Milling knew the challenges of Crow Pass, but she felt equipped to take them on. For the first four miles, the hike went swimmingly. The sky was spotless, and Milling was completely emersed in nature.
However, Milling never expected her gear to falter. At the peak of a mountain, her trekking poles broke.
Milling Fell 700 Feet
Milling’s broken trekking poles caused her to lose her balance. She fell 300 feet down the snow-covered mountain before hitting a boulder.
After colliding with the boulder, Milling tumbled another 400 feet down the mountain. “I felt like I was flying,” Milling later told CBC News. Then, she finally landed.
Suddenly, Milling Was Lost And Injured
Milling was lucky to be alive. She had fallen 700 feet, around the length of two football fields. But she didn’t feel lucky at that moment.
Milling was dazed, bruised, and bleeding. She even struggled to stand. When she recovered from the shock, she realized that she had no idea how to return to the trail.
Then, Something Approached Her
As Milling sat there and debated what to do, she noticed movement nearby. Based on how the plants moved, it was not a person; it was an animal.
Crow Pass is famous for its wildlife, from mountain goats to black bears to moose. If a predator had spotted her, Milling would be helpless.
It Was A White Husky!
As the creature approached, Milling realized that it was a large dog. “First, I thought he was a wolf,” Milling later told ABC News. But then the dog jumped on her– and started licking her.
It was a white Siberian husky! The dog acted like he was waiting to see her. “He showed up suddenly out of nowhere,” Milling recalled.
The Dog, Nanook, Was There To Help
Milling then noticed the dog’s collar. ” I saw the little collar and realized he was there to help me,” she said.
The dog’s silver, bone-shaped tag said that his name was Nanook, after the master of bears in the Inuit religion. The tag read, “Crow Pass Guide, Return to…” with the owner’s address.
Nanook Stayed By Milling’s Side
Nanook “nookie” swift/Facebook
Milling realized that Nanook was not a stray; he was there to help her. The tag indicated that he was a guide dog for the trail pass.
What’s more, Nanook–whom Milling soon called “Nookie”– refused to leave Milling’s side. The hiker now had a partner and aid. But what could she do?
Initially, She Waited To Heal
Initially, Milling waited. She thought that her wounds would feel better with time, and then she could move. But that wasn’t so easy.
“She thought she was going to lie there until she recovered and then she would sit up and kind of gauge where she was at,” said her mother, Sharon Milling. “She just wasn’t recovering. The dog kept licking her.”
Nanook Lead Her Back To The Trail
Eventually, Milling realized that she couldn’t wait out her wounds. She had to start walking back to the trail.
When she started walking, she noticed that Nanook went ahead and waited for her. He was leading her back to the trail. From there, she could return to civilization and receive medical help.
But Milling Had To Wait Until Morning
But by the time Milling started moving again, the day turned into night. She barely made any distance before she had to set up her tent.
Milling invited Nookie inside, but the dog didn’t go in. He seemed to prefer staying outside the one-person tent. Although she risked losing the dog overnight, Milling went to sleep.
Nanook Stayed With Her Overnight
When Milling awoke the next morning, she opened her tent to a familiar sight: Nanook was sitting outside the tent, waiting for her.
“I realized he really was sticking with me when he greeted me in the morning when I unzipped my tent,” Milling later said. “He had stayed the entire night next to me.”
Nanook Motivated Milling To Keep Hiking
Nanook’s presence motivated Milling to keep hiking. “He gave me the motivation to get up and walk another seven miles,” she recalled.
“If he didn’t show up, I probably wouldn’t have gotten back up and kept walking that much.” The husky not only guided her; he gave her the faith that Milling needed.
But She Had Another Obstacle
Although Milling only hiked four miles, the fall forced her to hike another seven miles to return to the trail. But when Milling got back on Crow Pass, she encountered another obstacle.
Milling had to cross a river. With her injuries, wading through a river would be difficult. The current seemed fast, and the water was frigid.
These Rivers Can Be Life Threatening To Hikers
Crow Pass Trail is notorious for its rushing rivers. Milling was crossing Eagle River, which is fed by a glacier. Even in summer, the water is freezing.
Although Milling was hesitant, Nookie swam across the river with ease. He reached the other side and waited for her, so she figured that it was safe to cross.
Milling Fell Into The River
When Milling tried to cross the river, it did not go as smoothly. She slipped on the rocks and fell in. The strong current swiftly washed her away.
For several minutes, Milling struggled to get out of the freezing water, but her injuries made it difficult. Fortunately, Nanook was nearby to help her.
Nanook Rushed To Pull Her Out
Sony Pictures Entertainment/YouTube
Nanook followed her down the river. He grabbed a strap on her backpack and pulled her out of the water with his teeth.
“I was stuck in the water for more than 15 minutes until Nookie bit my backpack and pulled,” Milling recounted. “I pushed, and he pulled.” Luckily, their teamwork paid off.
Safe…For Now
Nanook successfully pulled Milling out of the water. Although she was safe for now, she was dangerously hypothermic. In freezing water, people can die within 15 to 45 minutes.
Milling took out her sleeping bag and got inside of it, desperate to keep warm. Nanook sat beside her, also trying to heat her up.
Stranded And Hypothermic, Milling Called For Help
Milling now knew that she could not return on her own. Although she was now out of the water, her low body temperature put her life on the line.
Dazed, Milling took out her Spot Device, a GPS tracking locator. She pressed the SOS button and prayed that someone would retrieve her in time.
They Waited…And Waited…
Whitney Shefte/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Milling’s Spot Device alerted the Alaska State Troopers that she needed help. It also sent a message to her mother, so that she knew what was happening.
However, Milling had to wait for help to arrive. She and Nanook waited on the riverbank for several hours, both searching for others who could help them.
Finally, Milling Was Saved
After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, Milling could feel rumbling in the ground. Although she could not hear, she recognized the sensation: it was a helicopter.
The Alaskan State Troopers had arrived from HELO-3 out of Anchorage. They found Milling in her red sleeping bag with Nanook curled up beside her.
Milling Recovered Thanks To Nanook’s Help
Milling was checked into a medical center in Anchorage. She made a full recovery and even stayed in Alaska for the rest of her planned trip.
Meanwhile, the team leader who saved her, Lt. Eric Olsen, took in Nanook. He was surprised to hear that Nanook was not Milling’s dog, but a stranger who rescued her.
Who Was Nanook’s Owner?
Olsen contacted Nanook’s owner, Scott Swift. The owner knew that his seven-year-old husky was out by the trail, but he had no idea that Nanook was aiding a hiker.
“When I realized I had a real-life hero dog, I called up the owner and he said, ‘No way,'” Olsen told ABC News.
What Is Up With Nanook?
Nanook “nookie” swift/Facebook
When Olsen drove Nanook home to his owner, he received more information about the dog. According to Swift, Nanook had a history of disappearing for days.
“He likes to go off on adventures on his own,” Swift explained. “He just disappears and goes and hooks up with a hiker or backpacker or a mountain runner.”
This Was Not His First Time Saving Someone
According to Swift, this isn’t the first time Nanook had saved a hiker. He relayed one story that happened two years earlier.
“There was one other girl about 6 years old,” Swift recounted. “He saved [her] when she fell in the river.” That story is eerily similar to Milling’s experience.
Nanook Was Never Trained For This
Although Nanook has aided many hikers, he was not trained to do so. “It sends chills up my spine when I think about it. I certainly didn’t train him to do anything like this,” Swift told CBC News.
“It’s a pretty powerful feeling that this dog had this instinctual ability to want to go help people.”
Milling And Nookie Got To Spend More Time Together, Too
After Milling healed, she got to spend more time with Nookie. She met his owner, Swift, and the two hung out together for the rest of Milling’s trip. Swift said that he got spoiled with lots of treats.
But the situation made Swift wonder how many others Nanook had helped without his knowledge.
How Many People Did He Help?
Swift became curious about how many local hikers received help from Nanook. He created a Facebook page for his dog and encouraged people to share their stories.
Several hikers came forward admitting that they recognized his dog. Even Army members, who trained near Anchorage, remembered Nanook spending a week with their squadron.
Nookie Became An Honorary State Trooper
Nanook “nookie” swift/Facebook
The Alaska State Troopers decided to honor Nanook for his efforts. They made him an “honorary member” and even gave him a medal and degree.
Swift will continue to let his dog roam freely. “With a free spirit like that…I feel like I’d be keeping him in jail if I kept him tied up,” he admitted.
Milling And Nanook Are Lifelong Friends
Nanook “nookie” swift/Facebook
Despite her life-threatening incident, Milling returned to Anchorage the following summer. In 2019, she announced on Facebook that she completed the Crow Pass Trail “without any complications this time.”
Milling also visited Nanook and even had sleepovers with him. “I believe the dog is a guardian angel,” she said. “I told him several times that I love him and I’ll never forget him.”