A mountaineer risked his life to save two dogs who were lost in sub-zero temperatures on Britain’s third highest peak for two days.
Scott Pilling, 37, leapt into action when he spotted a Facebook post about missing German shepherd Lilah and mongrel Cash.
He carried out his rescue mission even though he didn’t know their owner – and had to drive 94 miles from his home to Helvellyn in the Lake District.
Mr Pilling feared the worst as he began to scale the mountain because the dogs had been alone in freezing weather for 48 hours.
But after rallying fellow hikers to help he rescued them from under a precarious overhanging edge of snow known as a cornice, where they had been sheltering.
Two dogs – German shepherd Lilah and mongrel Cash – are seen circled after getting trapped under a snowy overhang at the top of Helvellyn in the Lake District
Scott Pilling dangling over the edge of the cornace on a rope to rescue the two runaway dogs
Lilah, the German Shepherd, after she was rescued by Scott Pilling who travelled from Bolton to save her
The missing poster appealing for sightings of Lilah, one of the two dogs who were rescued
The missing poster appealing for sightings of Cash, the second of the two dogs who were rescued
The dogs’ owner Colette Kilroy, 27, (pictured) who had also been out searching, said she was overwhelmed by Mr Pilling’s brave efforts.
He said the dogs would have died if they had spent much longer on the mountain, which is more than 3,000ft above sea level.
‘I knew that the eastern side of the mountain, which is the most dangerous, had not been searched,’ he said. ‘I decided to give it a go but did not really imagine I would find the dogs.
‘When I spotted them in the distance and they responded to my whistles I couldn’t believe it. If they’d been there much longer they would not have survived.
‘The bigger dog had been shielding the smaller dog from the elements, which was amazing to see. The smaller one needed to be cuddled and rubbed as he was so cold.’
The dogs’ owner Colette Kilroy, 27, who had also been out searching, said she was overwhelmed by Mr Pilling’s brave efforts.
Thanking him, she said: ‘I cannot put into words how thankful and appreciative I am. You are a hero in my eyes and I feel so blessed and thankful that you were there. Thank for risking your life for my dogs and persisting to rescue them both.’
The two dogs had to be rescued from here – the snowy top of Helvellyn in the Lake District
Scott Pilling (pictured), who travelled from Horwich, Bolton, to rescue two trapped dogs
The dogs were first spotted by Scott Pilling in the hole underneath the snow in the Lake District
The two dogs are safe and sound after being rescued by the team in the Lake District, England
It’s all smiles among the rescue team with the two dogs hauled to safety in the Lake District
Scott with Cash, who is seen eating off the snowy ground after the cross breed’s rescue ordeal
The keen horse rider, who lives in Liverpool, added: ‘They are absolutely fine now and just catching up on some sleep.’
Her mother Dawn Kilroy, 54, said: ‘We were both overwhelmed with emotion. We cried and laughed all the way back down.’
Mr Pilling, from Horwich, near Bolton, learned the dogs were missing from a Facebook page called Dog Lost, which helps reunite dogs with their owners.
He drove to Ullswater on Tuesday morning and set off on the 90-minute trek up the side of the mountain. The dogs had been missing since Sunday after becoming separated from their owner while walking.
As he got higher and fog lifted he spotted two black dots around 600ft from a ridge called Swirral Edge. A walker lent him his binoculars and he was able to see they were animals and were responding to his whistles.
Mr Pilling, a coach builder, said: ‘They were clearly alive and alert. I was amazed. I managed to get the help of some other walkers, but we were worried that the cornice might collapse, killing the dogs.
‘We dug a slope next to the cornice and took turns lowering ourselves down with ropes. We eventually reached the animals and with great effort were able to get them back on to the mountain.
‘I think those dogs used their brains and sheltered from the weather beneath the cornice. We used ropes as leads and were able to get the dogs down the mountain.’
Mr Pilling, who initially could not contact mountain rescue because of poor signal, posted a picture on Facebook alerting Miss Kilroy that her dogs had been found.
He said: ‘I was talking to her on the phone during the rescue. I wasn’t there when the dogs were delivered to her but I know she was over the moon. I am just so glad it ended the way it did.’