Camper Lost for 3 Weeks in Mountains Reveals 1 Selfless Act That Saved Her Life

A woman who spent three weeks lost in the mountains near Fresno, California was forced to make a variety of tough choices to stay alive, but it was ultimately the one selfless act of a property owner that saved her life.

 Tiffany Slaton, 28, was found alive last week after what was supposed to be a three-day solo camping trip turned into a weeks-long nightmare. The Jeffersonville, Georgia woman told officials that she fell off a cliff on her trip, getting knocked unconscious for hours and injuring both her legs. The incident began a harrowing ordeal in which she braved an estimated 13 snow storms and hiked 11,000 vertical feet, eventually coming to rest about 45 miles from where she had started.

Slaton was ultimately saved when she came upon an unlocked cabin at a resort near Lake Edison. But the unlocked door was no accident. Owner Christopher Gutierrez had "left a cabin unlocked as a precaution for this exact situation where someone who is lost could seek shelter and increase their chances of surviving the outdoor elements and harsh weather," officials said according to ABC News. 

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Slaton was delirious upon the discovery, thinking she had "made it to the North Pole." Gutierrez found her the next day, when he arrived to open the place up for the summer.

"As soon as I saw her, she didn't say a word, just ran up and all she wanted was a hug. It was a pretty surreal moment," Gutierrez said.

Slaton was reunited with her family last week. She said she had suffered eye injuries from the snowy conditions as well as some cuts and scrapes during the ordeal, but had come back with "perfect" bloodwork. But she credited Gutierrez's selfless act for saving her life. "If he hadn't come that day, they would have found my body there," she said.