Montana man hikes 10 miles to safety after falling on trekking pole

A Montana hiker survived a harrowing ordeal when one of his trekking poles impaled him during a fall near the summit of Granite Peak. David Cifaldi was climbing the state's highest mountain—reaching 12,803 feet—when he lost his footing on rocks close to the peak. The pole pierced his torso, but Cifaldi managed to walk himself ten miles back down the mountain to safety. When he rolled over after the fall, he immediately knew something was seriously wrong—a moment that could have meant disaster on a remote alpine slope.

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