The last thing I would have ever expected to encounter while climbing on a glacier is a porcupine. This fellow had wandered onto the glacier and become lost in the maze-like landscape. Weak and stressed from the ordeal we decided that he would not survive without our intervention. The woman who wrangled the porcupine into the backpack deserves most of the credit for the rescue. She was guiding another group of climbers. Once in the backpack, we all took turns carrying the heavier than you would expect porcupine off the glacier and into a forest setting that looked more like his natural habitat. When released he made a quick retreat into the underbrush and we all felt very happy about the rescue.