Back in February 2016, I came across a young Australian Shepherd needing a forever home. He was found wandering through the mountains in North Carolina. He was placed in a dog pound and rescued by an Australian Rescue group a day prior to being euthanized. The Aussie Rescue in North Carolina arranged for this particular Aussie to be flown to Atlanta, GA by a cesna airplane, where a foster family awaited him. I contacted the foster family about my desire to give this Aussie a home in Savannah. After communicating by email and phone, the foster family agreed to meet me in Atlanta. By mid-February I drove back to Savannah with one of the most beautiful and goofy Australian Shepherd I’ve ever seen. I named him Major Tom because he was such a brave boy on that Cesna plane trip to Atlanta. Quickly, Major Tom became my shadow, never being far from me as we ran trails and streets in Savannah, mostly trails, though. His athleticism astounded everyone especially when he would leap high into the air, catching frisbees and tennis balls.
Before I met Major Tom, I had planned on climbing the western hemisphere’s tallest mountain, Aconcagua in 2017. Before I left on this epic adventure I arranged to leave Major Tom with friends for several weeks. Let me tell you, leaving Major Tom with friends was a very difficult parting as I had grown so attached to him and he to me. Seeing the confused look on Major Tom’s face as I walked away from him and drove off was heartbreaking.
Fast forward to January 2017. The plan was to fly to Argentina, climb Aconcagua and then two days later, fly to Santiago, Chile and out to Easter Island. Once on Easter Island, run around the island following a path I had mapped out using mapmyrun.com a couple of years prior. After running Easter Island, I would fly back to Savannah, GA with two amazing experiences notched into my belt. It did not work out like that, though.
I flew into Mendoza, Argentina where I spent a couple of days sightseeing by running around this beautiful city, eating lots of empanadas and drinking lots of red wine. I met with my RMI climbing team and after purchasing the climbing permit and doing a food run at a local grocery store, we headed to Aconcagua Provisional park by small passenger bus.
We spent a few days hiking up to Aconcagua base camp at 13,800 feet with a team of donkeys hauling much of our gear ahead of us. A couple of days at base camp, though, I began to experience sleep apnea and then outright sleep deprivation. After six days of only having slept three hours and barely eating any food it became quite apparent that this colossal mountain was not going to permit me to climb any further than 16,300 feet. I found myself with two options. One was to pay $2000 to fly on a helicopter from base camp to the entrance of Aconcagua Provincial Park or spend no money and hike for two days to the park entrance. Being on a pretty tight budget, I chose to hike down.
Swallowing my dignity and wallowing in self-pity, I began my hike away from base and the goal I had set several years before. It was a pretty hard pill to swallow but it was what it was. I trudged away back to where we started a couple of weeks earlier at the entrance of the park, feeling like a complete loser. The views all around me were quite epic but I was lost in my own world of self-sorrow. One of the local guides, a man named, Rolo Abaca, chose to lead me back down the mountain. The hike back down was pretty silent as I was in no mood to talk. Again, self-pity was quite consuming me. We had to cross a fast flowing, silty, cold river twice which was absolutely no fun. We finally reached our campsite and that’s where fate would again deliver me another card that would change everything regarding this adventure. It was at this particular campsite that I came across a thin, young black dog that was desperately trying to catch the mice that were running all around the camp grounds. This little dog was terrible at catching mice. I saw several mice literally run between her legs and into the safety of shrubs. But, she kept trying. Hunger can put you into survival mode and keep you going on and on trying to get that next meal!
I watched her for a while as she attempted over and over to catch mice but always failing. I could relate. From my backpack, I dug out some Goya cookies I had purchased in Mendoza and called out to this dog. I got her attention and tossed her a cookie. She fled from the thrown cookie (I guess she thought I was throwing a rock at her) but she then nervously approached the cookie and after a quick sniff she gobbled it down. I threw her another cookie and then another. After several cookies she became comfortable enough to approach me and take one from my hand. That moment filled my heart with joy. For the first time since the mountain had won I actually felt happiness. That evening at the campsite this little black dog ate what I ate (yes, my appetite had come back). As it got darker it got colder. By the time it was night, this little dog was letting me pet her and hug her. She was filthy and smelly but so was I. When it was time to go to sleep I grabbed the little dog and put her in the sleeping bag with me. That night, I actually slept a couple of hours under an expansive beautiful night sky with a smelly little dog that kept farting most of the night.
The next morning, I asked Rolo what it would take to get this little dog to the US. He didn’t know but enthusiastically said that he would help me once we got back to Mendoza. So, I took a handkerchief (bandana) that I was using to keep the dusty air from entering my nose and mouth and tied it around this scrawny dog’s neck. That small gesture was enough to make me feel like she belonged with me.
We reached the park entrance and were met by the park rangers. Rolo told the park rangers my intention of taking this little dog with me back to the US and those folks were so overjoyed and kept thanking me for caring enough. It was a very heartwarming moment. Things got a lot more complicated once we left the park behind us. The bus driver didn’t want to give me a ride back to Mendoza with a dog. After paying him $275 he agreed to take me to the city. It was a long four hour ride to Mendoza. This little black dog shit, pissed and vomited in the van and I had to clean it all up.The bus driver was not at all happy with me but I didn’t care, – he got paid well.
While I had been waiting for the bus ride back to Mendoza I had found a hotel in Mendoza that allowed dogs. When I got to the hotel, the hotel clerk looked at me and the dog and said “no perros” (no dogs). He could of been referring to me as the dog (after living the past two and a half weeks on a dusty, cold mountain) she and I looked pretty rough. I looked at the hotel clerk and held up my phone where I had the hotel website up and pointed to where it said, “dogs welcome”. That guy looked at me and said, “no english”. I looked at him and translated in Spanish that dogs were welcome. I handed him my credit card and surprisingly, he ran it through and gave me my key.
The next day, I left the dog in the hotel and walked to a pet store and bought dog food, treats, a collar, leash and two bowls. When I got back to the hotel room the dog had pee’d and pooped all over the place. I also noticed there were little worms in her poop. Up until I purchased her dog food and treats the little black dog had been eating the same food I was. That day, I also bathed her in the hotel bathroom. She was not happy about the bath but was so timid that she didn’t try to run off. I also noticed that she was starting to leave little blood drops where ever she laid.
On the second day in Mendoza, I changed my flight itinerary, no longer flying to Easter Island but instead to the US. This change cost me approximately $1000. In the meantime, this little black dog had eaten my mountaineering glasses and heavy mountain mittens which combined cost me over $400. Also on the second day, I met up with Rolo Abaca and his lovely wife. They took me to the Department of Agriculture where after a long wait I was told that in order for me to take the dog with me to the US it would have to be vaccinated against rabies and tested for screw worm and, foot and mouth disease. So, we went to a vet that was recommended by the Dept of Agriculture. By this time, I had decided to name this little black dog, “Arhentina de Aconcagua”.
The veterinarian looked over Arhentina, pronounced that she was in heat, probably her first heat as she appeared to be no more than six months old. She got rabies vaccinated and pronounced free of screw worm and foot and mouth disease. The vet also said she probably had intestinal worms and gave me some medication for her. The vet bill was a little over $300. We went back to the Department of Agriculture with the vaccination records and a document stating she did not have screw worm nor foot and mouth disease. The department of Agriculture stamped all of the vet documents, gave me more documents and I had to pay a small fee. I was then told that I had three days to get her back to the US or I would have to repeat the process from scratch.
Rolo and his wife took me to another pet store where I picked up a large crate and dropped Arhentina and I back at the hotel and we bid farewell and good luck. Such a lovely couple. I will never forget them.
Back at the hotel, I posted a plea to friends on Facebook to help me financially in getting Arhentina home to the US. The response was spectacular and heart touching, to say the least! In just a few hours I had to post on facebook again that I had received via paypal more than enough money to cover all of my and Arhentina’s expenses back to the US. I even had enough money to cover the spaying fees when I got back to the US. The outpouring was so heartwarming and beautiful.
I still have a list of all of the people that helped me bring Arhentina home. I am forever grateful to all of these awesome folks. One of those people on that list went on to become my wife, Kerry! Such an awesome and beautiful lady! Kerry and Arhentina do not always see eye to eye but the love between them is quite obvious. 🙂
Arhentina and I had one more full day in Mendoza and we spent it walking around that beautiful city and hanging out in city parks. This would be her last day in Argentina and the beginning of a new life five thousand miles away in Savannah, GA.
Well, nine years later, Argentina and Major Tom, are both with me. Major Tom is about 12 years old and is 9.5 to 10 years old.
MT is showing signs of aging. His hips are not very stable but he still has a gusto for life, for tennis balls, peanut butter and short walks. He is still my shadow, although now, he waddles behind me.
Argentina is a completely different dog from when I first met her. She is very confident, mischievous, sweet natured but kind of a bully to Major Tom and our ugly cat named Lyza. Arhentina loves long walks and chasing rabbits out of the backyard. She managed to catch one once. Sadly, the poor rabbit had a bad ending.
Through thick and thin, these two dogs have been my companions, best friends and, family.
