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An intrepid dog was rescued this week after surviving a harrowing 60-foot fall from a cliff in Michigan and a freezing night alone in the wilderness.

On Wednesday evening, three-year-old Dancer got off her leash and tumbled from a steep cliff near Miners Castle in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the National Park Service (NPS) explained.

“After hours of searching the area, Dancer’s owners were unable to locate their dog in the dark and were convinced she had not survived the fall,” the NPS press release read.

Rangers at the nearby Pictured Rocks Park received a notification about the lost pet and sent a local rope rescue team from Superior High Angle Rescue Professionals (SHARP) to look for the dog around the Lake Superior shoreline.

The next morning, however, three team members from SHARP rescuers found Dancer “cold, but alive,” the NPS said.

“Though she had spent the night trying to keep warm, she was excited to see rescuers,” the service wrote alongside a photo of the pup in the arms of the grinning SHARP team.


  Three-year-old, Dancer fell and then got lost in the Michigan wilderness. Facebook/Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Three-year-old, Dancer fell and then got lost in the Michigan wilderness. Facebook/Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore


  Dancer is now safely back with her family. Facebook/Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Dancer is now safely back with her family. Facebook/Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Dancer — who was described as a “professional troublemaker” — has since been reunited with her family and is recovering well, the NPS confirmed.

“With this year’s mild start to winter, many areas of Pictured Rocks are more accessible than they are most years. It is still important to remember to be prepared for slippery, cold conditions that can change quickly,” Chief Ranger Joe Hughes said in a warning to other potential visitors.

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