VERLOT — A mountain rescue was under way Tuesday evening after a woman took her dogs up a steep, snow-choked chute known as Headlee Pass and decided it was too unsafe to descend.
The pass is near 6,214-foot Vesper Peak east of Verlot. It is regularly used to ascend the peak.
Two other climbers told the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office they were in the area Tuesday and heard the woman calling for help.
They went to the ranger station in Verlot and alerted officials around 12:30 p.m., sheriff’s spokeswoman Shari Ireton said.
The sheriff’s office helicopter crew flew to the area and spotted the woman but was unable to immediately reach her. They later were able to lower a radio to her and also lowered a crew member, who hiked to her location at the 4,000-foot level.
The woman told the team that she was unable to descend because her dogs could not navigate the steep and dangerous terrain, Ireton said.
The sheriff’s office was working with Everett Mountain Rescue on Tuesday evening to sort out how to get the woman and her dogs to safety.
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