A man lost in the California wilderness for 10 days after setting out on what he expected to be a moderate hike survived by eating wild berries and drinking creek water.
"I didn't bring anything" besides a flashlight and folding scissors because "I thought I was doing a three-hour hike" in the Santa Cruz hills on the way to work, Lukas McClish told KSBW-TV.
McClish, 34, an outdoors enthusiast from Boulder Creek, California, said he lost his way due to heavy fog shortly after the start of his morning hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains on June 11.
McClish made no mention of his hike to anyone, so it was not until Thursday, June 20, that he was located and rescued at the bottom of a remote canyon.
At one point, he said a mountain lion began following him, but kept its distance.
"I felt comfortable the whole time I was out there; I wasn't worried," McClish said.
He spent his time going up and down canyons, sitting by waterfalls, using his boot to collect water for hydration, and eating berries to sustain himself.
McClish's family became concerned when he didn't show up on Father's Day and reported him missing to the local sheriff's office, prompting a search involving dozens of law enforcement officers and first responders from around Boulder Creek.
McClish's mother, Diane, said that "some nights, I just had to trust God that he was going to be okay, and that was hard to do."
Eventually, McClish's yells for help were heard by searchers. Rescuers used drones to locate McClish in a densely wooded area.
First responders with off-road vehicles brought him back to safety, reuniting him with his family.
Local fire department chief Mark Bingham told the Guardian that McClish's resourcefulness in surviving 10 days in the wilderness was remarkable.
"He was disoriented and lost [but] surviving off of the land, which is pretty impressive," said Bingham.
