SNOQUALMIE PASS, Wash. – A woman who went missing on a hike near Snoqualmie Pass has been rescued after spending three nights in the wilderness.
Paula Reuter was spotted by a Snohomish County search and rescue helicopter Thursday afternoon in the Kulla Kulla basin, King County Sheriff’s officials said.
She and her two dogs were safely hoisted into the helicopter and brought to Bandera Airfield.
“Pretty healthy, ate mushrooms, built a fire,” the King County Sheriff’s office tweeted after Reuter was safely at the airfield.
Reuter last had contact on Monday when she posted a photo of a hillside on Instagram. She was reported missing Tuesday night.
Det. Jason Stanley says friends have described the 21-year-old woman as a casual hiker who probably wasn’t equipped to camp out with temperatures dropping into the 40s.
She told rescue workers she kept her dogs alive by feeding them the beef jerky she had with her.
Reuter’s parents were there when their 21-year-old daughter was brought to safety.
“We just screamed and screamed and screamed and then cried,” said her mother, Isabelle Reuter. “We just want to thank you all. This is the best best thing that’s ever happened to us in our life, we’ve never felt so ecstatic.”
Reuter suffered a few scratches, but she was otherwise healthy.
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Helicopter-search-finds-hiker-near-Snoqualmie-Pass-278723441.html