It was my birthday weekend, and I love swimming in cold water, especially since I live in New Zealand. My birthday falls in winter. To celebrate, my friend Cat and I planned a tramp to a lake—just a 6-hour walk to a hut with a nice swing bridge over a river. It seemed like a simple, enjoyable trip, with my little dog Flynn joining us.

We left a bit late and faced some challenges, like storm damage to the track and a cooker mishap during lunch. Even though Cat fell during a surprise river crossing, we carried on, tramping in the dark but still having a good time. Sadly, we arrived at the lake too late for my birthday swim, and then it started raining.

Things got less OK when we reached the hut after 12 hours, only to find no dry firewood. We changed into dry clothes and went to bed. The next morning, I made a bad decision to take a shorter but riskier route. By the time we reached the top, it was snowing, and we were tired and cold. Realizing I had put us in danger, I decided to go back to the hut.

Concerned about Cat’s condition, I thought about spending a cold and hungry night to revitalize her for the trip back. But then I decided to call for help instead and activated my ACR ResQLink 400 PLB. Within an hour, a helicopter arrived, and we signaled with bright-colored items. The crew quickly got us to safety, and we were relieved to be warm and dry, heading home for a hot pie. I’m grateful for the rescue team’s quick response and relieved to be back after a challenging adventure.