OSTEGO COUNTY, Mich. – A YouTube survival challenge took a dangerous turn for one California woman who became stranded for hours in Pigeon River State Forest over the weekend.
In a social media post, the Ostego County Sheriff’s Office said the woman was participating in an outdoor survival contest when she became lost. According to the post, the woman left the contestants’ designated base camp to search for water around 5 p.m Friday evening.
When she didn’t return, the contest hosts searched for her themselves before reporting her missing around 5 a.m Saturday morning.
The Michigan State Police Seventh District was called in to assist with the search, including the MSP Aviation Unit. Finally, a helicopter located the woman in a swampy area of the forest around 10:40 a.m. MSP canine units helped guide first responders on the ground to her location. The woman had no serious injuries.
The MSP Seventh District posted video of the rescue online.
“We were very relieved, and I know all of the first responders were relieved when we were able to rescue her,” said Lieutenant Ashley Miller. “We’re very thankful there were no injuries as a result of this.”
Miller said the competition was a five-day survival challenge with eight contestants participating.
Located northeast of Gaylord, Pigeon River State Forest is a densely wooded area that’s 12 miles wide and 20 miles long. According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, it’s the largest block of contiguous undeveloped land in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.
“It’s very easy to get lost,” Miller said. “The Pigeon River Forest is very large and it’s dense. With the recent ice storm, it’s very heavily wooded and it’s very hard to navigate at times and there is absolutely no cellular service out there at all.”
Miller said the rescue should serve as an important reminder to come prepared when exploring remote areas.
“If you are going to attempt something like this, just make sure you have some knowledge of surviving in the woods, how to read a compass, how to read a map, and how to survive if you were on your own,” Miller said.