David Cifaldi was impaled by his trekking pole after slipping while hiking Montana’s Granite Peak, but the pole narrowly avoided major organs. He chose not to request a helicopter rescue and instead walked about 10 miles down the mountain, highlighting both the seriousness of the accident and the risks of remote hiking.

Cifaldi, a wound care nurse, used his professional knowledge to assess and manage the injury during the descent. The incident occurred while he was hiking with friends, and his survival depended in part on the pole missing vital organs.