Michael Nordenstrom was out for a solo ride on his mountain bike when he stopped at a specific spot along Utah’s San Rafael River to take a picture. A few years earlier, his truck had gotten stuck there and he had to call for help. As it turns out, someone else now needed his help in the very same place – a stranded bighorn sheep!
Michael Nordenstrom
The animal was stuck in the icy river; it had fallen through the ice, and its rear was trapped in the frigid water.
Michael didn’t want to leave the bighorn sheep to die, but he wasn’t sure what to do. He couldn’t walk directly down to where the sheep was stuck, but he found a small animal trail that led to a gravel beach by the river.
Since the ice was thick enough and Michael only weighs 150 pounds, he stepped onto it and carefully made his way to the stranded sheep. Being all alone he thought, “This could go really great or really terrible.”
When Michael reached the animal, he took a photo. The sheep was remarkably calm, not making a sound.
Michael Nordenstrom
As luck would have it, a root was sticking out of the water, giving Michael something to grip with his left hand while he grabbed the sheep’s horn with his right. With steady effort, he managed to pull the sheep free, and surprisingly, it didn’t struggle.
As the exhausted animal rested, its wet body began to freeze to the ice so Michael had to go behind it and push, but in the process, his left foot broke through the ice. Michael changed tack and grabbed the sheep’s horn again and pulled in short bursts until they both reached the safety of the beach.
Michael wasn’t as afraid of falling through the ice as he was of the sheep suddenly head-butting him. Not wanting to risk it, he didn’t linger.
Back at his bike, Michael told KUTV 2 he felt guilty leaving the sheep behind asking himself “Should I have waited to see if he got back on his feet?” But he reassured himself that he did all he could and that it was up to the bighorn sheep to do the rest. Though the rescue had felt much longer, in reality, it had taken no more than ten minutes. Looking back Michael considers the rescue “pretty remarkable” and thinks it will be a highlight for him of the year.
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