Search under way as 3 fall from Mt. Hood

[Kevin Rooney]

This has not been a good year for climbing Mt Hood -

PORTLAND, Ore. - Three climbers fell off a ledge on Mount Hood Sunday morning, and rescuers were ascending the snowy mountain in an effort to find them, authorities said. PORTLAND, Ore. - Three climbers fell off a ledge on Mount Hood Sunday morning, and rescuers were ascending the snowy mountain in an effort to find them, authorities said.

more details here.

 

[jessbee]

A happy ending to this one:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2007/02/eight_climbers_found_safe_on_m.html

 

[Kevin Rooney]

That's great news - thanks for posting -

 

[GlennS]

I just saw something on TV. Apparently three climbers, 1 man, 2 women and a dog are still up there. The climbers are equipped with 2 sleeping bags, a tarp and perhaps most important an Emergency Locator Beacon. The conditions are keeping SAR from accessing them. Accordingly to searchers it's snowing 1 inch an hour and the winds are in excess of 70 MPH.

Let's keep our fingers crossed for a good outcome.

Glenn

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Why did they have a dog up there?

 

[jessbee]

Yeah sorry I jumped the gun. Last night I didn't realize there were 3 people still on the mountain.

This morning this is what I can find: http://www.katu.com/news/5931636.html

No idea why they thought they should bring a dog to the summit?!

Conditions are cold, windy and snowy right now. Rescuers are close but still looking for these people. I know precisely how it feels to be a mile from the lodge and not be able to see anything or move anywhere. Extremely frustrating. I hope this story comes to a happy end soon.

 

[MadRiver]

All three(+ one dog) were found alive and well!

 

[Papa Bear]

No idea why they thought they should bring a dog to the summit?!

You're right about that. But OTOH I bet they were really grateful to have him in the sleeping bag with them ! I bet he was doing better than they were - remember he's a lab.

 

[Papa Bear]

Here's a news item of the rescue. They had to walk out from about 9300', I assume to Timbetrline Lodge (6000'). I know the snow cat can get to about 8000' but perhaps not in blizzard conditions.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/19/AR2007021900151.html

 

[audrey]

Search and Rescue never ceases to amaze me. Kudos to all!

I'll bet the only thing better than a cuddly Lab would have been Brutus.

 

[sardog1]

At the risk of boring any who have heard the tale, it was my own Newfy (smaller than Brutus but just as shaggy) who got me started in SAR more than 25 years ago. It was the DougPaul scenario that I trained him for, being a constantly solo skier/shoer/hiker. He learned to locate me if I went down and to lie beside me for warmth until help arrived. When I saw how much he enjoyed the game of searching for me, I started a SAR dog unit.

And yes, Audrey, that thick, water-repellent coat was wonderful to have next to you. And he pulled the sled much better than any human companion has ever done.

 

[Kevin Rooney]

Why did they have a dog up there?

At the risk of boring any who have heard the tale, it was my own Newfy (smaller than Brutus but just as shaggy) who got me started in SAR more than 25 years ago. It was the DougPaul scenario that I trained him for, being a constantly solo skier/shoer/hiker. He learned to locate me if I went down and to lie beside me for warmth until help arrived. When I saw how much he enjoyed the game of searching for me, I started a SAR dog unit.

And yes, Audrey, that thick, water-repellent coat was wonderful to have next to you. And he pulled the sled much better than any human companion has ever done.

I'm with sardog1, pudgy_groundhog. In a jam, having my Newf along may save my life.

I just read an account of one of the Hood climbers who credited the dog with helping save them as well.

 

[sardog1]

Three (Under The) Dog Night

Sounds like it's time for a sirloin in the bowl, after a three (under the) dog night. From The Oregonian:

"They huddled together. Velvet, a Labrador-shepherd-cattle-dog mix that Bryant adopted after she jumped into his car two years ago during a Nevada climbing trip, shared her warmth. She took turns lying atop the climbers through the night.

'The dog,' [fellow climber Trevor] Liston said later, 'was the heater.'
. . .
Liston credited Velvet, who was treated Monday night at DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital in Portland for broken toenails and a cut on one paw, with helping his friends survive the night on the mountain.

'Velvet,' Liston said, 'is a wonder dog.'"

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Sorry if my question sounded like I was putting down dogs (definitely not my intent). I had just never heard of people taking dogs on technical routes before. Obviously you guys take your dogs on your backcountry adventures (Kevin, you probably don't remember, but my husband and I ran into you once in Vermont and I really liked Brutus ), but do you take your dogs on technical routes and if so, how do the logistics work (i.e. when you are roped up for glacier travel, how do you rope your dog?). I assumed the climbers on Mt. Hood were on technical terrain -- maybe I was mistaken? At any rate, I'm glad the Mt. Hood rescue had a happy ending and I definitely agree there are some amazing dogs out there.

 

[lx93]

I have trouble getting my Dalmation-Australian Sheppard mix to even jump across a 2 foot wide stream, let alone tech climb!

 

[bubba]

I was so glad to hear that they were rescued from the mtn. All of these search attempts have captured my attention, including the recent one on Lafayette Mtn.

Magnitude certainly plays a role in the media's coverage. This is now the second or third Mt. Hood S&R that has made the national news in the last few months -- CNN, Fox and networks giving coverage. Seems that getting lost in the Whites is just regional stuff.

Is this because the danger to life and S&R is that much more on a technical mtn?? I don't really see it that way.

 

[DougPaul]

I have trouble getting my Dalmation-Australian Sheppard mix to even jump across a 2 foot wide stream, let alone tech climb!

Bill Putnam's dog Pinkham had a climbing record that was better than many (probably most and certainly mine) of the members of this BBS.

Mr. Pinkham's appliction for membership in the AAC (American Alpine Club) was almost approved until the secretary of the AAC realized that he was the wrong species...

http://www.uiaa.ch/article.aspx?c=231&a=156

Doug

 

[DougPaul]

At the risk of boring any who have heard the tale, it was my own Newfy (smaller than Brutus but just as shaggy) who got me started in SAR more than 25 years ago. It was the DougPaul scenario that I trained him for, being a constantly solo skier/shoer/hiker. He learned to locate me if I went down and to lie beside me for warmth until help arrived. When I saw how much he enjoyed the game of searching for me, I started a SAR dog unit.

Can you teach him how to fetch a rescuer?

Doug

 

[sardog1]

Can you teach him how to fetch a rescuer?

Doug

Actually, that's exactly what all air scenting SAR dogs are trained to do. It's quite likely that the free-ranging dog will reach the search subject before the handler gets there or is even within sight. This is especially the case at night and in thick cover. The dog is trained to do multiple "refinds," shuttling back and forth between handler and subject until handler is right on top of the subject. If you're lost and a SAR dog comes up to you, stay put. Don't try to hold the dog and don't try to follow it through the woods. Within a short time, the dog will leave you , but help is on the way. Stay put and call for help until the handler arrives.

As for dogs on technical routes -- some SAR dogs are fitted with climbing harnesses for work near crevasses, rapelling, and lowering from helicopters. A dog has a low center of gravity and four-legged traction that help on steep, difficult terrain. Not all dogs are capable of working in that terrain, but it's usually the handler's climbing inexperience that determines where the team will be used, not the dog's innate capacities.

FWIW -- Susan Butcher (native of Cambridge, MA, and four-time winner of the Iditarod) and Joe Redington (the guy who revived the race) drove a dog team to the summit of Denali. The party also included Ray Genet and Brian Okonek, two very experienced climbers, and photographer Rob Stapleton.

 

[DougPaul]

Can you teach him how to fetch a rescuer?

Actually, that's exactly what all air scenting SAR dogs are trained to do. <interesting info trimmed>

I actually meant my question in a different way.

You had said that you had trained your dog to come and help you if you went down. As I read it, it occurred to me that, while a dog's company might have been comforting and warming (allowing me to survive longer), what I really needed was rescue. So I was wondering if the dog could be trained to leave me and search out human help for me, perhaps upon command. (Yes, I remember the incident with the fallen runner out west.)

Doug