Butch and Janice Duncan never thought they'd make it out alive but somehow the elderly Michigan couple managed to survive being stranded in the woods for days.

Has this ever happened to you? You're in unfamiliar territory and you take a wrong turn. Before you know it, you're hopelessly lost, seemingly caught in a maze that feels like it has no exit.

Elderly Couple Gets Hopelessly Lost

The Duncans tell WZZM-TV that they were on their way to sell some items to an acquaintance in Mecosta County. Like so many of us have done, Butch and Janice, both in their 70s, took a wrong turn down a two-track road. Before they knew what was happening, their truck became stuck in the mud in a desolate area. Their attempts to free the vehicle were unsuccessful.

Janice tells the TV station her husband headed out on foot to look for help.

"It got dark, and I thought he should be back here in time now," said Janice Duncan. "And he didn't come back."

Janice spent last Monday night (9/26) in the truck and headed out to look for Butch the next morning. She found him mired in a nearby swamp with both of his shoes missing.

Mrs. Duncan also got stuck in the swamp, her cell phone submerged in water.

"I screamed, I screamed, and I screamed to call 911, get us help get us help," said Janice, "and nobody came."

 

Two More Nights, Stuck in a Swamp

In the video below, Duncan tells the TV station that she and her husband spent the next two nights stuck in the swamp with no food or water.

"He was getting real shaky," said Janice. "He's trying to go to sleep, and I said, 'Butch, wake up! Don't go to sleep!' I told him I think we're done. I think we're going to lay here, and they're going to find bones someday."

 

Saved by God and a Note

Janice credits God for keeping them alive during the ordeal and explains that before she set out to search for her husband, she wrote a note explaining what was happening and put it on the truck's windshield.

The landowner spotted the vehicle, saw the handwritten note, and called the police.

The couple was taken to a nearby hospital to treat the injuries they incurred from the ordeal.

Janice shared a bit of advice, noting that it's important to let someone know where you're going before venturing out.

Butch's advice? "Don't get old," he said with a laugh.

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