A hunting dog spent three days stranded on a ledge roughly 200 feet up a cliff in Western North Carolina before volunteer climbers rappelled down to pull it to safety after sunset Monday. The rescue unfolded in the Ramsey Cliff area of Macon County, near Franklin, where the dog had somehow gotten stuck on a rock face its owner couldn't reach on foot.
The dog's owner led climbers from Pisgah Climbing School to the site and waited at the bottom while the rescue played out, according to the Charlotte Observer. The owner had already tried to reach the animal but turned back when the rock wall proved too dangerous to climb without gear. The cliff sits about a half mile from the nearest 4x4 trail, in a corner of Macon County far from easy vehicle access, and Franklin itself is roughly a 180-mile drive west of uptown Charlotte.
A Timely Rescue During Bear Hunting Season
The timing lines up with North Carolina's black bear hunting season in the Mountain Bear Management Unit, which covers Macon County and runs from October 3 through November 21, then resumes December 12 through January 1, according to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. The rescue took place during the fall portion of the season.
Karsten Delap, founder of Pisgah Climbing School, led the climb and said he was amazed by the dog's location and unsure how it had gotten there in the first place, per the Observer's reporting. Delap used lead climbing techniques and protective gear called cams to ascend the rock face himself before the dog could be reached.
Loose Rock Made for a Dangerous Climb
The cliff rock was loose and dangerous, with refrigerator-size boulders threatening rescuers as they worked their way up, the Observer reported. The hazard made the climb especially dangerous.
Once Delap reached the dog, rescuers lowered the animal in a harness using three tandem rappels to bring it safely to the ground. The station's report notes the dog was timid at first but warmed up once offered cheeseburger dog treats, and while it was visibly scared during the rappel, it didn't fuss much. Delap called it the most technical dog rescue he's done, despite having completed well over ten dog rescues over the past 20 years.
Why a Climbing School Handled a Rescue Call
Macon County sits within nearly 250 square miles of U.S. Forest Service land inside the Nantahala National Forest, an area marked by steep granite outcroppings and isolated river gorges, according to the Forest Service. Volunteer staffing and training are part of rural fire and rescue services; about 91 percent of North Carolina fire departments are mostly volunteer, per reporting from The Laurel of Asheville.
Delap brought unusual credentials to the job. He's certified by the International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations, and separately, his own site notes he's the 159th American ever to earn that IFMGA certification and the only IFMGA-licensed guide currently operating in the Southeastern United States. He also holds a Level 3 certification from the Society of Professional Rope Access Technicians, the highest industrial credential for complex rigging and high-angle rescue work, according to Karsten Delap's official site.
A Volunteer With a Long Rescue Résumé
Beyond running Pisgah Climbing School, which he founded in 2020 in Brevard and grew into the largest rock climbing guide service in the Southeastern United States, Delap serves as Technical Director of Mountain Rescue for the Transylvania County Rescue Squad and volunteers with the Henderson County Rescue Squad, per the Observer. He's also a Petzl athlete ambassador, patrols at Cataloochee Ski Area in winter, and instructs military units and professional emergency responders in high-angle rope mechanics.
News of the rescue drew hundreds of reactions on social media after it spread, with one commenter, Jill Young, writing that Delap succeeded on his first attempt after others had tried and failed to reach the dog.
