Hiker who went missing for weeks reveals how she survived alone in wilderness

A hiker has recounted her weeks-long struggle for survival in California's unforgiving Sierra Nevada mountains after her solo camping trip took a dangerous turn.

Tiffany Slaton spoke at a press conference with the Fresno County Sheriff's Department just two days after being discovered in an unlocked cabin.

The cabin's owner, who had left it open for hikers in need, found Slaton after she had taken refuge for only eight hours.

Slaton described a harrowing experience, including being caught in an avalanche that injured her leg.

While the 28-year-old had initially been equipped with a bicycle, tent, two sleeping bags, and food, she ultimately lost all her gear, leaving her with only a lighter, a knife, and a few snacks. The exact circumstances surrounding the loss of her equipment remain unclear.

Following her injury, Slaton attempted to call 911 five times without success, but said she managed to obtain a GPS signal on her phone.

“I ended up on this very long, arduous journey that I journaled to try and keep sane and eventually managed to get to civilization,” she said.

Slaton said she survived by foraging for food and melting snow for drinking water.

Authorities called her survival stunning given the conditions. The cabin was more than 20 miles (32 kilometers) from where she had last been seen, and the mountains were covered in up to 12 feet (3.66 meters) of snow in some areas.

“I would have never anticipated her in my wildest dreams being able to get back as far as she did,” Sheriff John Zanoni said.

Slaton had been on an extended biking and backpacking trip that also included time in Oregon, department spokesman Tony Botti said.

Her journey took her to the Sierras, where she decided to make the trek to the Mono Hot Springs before meeting a friend in mid-April, he said.

She was last seen on April 20 by a security camera near Huntington Lake, an unincorporated mountain community, riding on a bicycle and also sitting on a sidewalk with a backpack.

Slaton’s parents, who live in Georgia, reported her missing on April 29 after they had not heard from her in a week.

Slaton, who was a competitive archer in her home country of Bermuda, said her athleticism and foraging knowledge helped her survive.

The owner of Vermilion Valley Resort, Christopher Gutierrez, said his staff left cabin doors unlocked during the winter in case someone needed shelter during the frequent mountain snowstorms. His backcountry lodge sits in the Sierra Nevada about halfway between Yosemite and Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks and is a frequent stop for hikers on the John Muir and Pacific Crest trails.

Slaton found safe haven in one of those cabins during an intense snowstorm where all she could see was white, she said. It was just eight hours later that Gutierrez arrived to open the cabin for the season, authorities said.

“If he hadn't come that day, I think they would have found my body there,” Slaton said.

Two days earlier, the Fresno County Sheriff’s office had called off a search that had covered more than 600 square miles (1,550 square kilometers) of the Sierra National Forest, with no luck. Searchers were hampered by heavy snow blocking many roads.

Slaton emerged battered and bruised from the cabin on Wednesday.

When she saw Gutierrez, she ran up to him to give him a hug.

“I really do have a new faith in humanity,” Slaton said.