ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST - Urban dwellers who underestimate the forest, plus reduced daylight, mean local search and rescue teams stay busy even when the temperature drops.

"The biggest thing we see is people who are simply unprepared," said John Levin of the Montrose Search and Rescue Team. "They don't realize that even though the forest is only 20 minutes away, you can get lost in there forever."

The Altadena and Montrose Search and Rescue teams were summoned to two emergencies Sunday, authorities said. No one was injured in either case.

A man and his dog were rescued about 9 a.m. Sunday after the canine took a tumble down a steep mountainside near mile-marker 28 of Angeles Crest Highway, said Levin, whose team is based at the sheriff's Crescenta Valley Station.

The dog was let out of the family car for a bathroom break when it slid about 150 feet down the 70-degree incline, Levin said. The animal was injured and unable to climb back up the slope, so its owner made his way to the location. Then the man couldn't make his way up the mountainside with his pet.

Levin said the Montrose Search and Rescue team is called between 50 and 70 times annually, making it the busiest in the state. Team members used a winch to hoist the dog up on a litter, Levin said.

In the second incident, the Montrose and Altadena teams were called about 6 p.m. to search for two lost hikers near mile-marker 52 on Angeles Crest Highway, authorities said.

Deputy Randall Forney of the sheriff's Altadena Station said he spoke to the hikers - a woman, 51, and man, 58 - who called authorities on a cell phone when they realized they were lost. Forney said he instructed the hikers to stay in one place and describe landmarks that could guide searchers to their location.

By 9:45 p.m., rescuers had led the hikers from the forest.

Deputy Greg Gabriel, coordinator for the Altadena Search and Rescue team, said in 2005 the team went on 10 search operations and 15 rescues.

Gabriel said fewer people enter the forest during the winter, but they face two primary problems: a lack of preparation and reduced daylight.

"As soon as the sun starts to go down and you're in a ravine, it's dark," Gabriel said.

He added that in the mountains, darkness can descend as early as 4 p.m.

marshall.allen@sgvn.com

(626) 578-6300, Ext. 4461

(C) Pasadena Star News, 2006