In Part 1: Although Kathy, a beautiful Washington lawyer, usually leaves her beloved dog, Sade, in the care of a pet-sitter when she takes her annual ski trip to Wyoming, this year she brings the dog along. The trip gets off to a good start, with Kathy and her boyfriend Carl taking a walk in the snow with Sade. But disaster strikes when they leave Sade at the ski lodge and attempt to fly a small plane to a mountaintop for a long downhill ski. A storm causes the plane to crash, badly injuring Carl and leaving Kathy unconscious.
Skiers sitting in the lodge lobby are talking and drinking hot coffee. Randle tries to reach Carl on his radio while people are listening to the weather forecast on the radio. The weather forecaster says the weather is dangerous and all flying aircraft should stay on the ground until the whiteout is over. Randle keeps trying Carl’s radio and Sade looks out the window, barking at the mountain and howling, sensing something is wrong.
Randle contacts Air Force Air and Rescue. They say they cannot get a pilot in the air until the whiteout is over. The owner of the lodge, named Jake, puts more wood in the fireplace. Jake looks down at Sade and says, “Sometimes people and their animals connect. It doesn’t happen to everyone, but it happens to some people, and that’s what’s happening to this dog.” He continues, with, “It’s 4:00 pm and the sun will be down by 6:00 pm, when you can’t see anything outside.”
The plane is hidden between some trees and is mostly covered by snow. Carl is barely awake, going in and out of consciousness, and Kathy is breathing but not moving. They are still stuck in the plane. Randle knows they should have been back by now. It is six o’clock at night and the snow has stopped falling. The whiteout has passed. Randle opens the door of the lodge to look outside at his plane. Sade runs between his legs and toward the mountain. Randle closes the door and asks Jake, “Where do you think he’s going?”
Jake smiles and rubs his chin while looking out the window at Sade running up the mountain. Jake says, “He’s going to try and find his owner or die trying!”
Randle gets back on his radio and tries to reach Carl. Sade searches in deep snow, following his nose all night when finally he picks up Kathy’s scent in the air. Sade finds a path of packed powder that leads straight up the mountain. He begins to smell his way up. The sun comes up and Randle takes to the sky. Sade is only 10 feet away from the downed plane. He finds it and starts barking. Randle spots Sade from the air and sees the downed plane. Sade gets inside the plane and immediately licks Kathy’s face.
Randle is circling and cannot land his plane where they are. He gets on his radio and talks with Lt. Col. Fly Jock Rick at Air Rescue. A chopper is in the air and on the way. Kathy and Carl are rescued and are sent to a hospital. They end up just fine – Carl has just a few broken bones. Sade’s love for his owner, Kathy, saved them just in time.
