A California Highway Patrol helicopter pilot located a Foresthill hiker in a canyon bed on the North Fork of the American River Friday afternoon.  He had been missing since Sunday.

Ryan Petifer, 31, has poison oak and cuts on his face and hands but is otherwise healthy after spending five full days trying to find a trail back to his car all week.

The avid hiker drove his car three miles into the woods, then hiked two miles down the steep and rugged Green Valley trail Sunday afternoon to go fishing.

“By the time it started to get dark and I couldn’t find a good trail to get back up to where I needed to be,” said Petifer. “I started realizing that I was going to miss work the next day and I needed to stay the night and just keep working on it the next day.”

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