Explorer shares harrowing 'final moments' before miracle rescue from remote canyon

An adrenaline junkie recounted her brush with death after being trapped in a remote canyon for 13 hours.

Elfy, a canyoneer known as @elfyouall on social media, shared her harrowing experience on TikTok, using it to caution others of the mistakes she made during an expedition to Wildcat Tank Canyon, located near Page, Arizona, with one of her friends.

While she insists that she thoroughly researched before setting off for the canyon, unusually for her, she failed to share her specific location to her mother, vaguely mentioning only she was 'going canyoning'. Fortunately, her friend had notified several people about their plan ahead of descending into this secluded canyon.

Perceiving the canyon to be a "really easy" climb based on online descriptions, both Elfy and her friend assumed they would master it effortlessly as they had undertaken more formidable challenges in the past. However, Elfy misjudged the effect of the scorching heat on her prowess, admitting: "The heat really took a lot of my strength out of me".

In a scenario reminiscent of the 2010 film 127 hours, in which mountaineer Aron Ralston is trapped within a canyon, leading to his grisly self-amputation to escape, Elfy recounted how she and her friend ended up stranded within the canyon following their descent down its treacherous walls.

She recounted her harrowing experience: "I became shaky and I started sliding. Then I started panicking and I slid, I started going deeper into the canyon and just slid to the bottom."

Elfy was acutely aware of the peril they faced, admitting she was too frightened to move for fear of sustaining a 'crush injury' that could diminish her survival odds.

Despite the dire situation, her friend, who was wedged further down, had more freedom to manoeuvre and attempted to offer solace through encouraging words. Elfy shared: "We tried several ways to get out. My friend tried to get to me. I feel like if we'd had another person there it would've been smarter, clearly you start realising your mistakes."

The duo endured three gruelling hours attempting to extricate themselves before conserving their energy upon the realisation that rescue from outside was imperative. Throughout this ordeal, they endeavoured to reach out to emergency services or anyone in their contacts, but were thwarted by the lack of phone reception.

Fortune briefly smiled on them when her friend's phone buzzed with Snapchat notifications, hinting at fleeting signal availability. Seizing the moment, she shared their coordinates and a video depicting their situation to her housemate, who promptly assured them that assistance was en route.

Emergency services battled for nearly four hours to reach the duo, finally delivering life-saving water upon arrival. At this point, Elfy had endured 13 hours stuck in the canyon, spending nine hours without water.

The rescue couldn't have come soon enough for Elfy, whose ability to walk had ceased due to kidney damage and poor circulation in her legs, a cruel consequence of standing motionless for an extended period.

In the concluding moments of her video, Elfy expressed heartfelt gratitude towards the brave rescuers who saved her life and that of her friend. She said: "The whole thing was embarrassing I did not anticipate getting stuck I never wanted to be one of those people or waste people's resources or time or energy."

Her ordeal prompted an outpouring of advice, caution, and relief from social media users. In the comments section, one clear-headed user pointed out an essential safety measure: "For the future. Before you go, change your voicemail to say where you are, the time of the voicemail, what time you should be done, who you're with, and coordinates if you have them."

Another good Samaritan chimed in: "Glad you're still here! Accidents happen! I'm an experienced hiker and it happens."

A third remarked: "Talk about luck with getting cell reception! Glad you are both safe!"