One very lucky dog is safe and sound after a close call on the slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
Bobby White and Josh Trujillo are both students at the Colorado School of Mines. The two friends were backcountry skiing in the Berthoud Pass about an hour west of Denver when they heard the terrifying sound of an avalanche on a nearby slope.
The skiers rushed over to the slope to see what had happened, discovering that fellow student Scott Shepherd’s Chesapeake Bay retriever, Apollo, had triggered the avalanche. The careening snow then swept the dog down the mountain, over a cliff, and through several trees. Though it felt like a lost cause, the men began searching the snowy hillside for any signs of the dog.
Using poles, they poked holes into a 300 yard area for more than 20 minutes. They were just about to give up when suddenly one of the men spotted a little pink nose sticking out of the snow. It was Apollo, and he was alive!
Using their hands and a small plastic shovel, they frantically unearthed the trapped dog from the freezing snow. Incredibly, the dog was completely unharmed by both the fall down the mountainside and being trapped under heavy snow for over 20 minutes! As soon as they pulled him out he started walking around like nothing had happened.
“I feel like I kind of got away with something that has such a huge lesson without huge consequences,” said Apollo’s grateful owner. “Like, he could have been lost forever. I thought the best case was that he was seriously injured, but nothing happened at all. It just still blows my mind.”
What a lucky dog! We’re so glad these two skiers happened to be in the perfect place at the perfect time. Perhaps Apollo will stay home next time his owner hits the slopes.
Share this story to celebrate the happy result of this close call.
Source: inspiremore.com
