THE mother of two young sisters found after 44 hours in a bear-infested forest told them at an emotional reunion: "You're in so much trouble".

Misty Carrico made the jokey comment after the "miracle" rescue of eight-year-old Leia and her sister Caroline, five, in rural California.

Incredible footage shows the girls' parents hugging and kissing them as they're surrounded by friends and family.

A desperate hunt was launched to track down the sisters after they left their house in Benbow at about 2.30pm on Friday.

A fire chief and firefighter from a local volunteer department found them on Sunday after following a trail of cereal bar wrappers.

Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal said: "This is an absolute miracle.

"This is rugged territory, this is an extreme environment. How they were out there for 44 hours is pretty amazing."

Estelle Fennel, the second district supervisor in Humboldt County, also expressed gratitude for the community support.

"We have so many of these kinds of efforts that end up in tears," she said. "Today, we can all shed tears of joy."

VANISHED AFTER SNEAKING OUT

A photographer at the scene of the emotional reunion told the North Coast Journal that the girls said they'd spent Friday night sleeping under a log.

However, after getting wet when it poured with rain, they spent Saturday night in a "huckleberry cave".

Putting their survival training from a local youth club to use, the pair manged to keep hydrated by drinking water from leaves.

They told rescuers that they became lost after following a deer trail.

The girls had not been given permission by their mother to go for a walk together – but were believed to have taken off anyway.

Police were called at about 6pm and a massive search operation was launched after family and neighbours failed to track them down.

The search gathered pace on Saturday as the Coast Guard, the US National Guard and fire crews were drafted in to help.

Detectives found boot marks in a wooded area near the girls' home – and distinctive granola bar wrappers that could help them be tracked.

Humboldt County Sheriff's Lt. Mike Fridley said their mum had only just purchased the same brand – leading them to believe the sisters stocked up on snacks before vanishing.

On Friday he told SF Gate: "We have found some clues during the day that have made us change our directions.

"We found some granola bar wrappers and we were able to confirm with the mom that yes, these are granola bars that [she's] bought in the last few days.

"So the wrappers showed us a direction from where they started to where the wrappers ended at."

MOST READ IN NEWS

Mum Misty wrote online: "When my two daughters Leia, age 8, and Caroline, aged 5, wandered off into the woods the whole world came to our aid.

"With the help of the Volunteer search and rescue, technical rescue, sheriffs office, local volunteers, multiple other agencies my girls were found after 44 hours.

"My girls were found cold, tired, but alive."

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