Ben's Bait and Tackle shop in Garden River First Nation was used as a staging area while police searched for two snowmobilers who are missing in Lake George on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2012. (BRIAN KELLY/QMI AGENCY)

SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. -- One man is dead and his longtime friend is missing after their snowmobiles went into Lake George early Saturday.

Steven Matte, a Garden River, Ont., resident, and a friend were returning home after visiting an establishment in Echo Bay, said his aunt Cheryl Miller, who could not confirm the missing man's identity.

Matte, 37, was found several hundred metres off the shoreline from Ojibway Park in Garden River at about 2:25 p.m. Sunday, Ontario Provincial Police said. His friend is still being sought.

The pair were riding with two of Matte's brother-in-laws, but “they took their time” and became separated.