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The California hiker, who was miraculously found and saved ten days after becoming lost in the Santa Cruz Mountains, has shared fresh, horrifying details of his ordeal, including that he dropped an incredible thirty pounds and was chased by a mountain lion.
On June 11, 34-year-old Boulder Creek, California resident Lukas McClish lost his sense of direction abruptly and atypically during a hike that was only supposed to last three hours.
In a series of interviews, McClish has since revealed how he managed to survive despite battling hypothermia and having to dodge the sun due to his albinism, as well as how he feasted on a burrito and taco bowl soon after being rescued.
McClish lost 30 pounds in 10 days on a water-diet, drinking a gallon and a half of water daily. He observed a mountain lion following him, but maintained distance.
McClish recalled sleeping in a hollowed-out log at night, using a lean-to and dry duff, but found the insulation ineffective. He occasionally stepped outside for fresh air.
During the day, however, he had to make an effort to remain beneath the shade of the trees due to his albinism, a disease that causes his skin to be especially vulnerable to sunburn.
McClish, who had completed the trip numerous times previously, claimed he didn't even second-guess his decision to head out without any camping supplies, his reliable pocket knife, or even a phone.
The hiker, who had previously disclosed that he had drunk water from a waterfall using his boot, claimed that he first exploited the experience to test his survival skills and that he didn't start to worry his situation until a few days had passed.
He remarked, "I hoped every day that they would find me before 8 p.m. so I could get a taco bowl and burrito."
McClish revealed that recent wildfires altered his usual landmarks and pathways, making the area a desert. He knew he would eventually reach the ocean if he followed the sun, but was unaware of his distance.
Five days after McClish left, on June 16, his family filed a missing person's report after he did not show up for a Father's Day meal. Four days after a multi-agency search was initiated, he was located.
Starving, McClish enjoyed his first real meal—the burrito and taco bowl he had been hankering after being brought to the hospital. In addition, McClish received treatment for bruising, scratches, and severe burns. He added that after he fell off a rock, medics had to remove boulders that had lodged in his back.
"I have spent my entire life in this area; I have hiked numerous dangerous trails from the northern Sierras to the southern ones, and I never thought our mountains were like that," McClish remarked. "I had no idea they could be so severe."
