s office said.

Lydia Young said to AZFamily that her father was dehydrated and had some physical injuries but was otherwise OK. His being in good shape both physically and mentally likely factored into his survival, another daughter of Young, Emily, suggested to the Arizona Republic newspaper.

A statement attributed to Josh and released by the Yavapai sheriff’s office thanked search crews for not giving up on his father. “My dad’s life was worth saving,” the statement said. “And your team’s showed that.”

Young echoed that sentiment in his interview with KNXV, recorded on Wednesday night as he headed from Phoenix to Yavapai’s Verde Valley region.

“You’re looking at a miracle,” said Young, whom the outlet described as a former Arizona resident now living along the US’s east coast.

Addressing those who rescued him, Young added, “Your faith [and] your hard work will be remembered as long as I live.”