A YOUNG diabetic woman who was lost on a remote forest hillside without medication was airlifted to safety at the weekend.

The woman and her partner had been walking their dog in Hamsterley Forest, County Durham, on Saturday afternoon when they became lost.

Because the woman, in her 20s, had used up all of her high-energy drink, she began to feel tired, and the couple called the emergency services using a mobile phone.

Teesdale and Weardale Search and Rescue Team deployed 14 members, and police sent a helicopter to search for the couple, who were found in an isolated area at the western tip of the forest known as Sharnberry Flat.

The crew landed the helicopter and took the woman to a rendezvous point, where she was checked by a paramedic.

Her partner, their dog and a helicopter crew member were taken in a rescue team vehicle to join her. The woman was later taken to hospital.

Spokesperson Steve Owers said: "The couple did the right thing by contacting the emergency services when they did.

"The lady's medical condition could have got much worse very quickly if they had continued to wander around trying to find the right path.

"As it was, they were in a sound condition and had missed the bad weather."

The couple had been following a way-marked route through the forest when they lost track of the signs and could not find the right path back to their car.

Rescuers are warning that despite an extensive network of colour-coded paths, it is easy to get lost in the 2,000-hectare forest.

They advise that walkers, cyclists and horse riders make the same preparations as they would for an outing in the open countryside.

Mr Owers said: "Navigation in forests is notoriously difficult. We would recommend anyone walking in these areas at least have a basic map of the trails produced by the Forestry Commission or an appropriate Ordinance Survey map.

"If you are just following the waymarks in the forest, it is very easy to miss one, then it become very difficult to relocate yourself."