Esmeralda Pineda’s life took a drastic turn over two months ago when she went missing for 12 days in Nevada County, California, near the middle fork of the Yuba River. Now, she’s piecing together her survival story, though memories of the experience remain hazy.
“I kept on going in and out, like I felt like I was passing out,” Pineda shared. “A lot of it is a blur. Like I’m trying to remember certain moments, and all I can remember is just that I kept on feeling like there were animals following me”, told MSN.
The 24-year-old had initially joined her father and two friends for a camping trip near a mining claim, a remote area that required rappelling down ropes to reach. But on August 26, while her companions slept, Pineda decided to leave the campsite, frustrated by the lack of cell service and a drained phone battery.
Without food, water, or a charged phone, Pineda soon realized she was lost in rough terrain. “Unfortunately, all I had was some hot sauce,” she recalled. She also ate what appeared to be a fig, though it tasted “like green stuff.” Her only sources of sustenance were water from the river, a Heineken she found near an abandoned trailer, and, in a desperate moment, “lizard guts.” At one point, she tried signaling a search helicopter but was unable to make herself seen or heard.
Meanwhile, her father, Mike Goodie, was tirelessly searching for her. “I walked all kinds of trails… It was probably the most draining thing of my life, you know, losing somebody like that and not knowing where she’s at,” he said.
After nearly two weeks, on September 6, Pineda finally climbed out of the canyon. Severely emaciated and dehydrated, she was found by Nevada County deputies at the top of the canyon. “I was just like, oh my God. I’m saved,” she recalled. Reunited with her father, she was life-flighted to a hospital where she received urgent care. “They said her kidneys were shutting down, she couldn’t talk, which was a sign of her body shutting down,” Goodie said.
Pineda spent a week in the hospital and has since regained the 40 pounds she lost during the ordeal. Reflecting on the experience, she said, “It made me realize that I need to fix my life because that means that it’s probably trying to break or it’s already broken.” Her father noted, “It humbled her a lot. It woke her up… It’s changed her for the good.”
The harrowing 12 days have given Pineda a fresh perspective on life. “I do believe that the world tried to wake me up,” she said. “I’m glad it happened, kind of—just to wake me up. But it was scary, and I’m ready to move on and trying to move on.”