Holly's Rescue
After the tragic mountain-related incidents that have happened over the course of the last week, Hiking South Africa has one small story of hope that reminds all mountain lovers of the importance of community and the power of collective care.
On the 1st of January, a celebratory New Year’s hike up Lion’s Head turned disastrous when Holly the dog vanished from the busy trail while hiking with her human parents.
Josh Hayman and Michelle Hoch had decided to celebrate the new year by hiking up the popular Lion’s Head, followed by an ocean swim. Of course, they took their fur child along — Holly, adopted from the Domestic Animal Rescue Group (DARG) in August 2017.
The popular Lion’s Head hike affords incredible views over Cape Town and Table Mountain. (Image: Josh Hayman)
“We’ve gone hiking with Holly many times, but had never taken her up Lion’s Head before,” said Josh. “We had her close by the whole walk up. She was having such a blast but never left our side. About 40 minutes up, she broke away from us unexpectedly and a second later she was out of sight!”
Holly’s parents frantically began searching and calling for her. They stepped off the trail into the bushes and looked everywhere to see if they could spot her, calling her name the whole time. The cliff face on that corner was steep and the ground very loose. No passing hikers had seen her.
“There was no way to get to the edge safely and we both feared that she may have fallen. The drop was very far down.”
Devastated, they alerted DARG immediately and posted missing posters to various “lost and found” online pages. After several hours of searching, with no sign of Holly, Josh and Michelle returned home heartbroken, unable to sleep that night.
Missing posters were shared widely around Lion’s Head and online. (Image: Josh Hayman)
At first light, the couple were back on the mountain, vowing not to leave without her. In the meantime, DARG had mobilised a team including Nicole Nel (the animal behaviourist who had helped them adopt Holly), volunteer Christy Quibell, and experienced mountain guide Nick Ashby.
“We were searching all of the paths that ran parallel to the spot where we’d lost sight of her,” explains Josh. “About two hours in, Michelle heard the quietest little whine coming from above. We immediately stopped walking and anxiously scanned the cliffs above us. Then I saw something peeping out over a small ledge near the Wally’s Cave area — Holly’s little black-and-tan head! She started crying and howling when we saw her. She could hardly move without falling — and she was about three storeys up! We tried to talk to her calmly but we were both in tears. She’d been on the ledge all night! We assumed that she must’ve chased some dassies and lost her footing, landing on the little ledge where we could see her.”
The tiny ledge where Holly was stuck — her body was hidden by the bushes. (Image: Nick Ashby)
Josh and Michelle immediately alerted the search party — Holly was alive! But rescuing her would require professional climbers. DARG shared an urgent appeal on social media for assistance. The response was overwhelming. Ryan Sandes, the world-renowned ultra-trail runner and DARG volunteer, heard about the situation and arrived on the scene in record time. Ryan met with Nick, and managed to lower himself down to the ledge where Holly was trapped. He confirmed she was miraculously uninjured and gave her water after her 31-hour ordeal.
Climbers Maghiel van Dorssen and Yonatan Wolowelsky prepare to abseil down to Ryan Sandes and Holly. (Image: Nick Ashby)
Climbers Maghiel van Dorssen and Yonatan Wolowelsky arrived soon after with climbing gear. They abseiled down to Ryan and Holly, and from the ledge were able to lower her safely in a harness to her parents. The emotional reunion that followed was pure joy — Holly wagging her tail, licking their faces, and rolling over for a tummy rub as if nothing had happened.
“The fact that Holly hung on up there – on a tiny little ledge – for 31 hours is a miracle. But the real miracle were the human hearts that put their holidays on pause to help us find and rescue our Holly,” said Michelle. “The people from DARG were nothing short of phenomenal throughout the adoption process and afterwards. It’s always amazed me how much they love their dogs. They do such incredible work and we are both just so grateful to them. I have so much hope for us now — us, as people on this earth.”
Watch the emotional rescue mission and reunion (Video: Nick Ashby)
Holly was checked by the family’s vet and given a clean bill of health.
Without the help of incredible volunteers and the compassionate mountain community that came together, Holly might not have made it home.
Special thanks to the selfless rescuers who gave up their time to help Josh and Michelle:
DARG volunteers Nicole J Nel, Christy Quibell, Nick Ashby, and Ryan Sandes; climbers Yonatan Wolowelsky and Maghiel van Dorssen; and emergency service representatives Gal (NSRI), Vasen (SANParks) and Inspector Visser (K-9 unit).
Holly surrounded by her rescuers — Yonatan, Ryan, Vasen, Josh (holding Holly), Michelle and Nicole. (Image: Nick Ashby)