Matt Margiotta and Kyla Arnold were hiking the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada when they reported getting stranded about 7:30 a.m. Monday north of Trout Lake, Wash., the Skamania County Sheriff's Office said.
A Coast Guard helicopter reached the two Tuesday evening after previous attempts by searchers on the ground were unsuccessful, the sheriff's office said. Margiotta and Arnold appear to be in good health. Their ages and where they are from were not released by the sheriff's office.
Search efforts are expected to continue Wednesday in two separate cases of missing hikers in northern Skamania County, the sheriff's office said.
Kristopher Zitzewitz, 31, of Portland, is being sought in the Big Lava Beds, north of Cook, Wash. He was reported missing Saturday afternoon when he became separated from his friend who was hiking with him and they lost contact.
Alejandra Wilson, 23, was reported missing by her father Monday when she was overdue from a hike along the Pacific Crest Trail from Trout Lake to White Pass, Wash., the sheriff's office said.
Margiotta, Arnold and Wilson have separate online journals chronicling their hikes. Arnold’s latest entry, written last Friday, briefly mentions running into Wilson and talks about difficulty in getting to Trout Lake.
“Everyone says we can't make it because of the weather situation, and to be honest it's quite terrifying,” Arnold wrote, “but I can't fathom coming this far and giving up.
