Missing hiker found safe after surviving weeks in snowy California mountains

When the Vermilion Valley Resort in California’s eastern Sierra shut down for the winter, the staff left cabin doors unlocked just in case a wayward hiker needed shelter during the frequent mountain snowstorms.

That decision may have saved the life of Tiffany Slaton, a 27-year-old Georgia woman who was missing for nearly three weeks in remote wilderness.

Owner Christopher Gutierrez spotted a cabin door ajar and a pair of shoes nearby when he arrived on Wednesday morning to begin reopening the resort for spring.

Suddenly, a young woman appeared in the doorway.

“She pops out, didn’t say a word, just ran up and all she wanted was a hug,” Mr Gutierrez said during a news conference.

“It was a pretty surreal moment, and that’s when I realised who this was.”

It was Ms Slaton, whose parents had reported her missing on April 29 after not hearing from her for more than a week.

The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office launched a search, and deputies and volunteers scoured more than 600 square miles of the Sierra National Forest, with no luck.

Searchers were hampered by heavy snow blocking many roads.

On Monday, the sheriff’s office had announced it was scaling back the search effort.

Two days later, she emerged from the cabin.

Mr Gutierrez gave Ms Slaton a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and called authorities, who brought her to a hospital for evaluation.

She was hungry and dehydrated, but otherwise in good condition, sheriff’s officials said.

Sheriff’s spokesperson Tony Botti said it was the longest period of time he has seen someone be missing in the wilderness and survive.

“Three weeks, it’s unheard of,” he said.

“It speaks to the tenacity that Tiffany has, that she’s a fighter.”

Thanks to tips from the public, investigators determined that Ms Slaton had been spotted around April 20 near Huntington Lake, more than 20 miles to the south west through rough terrain.

But authorities did not provide details about when or where Ms Slaton’s trek began, what her plans were, and what route she took to end up at Vermilion Valley Resort, which sits in the Sierra Nevada about halfway between Yosemite and Sequoia/Kings Canyon national parks.

Mr Botti said sheriff’s officials planned to interview Ms Slaton to learn the details of her experience, and how she survived in icy conditions at elevations topping 6,500ft (1,981 metres).

Across the country in Jeffersonville, Georgia, her parents were out shopping when they got word that their daughter had been found.

“I just grabbed somebody and I said, ‘Can I hug you?’ And I did,” said her mother, Fredrina Slaton.

“I was crying and hugging.”

Tiffany’s father, Bobby Slaton, said “a ton of weight has been lifted”.

He thanked the search-and-rescue team and all the community members who helped in the effort to find Ms Slaton.

Sheriff’s officials said snow ploughs cleared a key mountain pass earlier on Wednesday, which allowed Mr Gutierrez to access the resort on Lake Edison for the first time this year.

Mr Gutierrez said he had to spend about an hour-and-a-half breaking up ice before he could get into the property.

Ms Slaton’s parents said she was raised with a love of the outdoors, and they always stressed the importance of being able to fend for yourself in a tough situation.

“So it’s nice to know, as parents, that all the things that we’ve taught her, she actually did,” her mother said.

“We believe that life is an adventure.”