The search for a Ross River trapper who didn't come home after going out to tend his trapline has ended happily.

Members of the trapper's family reported him overdue at 11:30 p.m. Monday, the RCMP reported today.

The 70-year-old man had left Ross River on a snowmobile sometime between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. earlier the same day but had not returned.

He was tending a trapline southeast of Ross River on the Pelly River between 13 and 25 kilometres away from the community.

His family said he is very well experienced and has a vast knowledge of the area in question.

Ross River RCMP officers made inquiries with family and friends, who suggested that the trapper was usually prepared for emergencies and was not one to take risks.

On Tuesday, RCMP Ross River initiated a search by helicopter and by 10 a.m., the overdue trapper had been located. He was walking out the trail after his snow machine had broken down.

"RCMP wants to thank everyone involved in this search, especially Henry Nukon, who provided local knowledge and guided the searchers to the area where the overdue trapper was located,” Ross River Const. Adam Lightfoot said in a press release.