A British botanist who went for a walk in a Malaysian jungle has been rescued after being lost for five days, a report said Thursday.

John Gillatt, 55, set off on Saturday for a five-kilometre hike in the jungle at Fraser's Hill holiday resort alone and without a guide, the New Straits Times said.

Police found him on Wednesday, some 10 kilometres from the hotel where he was staying.

"All I had with me was an apple, an orange, three biscuits and a bottle of water. All that was gone on the first day itself," he told the paper.

He survived on several plants, which from his experience he knew were edible, and drank water from streams, he said.

Phone wife

Gillatt used his mobile phone to call his wife in Manchester. The police were notified and got in touch with him by phone but all efforts to guide him to safety were futile, the paper said.

"I found God. I never prayed before, but I was certainly praying these past five days and my prayers were answered," said Gillatt.

"I was shouting every half an hour or so, hoping someone would hear me. Finally today, someone answered my shouts with a 'hello' and I knew I was saved," he said.

He was found unhurt, save for some scratches, by policemen near a river.