An American hiker who was lost in the wilderness for 10 days has described how he drank water from his boot, foraged for wild berries and was followed by a mountain lion.
Lukas McClish had only intended to go for a three-hour hike when he lost his bearings in Big Basin Redwood State Park in California.
He set out for the walk on June 11 from his home in the town of Boulder Creek but was only reported missing by his family five days later when he failed to attend a dinner.
The 34-year-old was ill-equipped for such a long time wandering through the forest – he said he had just a small torch and a Leatherman multipurpose tool.
“I didn’t bring anything because I thought I was doing a three-hour hike,” he said.
Gallon of water every day
Once Mr McClish realised he was lost in the forested area, which lies south of San Francisco, he tried to walk back to civilisation.
“I kind of just hiked. Each day, I go up a canyon, down a canyon to the next waterfall, sit down by the waterfall, drink water out of my boot. I made sure I drank at least a gallon of water every day.”
He claimed at one point that he was followed by a mountain lion.
Despite the powerful predator occasionally attacking humans, Mr McClish said he was unfazed by its presence.
“I had a mountain lion that was following me, but it was cool. It kept its distance.”
At night, he said he slept on a bed of wet leaves, and during the day he shouted for help.