Fresno hiker found alive after going missing in Utah canyon returns home

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Fresno teen is back home after getting stranded in the snow during a hike in Utah.

Nicolas Stacy-Alcantara, 17, says weather conditions worsened as he was on his hike, and it forced him to take shelter, spending the night in a snow cave in below-freezing temperatures.

He says he walked four miles to the start of the hike and only made it a mile and a half into the hike before deciding to camp.

He says he tried staying awake for as long as he could before setting out the next day.

"And at times, you know, I'd lose hope because search and rescue wasn't out there, but I ultimately had to find that courage to wake up the next day and push forward," Stacy-Alcantara said.

The teen says he lost his shoes while hiking the next day because his hands were too frozen to tie his shoes.

He was eventually found by some other hikers who called for help on a satellite phone.

The 17-year-old says college is next.

He even plans to return to hike with the hikers who saved him on the same trail in the summer.