Amelia Milling, a 21-year-old deaf Rochester Institute of Technology student, was undeterred by her condition and planned a three-day solo walk up Crow Pass, a 23-mile trek in Alaska’s Chugach mountain range. The deaf Tennessee college student struck some snow on the second day of her journey, collapsed, and broke her trekking poles. Then, with one bad step, she tumbled almost 300 feet down a slope, colliding with a massive rock before being thrown several hundred feet down the mountain.
Amelia remarked, she felt like she was floating. She was bleeding and injured when she landed. Her first impression was that her fantasy trip was over, but she quickly realized that her condition was much worse. Amelia had fallen 600 feet down an ice mountain, and although she hadn’t broken a single bone, it would still be difficult for her to locate the trail on her own. Suddenly, she learned she wasn’t the only one.
He appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Initially, she believed he was a wolf until she noticed the bone tag, Amelia said, describing the appearance of a white dog. The 7-year-old husky, named Nanook and popularly known as “Nookie,” was carrying a silver bone-shaped tag that said, “Crow Pass Guide, Return to…” and included his owner’s address. Yet, the dog would assist in returning the human to her rightful place, not the other way around.
Nookie refused to leave Amelia’s side for the next day and a half. He inspired her to get up and go another seven kilometers, Amelia added. If he hadn’t been there, she probably wouldn’t have gotten back up and continued going, she said, referring to Nookie as “Alaska’s version of Lassie” after he assisted in her rescue.
Nookie brought Amelia back to the path and hiked with her until dark. Amelia pitched her tent and welcomed Nookie inside; however, he appeared to prefer the vast outdoors to the cramped quarters of the tent. Amelia anticipated that Nookie would be gone in the morning, but when she awoke, the devoted husky remained. She recognized he was really committed to her when he met her in the morning as she unzipped her tent. Amelia recounted how he’d been with her all night.
It’s a good thing he did since the hiker was about to get into major difficulty at the Eagle River crossing, which is a frigid, fast-moving glacier-fed torrent. She tried crossing it twice and failed both times. She fell the second time, and the water really dragged her, Amelia said. She had been under the sea for more than 15 minutes when Nookie bit her rucksack and dragged her out, she remembered. Amelia was still in danger despite Nookie’s efforts to get her out of the frigid water.
Amelia, who was cold and confused, got into her sleeping bag to get warm. Amelia was safe since she had placed it in a waste bag in her rucksack before trying to cross the river, but Nanook understood she wasn’t. She believed she was going to sleep there till she recovered, then get up and see where she was. She simply wasn’t getting better. Sharon Milling, Amelia’s mother, said the dog continued to lick her.
Amelia wished to get heated and cross again, but Nookie wouldn’t let her. Fortunately, his perseverance paid off. After a time, she pulled the SPOT (satellite messenger) out of her pocket and placed it close to my head on the ground. Nanook spun in circles when she did it. That’s when she knew she wasn’t okay, and he was urging her to push it, Amelia remembered. The instant she touched it, he stopped behaving badly, moved a few feet away, and fell asleep. She is not sure how, but he knew.
Amelia remained huddled on the riverbank for many hours after her SPOT device’s “SOS” button notified Alaska State Troopers and sent a message to her mother and sister in Tennessee. She strained to remain awake, but numbness and exhaustion soon won. Troopers in a helicopter eventually discovered her wrapped in her red sleeping bag. Nookie was cuddled up next to Amelia when they jolted her awake.
Amelia was examined at a medical facility in Alaska, and Nookie was transported home. She was obviously taken aback. As she thinks about it, it sends shivers up her spine. She definitely did not teach him to do anything like this, Nookie’s owner, Scott Swift, said. It’s a really strong sensation that this dog has this inherent desire to go save humans.
When she healed, Amelia Milling spent time with Scott and the dog she credits with saving her life. Nookie was lavished with food and awarded an honorary Alaska State Trooper for his bravery, although little did they know that this wasn’t Nookie’s first time. According to Scott, Nanook often left for days at a time and came home with hikers or skiers he met and traveled with along the way, which is why he carved the title “Crow Pass Guide Dog” on the dog’s collar.
Scott understood his pet was doing much more than keeping hikers company after Amelia’s rescue. Scott had saved the puppy during an “adopt-a-pet” event in a local Walmart parking lot, and he had made it his life’s purpose to rescue others. Scott said he “wouldn’t doubt if there’s more out there” since Nookie had rescued three other hikers, so he launched a Facebook group to find out.
Yesterday, Alaska State Troopers were able to rescue a hiker, Amelia Milling, along the Crow Creek Pass Trail. After…
Posted by Alaska State Troopers on Thursday, 21 June 2018
He had heard hundreds of such tales within a few days. And there will undoubtedly be more as Nanook continues his lonely exploits on Crow Pass. The husky has been equipped with a GPS beacon on his collar in case he is called upon to rescue another hiker.
Having such a noble inclination, Nookie’s freedom to travel freely benefits not just him but all those he meets. If there was any question about Amelia Milling’s luck, consider that the rescue team had been on two other search and rescue operations in the preceding 24 hours, but both hikers had been murdered by bears. Amelia, on the other hand, is unfazed. She wants to complete the trek up Crow Pass, but she wants to do it with other people than Nanook next time.
