Two young children were 'miraculously' rescued from a Canadian forest after spending the night alone when their father left them to get help.

A 6-year-old girl, her brother, 7, and their father fell down a 'steep, treacherous cliff' into a creek drainage area after getting lost on Mount Burke in British Columbia on Sunday.

Search and rescue officials said the family, who were visiting from Georgia, were unfamiliar with the terrain and had been trying to go fishing at Munroe Lake but got lost.

An image released by Coquitlam Search and Rescue shows a volunteer carrying the the 7-year-old-boy through tall grass to an awaiting ambulance after he was stranded overnight

The children follow their father to a car after they are all released from hospital on Monday afternoon. The siblings spent Sunday night in a forested area after getting lost during a hike

Despite being injured, the father left the children and made the uphill climb to raise the alarm.

After walking approximately one to two kilometers, he found another hiker with a cell phone and called search and rescue officials.

Members of Coquitlam Search and Rescue found the children just before 8.30am local time on Monday.

They were airlifted to safety by a helicopter with a long line, with their father waiting with an ambulance to meet them.

Before he left them, their father wrapped them up in warm clothes and told them to stay where they were.

Crews searched for the children all night using drones and a helicopter after getting the father's call for help at around 7 pm on Sunday night.

The family were walking from the site of an old ski lodge over to Munroe Lake, and in the process got off trail. Once off trail at some point they were walking and all fell into a gulley.

Coquitlam Search and Rescue manager Ian MacDonald told CBC News that the father didn't want to risk bringing his children when he went for help as 'it was a dangerous situation.'

The children are seen being airlifted to safety after a backpack and shoes led rescuers to find them at 8.30am on Monday. Their father had left them to go for help and didn't want to risk bringing them as he climbed back uphill to call for help

Footage from CTV News shows rescuers wrapping the children in emergency blankets before being transported to hospital after suffering minor injuries

He added: 'This was really a miraculous rescue and a really positive outcome.

'You can imagine, all of us [searchers], we've got kids. It was really elation. This is very rugged terrain where they were lost so we were just very, very thankful that they were found alive and uninjured.

'[The father] was not that familiar with the terrain, it was not on a trail at all, so any landmarks and signposts were really not there.'

He said the children were cold but alert and suffered only minor injuries. They were taken to Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster for a check-up.

A volunteer carries the boy, 7, through long glass to an awaiting ambulance to hospital

Search and rescue crews spent Sunday night trying to track the children down, using a drone and helicopter to help

They were walking from the site of the old ski lodge over to Munroe Lake, and in the process got off trail. Once off trail at some point they were walking and all fell into the gulley

He claimed that crews on the ground had spotted a backpack and some shoes, which were like a 'trail of breadcrumbs' that led them to the siblings.

MacDonald added: 'It was kind of like Hansel and Grettel, we found some breadcrumbs along the way and one of those was the backpack.'

Coquitlam RCMP Staff Sargent Paul Vadik said the father had made the 'difficult decision' to leave the children Sunday night, because he thought the climb would be too dangerous for them.

Coquitlam Search and Rescue manager Ian MacDonald said the father didn't want to risk bringing his children along when he went for help as 'it was a dangerous situation'

MacDonald added: 'The kids did a great job. And the dad did a great job of telling them, you know, "I want you to stay here."

'I suspect his reaction [to the rescue] is pretty emotional.'

MacDonald said that the area around Munroe Lake is safe if hikers remain on the trail.

However, he claimed it is not unusual for people to get lost.

Bryan Moffatt and Brad Rennie, who both work with Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue, were part of the team that found the children.

Rennie told CBC News: 'They were invisible, pretty much like a rock. They were hiding under a grey sweatshirt.

'After several calls, they actually responded and came out of the sweatshirt and gave us the A-OK.'

Moffatt, who has children the same age, said the kids were 'very' happy to be found. He added: 'They were quite smiley.'

Coquitlam Search and Rescue led the search effort and had assistance from North Shore, Ridge Meadows, Surrey and the Central Fraser Valley.

A police dog, drone, and helicopter were also involved in the rescue effort.

Their father is seen helping the children into a taxi when they were released from hospital on Monday afternoon

McDonald claimed the area around Munroe Lake, (pictured), is safe so long as hikers stay on the trail, though it's common for people to get lost

The children’s mother told CVT News that the children hike everywhere with their father.

She called the effort by search crews 'amazing' and added that the family is 'very grateful' to rescuers.

The children’s parents are originally from Georgia, but are currently staying in Coquitlam.

In a tweet on Tuesday morning, Coquitlam Search and Rescue wrote: 'It was a long night for members of Coquitlam SAR and others searching for 2 lost children on Burke Mountain: a stressful search that ended on a happy note this morning.