Big Bear Lake, California - A couple's camping trip took an abrupt turn when they came across a stranded hiker who had been lost in the wilderness for weeks. How did he survive? Salsa.

Allison Scott had planned a camping trip with her boyfriend in scenic Southern California around Big Bear Lake just after Thanksgiving. Never would they have guessed that their romantic trip would turn into a rescue mission.

Not realizing how important the location of their campsite would become, they set up their sleeping spot underneath a flight path.

Then, late in the afternoon, as a plane zoomed low overhead, they heard a cry for help.

Puzzled, the couple went in search of the sound until the young woman's boyfriend found a man waving to get their attention.

"He had a stick with a water bottle on it trying to signal. He couldn't walk. His feet were extremely swollen and infected just from walking so much, and possibly the cold where he was," Scott told ABC7 News.

When the injured hiker revealed to the couple how he had survived in the California woods, they were shocked!

The man named Eric got lost on a hiking trip, and had been wandering in search of help for two weeks. During that time, he ate only a half a jar of salsa.

Scott called 911, and a rescue helicopter arrived 15 minutes later, taking Eric to safety.

The hiker does not have a cell phone, but promised his rescuers that if they ever come by his hometown, he would buy them a meal.

Hopefully it won't involve salsa.