Police said 72-year-old Hugh Armstrong was found by sheriff's deputies around 1 a.m. Saturday walking along a roadway in Marion, N.C. Authorities say he was confused and unsure where he was headed. Marion is about 240 miles west of his home in Clayton, N.C.
Armstrong vanished July 25 while visiting Stinson Lake, leading to an extensive search. Police say it appears he made his way from New Hampshire to North Carolina by walking and hitchhiking.
Armstrong told ABC11 that he got amnesia after falling down and hitting his head.
"I woke up with a goose egg on my head and a splitting headache and not knowing who I was," said Armstrong.
After working for a farmer somewhere between Pennsylvania and Virginia, Armstrong wound up hitching a ride with a trucker to Asheville. He quickly discovered it was not home and started walking along U.S. Highway 70 toward Wilmington because he knew he had a granddaughter there.
Armstrong said he and his family are "deeply grateful" for all the volunteers who searched for him in New Hampshire. He said they are now figuring out a way to properly thank them.
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