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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 2016
PARTING SHOT FROM JOSHUA BESSEX
A weekly snapshot from The Daily Astorian and Chinook Observer photographers
Crabbing ships are seen near the mouth of the Columbia River on New Year’s Day.
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Speed is crucial in rescues
By SUE MANNING
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Wylee the border col-
lie can search an avalanche the size of a foot-
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GRJSURJUDPVXSWRWKHVDPHDVVRFLDWLRQVWDQ- Dog supervisor Craig Noble put his border collie Wylee through some paces on the mountain in Olympic Valley, Calif. Noble says dogs
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are better than any beacon or echo, as a good dog can check part of an avalanche grid in five or 10 minutes, the same time it would
He also teaches classes for students in the take 50 people hours to scour the same area.
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Matt Palmer/Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows via AP
Chris Segal/Crested Butte Mountain Resort via AP
Ski patrol dogs of Crested Butte Mountain Resort wear antlers, with ski patroller Chris
“Buck” Myall dressed as Santa, in Crested Butte, Colo., in 2014. The dogs search for
missing or buried skiers.
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Border collie Wylee took a ski lift to get up a
mountain in Olympic Valley, Calif., last year.
As a ski dog, he oftentimes rides on handler
Chris Noble’s shoulders or his backpack so
he won’t be tired when they get where they
need to search for possible avalanche vic-
tims. Depending on terrain and snow depth,
Wylee can keep working for up to two hours
if needed, and hop a ride on a snowmobile
back down the mountain.
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