After spending a long snowy winter in Sierra, Christopher Gutierrez went to his remote camping resort and encountered a shocking discovery - a hungry hiker was beaten to death in one of his cottages.

The 27-year-old Tiffany Slaton, of Jeffersonville, Georgia, has been missing in the wilderness of Fresno County for nearly three weeks.

Gutierrez, who owns Vermilion Valley Resort, discovered Slaton by officials in the Fresno County Sheriff's Office announced Wednesday around 2 p.m.

"She came out suddenly, didn't say a word, just ran, all she wanted was a hug," Gutierrez said at a press conference Wednesday night. "It was a very surreal moment, and that's when I realized who it was."

It is reported that Slaton soon arrived at her parents, Bobby and Fredrina Slaton, where there is about 2,500 miles of Georgia clothing store, and her mother reacted exactly the same as her daughter.

“I just grabbed one person and I said, ‘Can I hug you?’ I did it,” Fredrina Slaton said. “I’m crying and hugging.”

Bobby Slaton said it was one of the best days of their lives.

“We are very excited to hear that my daughter is safe now,” he said. “We have gained a lot of weight and we can’t thank the Fresno Sheriff’s Department, the search and rescue teams are enough and the community is doing a great job in finding Tiffany.”

Slaton's parents reported she was missing for more than a week on April 29. The sheriff's office began searching for missing campers, and thanks to public tips, he learned she saw her on April 20 at Huntington Lake and on April 24 near the old Cressman grocery store.

Her position goes beyond that, and it is a mystery.

The sheriff's search and rescue team searched nearly 600 square miles of Gosera from May 6 to 10 for Slaton. Vehicles were unable to reach through Kaiser Pass because heavy snow blocked the road, but helicopters were used to reconnaise above Mono Hot Springs and around Edison Lake, and Slaton eventually discovered Slaton.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, the snow cleared the Caesar Pass on Wednesday, which made Gutierrez visit the Judir Valley resort for the first time this year on Lake Edison.

"We slid down the road, which was weird and cold, but we managed to get in there and it took about an hour and a half to break the ice down for about an hour and a half," Gutierrez said.

He plans to check the resort’s condition before the summer tourist season and says he feels forced to get there later after hearing reports from a missing hiker in the area.

Gutierrez deliberately unlocked one of his cottages throughout the winter so that the lost people can increase their chances of surviving in cold, stormy weather. Sheriff’s officers suspect Slaton survived by foraging from the land and using the cabin to take shelter.

After finding Slaton, Gutierrez gave her as much peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as she could, she could tolerate and contacted the sheriff's office, which soon arrived at the scene in an ambulance. She was dehydrated but in good condition. She was taken to the hospital for further treatment, according to the sheriff's office.

Sheriff's Office spokesman Tony Botti praised Slaton for his resilience and survival skills, saying it was the longest time he had seen someone missing and alive.

"Two days, nine days, it's amazing, but three weeks, it's unheard of." "It shows Tiffany's tenacity, she's a warrior. She won't give up."

He said sheriff’s officers will interview Slaton to learn about what happened during her disappearance and how she survived.

Her parents said they love raising children in the wilderness and always impress them.

"We think life is an adventure. Since the kids were young, the thing we focused on was if that happens, or if that happens, you can survive," said Fredrina Slaton. "So it's nice to know that as a parent, she actually did everything she's taught her."