Sixty-four-year-old Ed Rosenthal of Los Angeles shocked rescuers last week when he was found alive after six days in the desert with little food or water. He spoke to the media this week after several days of recovery in the Hi-Desert Medical Center in Joshua Tree.
Rosenthal finished the last of his water on the first day he was lost, but was later able to drink some rainwater. He told reporters that the rain fell immediately after he had prayed for rain.
"There was definitely a miracle... My conclusion is that G-d is real. Really, I have to tell you. G-d is real," he said.
He also recalled reciting the Shema Yisrael prayers, "Hear O Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is One", an affirmation of belief which Jews traditionally say three times daily, and also declare before death. He saw a "white tunnel," he said, but then decided that he was not ready to die.
If just one more day had passed before he was found, he would not have survived, Rosenthal said.
The saga began on Friday, September , when Rosenthal set out for what was to be a four-mile hike along a trail in Joshua Tree National Park. He had hiked the trail before, and believed the journey would take two or three hours.
Instead, hours later he found himself completely lost, having hiked through several unfamiliar canyons. He found a small canyon to sleep in. The next morning, he finished the last of his water. He tried to conserve energy, moving just enough to stay in the shade and to try to signal to rescuers.
By Sunday, he was barely able to walk. "I was getting weaker and weaker. I would have died without my hiking stick to raise and lower myself," he said. He used a pen to write messages to his family on his hat.
He was rescued on Thursday morning. Doctors found that he had lost 9 kilos (20 pounds) during his ordeal.
Rosenthal and his family are setting up a fund to contribute to local search-and-rescue teams, the National Park Service, and other local organizations that helped in the effort to save him. He told journalists that he plans to hike again, but in the mountains, not the desert.