A Texas hiker missing for more than a week was found alive in Big Bend National Park, park officials announced Friday.
"We are pleased to report a successful search and rescue operation in Big Bend National Park," the National Park Service said in a statement. "Our highly skilled team, in collaboration with outside law enforcement, has located and safely rescued the missing hiker."
The hiker — who Big Bend National Park identified as Christy Perry, 25 and said has been missing since Nov. 9 — is under medical care and was transported to a hospital in Odessa, Texas.
She was “awake and talking” when she was discovered Friday morning, the National Park Service said. It did not disclose any other details about her condition.
Perry's family reported her missing after she didn't come home to Houston as planned following a trip to Big Bend National Park, the National Park Service said.
She picked up a rental car in Midland, Texas, and arrived at the park Nov. 9, but did not make it to her camping reservation that night at the Chisos Basin Campground, the agency said.
The rental car was later found at the trailhead of Lost Mine Trail.
Park Rangers and U.S. Border Patrol Agents began searching for Perry Wednesday, officials said. The Lost Mine Trail, which stretches 4.8 miles round trip, was closed Thursday to allow teams room to look for the woman.
The search continued into Friday, when rescuers found her at 9:30 a.m. "approximately 1/4 mile below the summit of the Lost Mine Trail," according to the National Park Service.
Big Bend, in southwestern Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border, Big Bend, encompasses around 800,000 acres.
