A skier had a once-in-a-lifetime experience when he was followed by a stray dog on what he thought would be a seven-hour solo trip over tough mountainous terrain.
Colter Hinchliffe, from Aspen, Colorado, captured an epic journey over the Caucus Mountains in Georgia, where a dog he nicknamed ‘Buddy’ suddenly started following him as he set off for the day.
As Colter left his car in the town of Ushguli, Buddy was soon at his tail. Knowing how tough the journey was, he initially tried to deter the dog by shooing it and throwing snow.
But Colter’s efforts were in vain, as they only encouraged Buddy to keep up his chase, but from a greater distance.
Eventually, Colter gave in, welcoming Buddy on his trip after making his way to a ridge around 3500 feet above town.
Over the hours that followed, Colter spoke to Buddy; offered encouragement when he needed to make jumps; and, at one point, hoped the pooch had made his way back to town after Colter had skied down a long run, only to hear the dog barking, letting Colter know he was still on his way.
Having reached the end of his journey with Buddy, an exhausted Colter – who had seen his trip take longer than planned by helping the dog – gave Buddy a goodbye hug and the last of his food.
When darkness approached, Colter had to rush to make it back to his vehicle, as he had no communication service to let others know he was okay.
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The 37-year-old later shared a video of his journey with Buddy on social media, where viewers praised his kindheartedness in taking care of the stray dog.
He said: “I think he enjoyed himself, although he might have bit off more than he realized by following me.
“I’ve done my best to make it clear I didn’t bring the dog. He brought himself – I even tried to deter him.
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“People don’t realize this pack of stray dogs sleep outside in -40F temperatures regularly and survive.
“They are in their element, and as much as I would love to give Buddy a warm hearth to curl up on next to a steak dinner, I’m the visitor and he is the local.
“This was the third dog following me on a ski tour that trip to Georgia – they know what’s up. They just take themselves for a walk and are the sweetest dogs ever.
“People clearly love the adventure with Buddy; I’ve never had so many views, comments and likes on a video.
“After I made a story about it and woke up the next morning to hundreds of comments, I decided I should make it permanent so people can enjoy it for more than 24 hours.
“That’s the last I saw of Buddy in person, but I’ve gotten multiple reports via Instagram that he’s still out there skiing in Ushguli with random travelers, and it makes me happy to hear.
“I was grateful for his accommodation in his mountains.”
