Teenager found alive after spending night lost in bush

A teenage boy has described how he used a dam to keep cool as he struggled to find his way home, lost in bush 100km north of Perth. 

Blake Burke, 14, was riding his motorbike through bushland in Julimar State Forest when the bike broke down and he couldn't start the engine at 1pm yesterday.

His bike was later found by police at around 6pm.

It sparked a major search involving police horses, the dog squad and a helicopter at the state forest.

Blake had set out on foot to find his way home, approximately 30km away, as the temperature reached a top of 38 degrees.

But luckily, he was spotted just before noon by motorists on the Great Northern Highway.

He was driven back to the search command post by one of the drivers that spotted him.

"I was on a track and then they just found me and I waved them down," Blake said.

"I was sweating like hell," he said.

The teenager looked exhausted and disoriented as emergency services workers guided him toward a waiting ambulance.

His family had been waiting at the command post for the entirety of the almost 24 hours he had been missing.

"All put in a top effort, everybody's put in a top effort and we've got a good result - that's all I can say. Thank Christ, I can't thank everybody enough," Blake's father, Nathan Burke, said.

He still looked dazed as he exited the ambulance, with his mother guiding him toward their car.

Despite acting brave and saying he was not really worried about his fate, his father quickly interjected, adding: "we were."

Blake is now recovering at home with his relieved parents.