A mountain rescuer put her bid for a podium finish in a gruelling endurance race on hold to go to the aid of a lost dog.
Clëo Bishop-Bolt encountered the animal while she was taking part in the Montane Winter Spine MRT Challenger North.
At first she thought she might have imagined the animal. Runners in such races frequently experience ‘sleep monsters’ – hallucinations caused by sleep deprivation and exhaustion.
Clëo, a member of Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue Team, came across the animal near the summit of The Cheviot while she was trying for a place as third-fastest woman in the event, which involves running 160 miles along the Pennine Way from Hardraw in the Yorkshire Dales to Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders.
She had previously competed in the summer version of the challenge.
She said: “Although I was mentally prepared for the winter race, I didn’t really feel that my fitness was up to the mark when I stepped onto the start line at Hardraw.”
“The first 24 hours were horrendous; there was so much snow on the ground and so cold, the conditions were incredibly challenging.” As the race progressed she got into her stride. As the runner crossed into Northumberland, she realised that she had a chance of taking a podium place.
“I was so tired, but I just kept moving. I hadn’t slept since Alston, but it felt great being back on ‘home turf’ – it just kept me going.
“As I came towards Auchope Cairn, I started to hallucinate; I was seeing faces in the mud; I was exhausted. It had happened to me before, during the summer race so I knew how to deal with it.
“All of a sudden, this dog appeared alongside me and ran in front of me into the darkness. I couldn’t believe that I was seeing a dog up there on the mountain, but then I realised that it was real; I could see its green eyes reflecting back to me in my torch light.
“I could hear the poor thing whimpering and crying; it was so cold up there it must have been freezing. I called for it, knelt down and listened, tapping my leg to see if it would come to me. Amazingly it did. I realised just how big it was and for a moment. I was quite worried – here I was with a strange dog that didn’t know me, but I just think he was so relieved to find some company.”
The dog didn’t have a collar on so Clëo, helped by another Spine Race competitor Paula Dimond, quickly tied her own jumper around the dog and used it as a lead. She then contacted the race HQ to make them aware and took the dog to a nearby rescue hut where race officials were waiting.
Despite the additional time this was costing her, Clëo said she was not worried about the race. “To be honest, I knew that I needed to just stop and help this animal; it was cold and shivering.
The Spine Race safety team helped look after the dog and took care of it as Clëo then continued with the race. The dog was then collected by the local estates team and taken down the valley to be reunited with its owner.
Despite her rescue, she managed to finish as the third-place MRT Challenger female with an overall time of 88 hours.
“I was just so thrilled to finish the race,” she said. “It was a fantastic experience to be part of the race again. I met so many inspiring competitors and race staff.”
Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue Team leader Jamie Pattison said: “We’re all incredibly proud of Clëo. Not only has she completed a brutal mountain race raising funds for our team, but she did it whilst upholding the finest traditions of mountain rescue; putting others before herself is what we stand for.”
Donations can be made via Clëo Bishop-Bolt’s justgiving page.