Friends of David and Enid Dice were shocked to hear of the recent tragedy in northern Saskatchewan.

The Prince Albert couple were canoeing on Kinosaskaw Lake, about 45 kilometres north of Pinehouse, when their boat capsized on a set of rapids.

David, 66, died in the incident. Enid, 62, survived eight days in the wilderness before she was rescued Tuesday.

“It’s a tragic loss. I’m really sad,” said Bob Reindl, a friend of the couple.

Police received a report via satellite phone Tuesday around 10:30 a.m. of an overturned canoe. A float plane operator fishing on Kinosaskaw Lake spotted the boat east of the Needle Falls rapids before also noticing a man’s body in the area.

RCMP responded via chartered plane and identified the body as a missing Prince Albert man who had failed to report to his family via satellite eight days earlier. Friends confirmed to CTV the body was that of David Dice.

A Civil Air Search and Rescue Association team was called in to assist RCMP in finding the man’s wife — later confirmed to CTV to be Enid — and, hours later, she was located at the mouth of the rapids.

She was on the shoreline with a fire burning. She was waving at the aircraft, according to police.

She was transported to hospital in La Ronge and has since been released. Police said she was in good health with no injuries.

“She had spent eight days in the wilderness, relying on her outdoor experience and survival skills after their canoe had capsized on a set of rapids,” RCMP said in a media release.

A local outfitter told CTV he spoke to Enid after the incident. He said she didn’t eat for eight days.

Friends said she is a strong woman and, like her husband, was an experienced canoeist.

“It was not out of character for David and Enid to go out and canoe, and enjoy nature and enjoy life,” said Reindl. “That’s what they do.”

The couple are well-known members of Saskatchewan’s athletic community.

“David was instrumental in bringing the Western Canada Games in 1999 to Prince Albert. It’s just a tragic loss. I’m really saddened,” said Reindl.

The couple appears to have maintained a travel blog. Their most recent post on Aug. 14 details the trips they’d taken to Chile, Argentina and Norway earlier in the year.

--- with files from CTV News