A young couple who spent more than two nights on a freezing mountain in upstate New York after losing their way in a fog bank have been reunited with the rescuers who saved them from an icy death.

Blake Alois, 20, and girlfriend Madison Popolizio, 19, were present on Wednesday as New York State pilots Lt. Peter McLain and Sgt. Brian Rumril were honored for the rescue effort off Algonquin Peak in December.

Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos presented the pilots with Meritorious Service Awards, and their chopper was renamed the 'Algonquin Angel' after the life-saving mission.

Blake Alois (center) and Madison Popolizio (second right) were reunited on Wednesday with the pilots who rescued them off Algonquin Peak in December

The couple started hiking New York state's second-highest peak on December 11, but became lost when then encountered fog at the top. Above, the couple revisiting the chopper they were rescued in

At the ceremony on Wednesday, the helicopter was renamed the Algonquin Angel after the life-saving rescue

Alois smiles as she shakes hands with one of his rescuers on Wednesday

The couple spent two nights on the freezing-cold peak, where temperatures usually dip to -4 in winter

Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos presented the pilots with Meritorious Service Awards

The couple were rescued after they called out to forest rangers who were searching. The helicopter then had to hover close to the mountain while the hikers were strapped into the aircraft

'It was a roller-coaster ride from beginning to end,' Mclain told the Adirondack Daily Enterprise after the rescue in December.

The couple, now recovered from their nightmare nights on the mountain, looked still very much in love and smiled as they were allowed to jump inside the aircraft once again.

In an interview with DailyMail.com a few days after their rescue, Madison said that they kept each other's spirits up in the -4-degree temperatures by talking about their future.

The couple are pictured above in a video at the start of their hike on Demember 11

The couple were hospitalized after the nightmare hike but have since recovered

Algonquin Peak is pictured in the background on a previous hike the couple completed

Temperatures on top of the 5,114-foot Algonquin Peak (file picture) typically dip to -4F during the night at that time of the year

The Niskayuna college students started hiking the state's second-highest peak on December 11, and conditions were fine until they reached the top. That's when fog set in, blinding them and making it impossible to find their way back.

Madison, a history major in college, and Blake, were terrified. They tried to walk back to the trail, but lost their footing and fell down an estimated 100 feet.

The pair had no choice but to sit and wait for help. Snow had entered their jackets and boots, wetting their gloves.

Temperatures on the 5,114-foot Algonquin Peak typically dip to -4F during the night at that time of the year.

The couple (pictured in February), who have been together for a year and a half, dreamed aloud about getting married and moving to Paris while they waited for two nights on top of the mountain

Madison at one point told Blake she had lost feeling in her legs and feet.

'His first instinct was to take his bag that was full of our supplies and our food and to dump it out and to pull it around my legs so I could stay warm,' she told CBS News.

She believes she owes her life to her boyfriend.

'He told me how much he loved me and what our lives were going to be like when we got out,' Madison said, explaining how Blake had supported her through the bitter cold.

The pair took turns comforting each other.

'Whenever one of us got down, the other one would push the other person through and be like, "No, you're not going to die here. We're going to make it," ' Madison told The Daily Gazette.

And we talked about the things we were going to do when we got out, and how we were going to get married and be happy, and go live in Paris — and just trying to keep our spirits up.'

Rescuers, meanwhile, started looking for the stranded couple by 8pm on Sunday, braving freezing wind chills, at least three feet of snow and below-freezing temperatures, the Adirondack Daily Enterprise reported.

Madison said she became so dehydrated during their second night on Algonquin Peak that she began hallucinating and thought she heard people answering their pleas for help.

Blake, she said, put one of their water bottles under his shirt to melt the ice inside, so that she could drink.

'It's a remarkable feeling. We are unbelievably grateful to be with each other back in our hometown with our families and friends. It's a dream,' Madison told the DailyMail.com

The pair finally heard a helicopter the morning of December 13. Madison then heard a voice and thought she was hallucinating, but Blake told her he could hear it too.

Rescuers airlifted them off the mountain and took them to the hospital. Blake and Madison knew they might lose some toes and fingers due to the cold.

Madison's sister set up a Go Fund Me to help cover their medical bills but said Madison and Blake are 'simply happy to be alive' and would like to donate the money to the rescuers instead.

'I love you today and every day forever, here's a lovely boomerang of us before we realized we were going to get utterly blinded by fog,' Madison wrote on Instagram as she shared a short video of Blake kissing her cheek during the hike.

'Never thought we'd be spending our year and a half anniversary by getting airlifted out of the Adirondacks with frostbite on our hands and feet, but as long as I have you I'll be OK.'

'I asked him if he would still think I was pretty if didn't have any feet. And he said you could lose both your legs, both your arms and you would still be the prettiest girl in the world,' Madison told CBS News.

'It's a remarkable feeling. We are unbelievably grateful to be with each other back in our hometown with our families and friends. It's a dream,' Madison told the DailyMail.com.