Bone-chilling ordeal for freezing hikers stranded for 36-hours on notorious California mountain

Two young hikers endured a freezing, 36-hour ordeal on California’s Mount Shasta after losing their way in treacherous terrain, becoming trapped between towering cliffs and running out of phone battery as a frantic rescue played out to find them.The 19-year-old man and 20-year-old woman, both from Salt Lake City, called for help around 10:20 p.m.Monday, Oct.

12, after becoming too cold and exhausted to safely complete their descent from the 14,179-foot mountain, according to the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office.The pair had planned only a day hike while a friend continued to the summit.But by the time they called for help from the Avalanche Gulch area at roughly 11,000 feet, temperatures had plunged to between 14 and 16 degrees — and they lacked adequate clothing, food and water to safely spend the night.

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By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story Deputies advised the hikers to keep descending to maintain their body heat.

By 2 a.m.Tuesday, they reported reaching Helen Lake, at approximately 10,400 feet, before their phones died shortly afterward.Search-and-rescue crews and California Highway Patrol Air Operations launched a desperate search Tuesday morning, scouring the mountain’s upper reaches for the missing pair.Around 9 a.m., a CHP helicopter spotted two people waving for help — but they turned out not to be the missing hikers.Ground crews and aerial teams continued searching throughout the afternoon, with a second team of search-and-rescue volunteers and a US Forest Service climbing ranger focusing on Cascade Gulch below Horse Camp.At around 4 p.m., searchers heard shouting from the gulch and finally located the stranded hikers near the bottom, about 1,000 feet from the McBride Springs Trail.The pair had wandered into the steep, dry river canyon after re...