A WOMAN who was missing in a canyon for six months was found when a drone looking for her body crashed into a tree near her tent.

The 47-year-old, whose name had not been revealed, had been living in a flimsy tent in a canyon since last November.

The woman was located by the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, who had been searching for her body with a drone.

The woman had eaten supplies left in an abandoned tent she moved into, as well as moss and grass and other supplies provided by passing hikers.

Cops who found the woman said she was underweight, but had managed to survive despite the area regularly experiencing freezing temperatures in December and January. 

She said she had ‘voluntarily’ moved into Diamond Ford Canyon, near Spanish Fork – a city in Utah County.

Deputies had reportedly searched the area around thanksgiving last year, and had found an abandoned car in the carpark.

They also located a tent and camping equipment in the canyon, along with some information identifying the woman.

Official had wanted to notify the woman about the seasonal canyon closures but could not find her.

WOMAN HAD 'VOLUNTARILY' MOVED INTO CANYON

Search crews – both on foot and by air – were dispatched but they could not locate the woman.

Deputies impounded the car and took the camping equipment, thinking it had been abandoned.

Investigators trying to trace the woman worked over the following months in an attempt to contact anyone who might know the woman and be able to tell them her possible whereabouts.

Although attempts to contact her family were unsuccessful, detectives did speak to her co-workers who said she might be struggling with mental health issues.

The location of the woman remained a mystery until Sunday when a USCO sergeant returned to the area of Diamond Fork with members of a nonprofit aerial search group to continue looking for signs of the missing woman, according to the sheriff’s office.

WOMAN 'RESOURCEFUL' TO SURVIVE THE ELEMENTS

The drone being used to search for evidence though crashed during its first sweep of the area, forcing the sergeant and drone pilot to set off on foot to retrieve it.

As they walked into the hills they came across what appeared to be the same abandoned tent.

Soon after they discovered the tent, the missing woman emerged from inside.

The woman "had lost a significant amount of weight and was weak," according to the sheriff’s office. "But she was apparently also resourceful."

"And we now believe she knowingly chose to remain in the area over the months since November 2020," a press release said.

Officials said the woman had been taken to a local hospital for a mental health evaluation and resources had been made available to her, should she need them.

"But we want to be clear that while many people might choose to not live in the circumstances and conditions this woman did, she did nothing against the law," the sheriff’s office said. "And in the future she might choose to return to the same area."

Sergeant Spencer Cannon, Public Information Officer for the Utah County Sheriff's Office told DailyMail.com: “She's an amazing woman. In my 30 years involved in search and rescue I have never seen anything like this.”

The Utah County Sheriff’s Office was not releasing the woman’s identity, because of her suspected mental health issues.

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