“The dog probably saved their lives” by lying across them during the cold night, said Erik Brom, a member of the Portland Mountain Rescue team. He described the wind in the canyon as “hellacious.”

The two women left the snow vehicle first, followed by Bryant and the dog. The three climbers boarded the ambulance, and Velvet leapt in after them.

In addition to the dog, who provided warmth and comfort, rescuers attributed the happy outcome to the climbers’ use of an electronic mountain locator unit that guided searchers to their exact position.

Another Darwin Award narrowly averted. Of course, I would be remiss in not pointing out the obvious, that people who climb mountains in winter are fools. And that it was a act of careless stupid cruelty to take a dog up into those conditions. That being said, I’m glad and praise God that they survived.