A Montana nurse stunned doctors and rescue experts by calmly hiking off Granite Peak with a trekking pole still speared through his torso.
Story Snapshot
- A Montana wound care nurse slipped on rocks on Granite Peak and was impaled by his own trekking pole.
- He used his medical training to judge the injury as not immediately life-threatening and chose to hike out instead of calling for a costly helicopter rescue.
- He and his friends alerted authorities, then spent about six and a half hours and more than 10 miles walking back to the trailhead with the pole still in his body.
- Doctors later removed the pole in a Billings hospital, and he is now recovering, crediting calm thinking, training, and teamwork.
Freak accident on Montana’s tallest peak
On July 20, Montana wound care nurse David Cifaldi was climbing Granite Peak, the state’s tallest mountain, with two friends when a simple slip turned into a rare survival story. Near 11,800 feet, after about seven hours of hiking, he stepped on loose rock, dropped a trekking pole, and fell forward. When he rolled over, one pole lay on the ground. The other was missing, until he realized, in his words, “this thing is sticking out of me.”
The trekking pole had pierced his left side below his armpit, traveling through the latissimus dorsi muscle and exiting through his back, with about eight inches between entry and exit points. Despite how shocking it looked, Cifaldi felt almost no pain, saw no major bleeding, and could take deep breaths. As an experienced emergency room and wound care nurse, he checked himself for signs of organ or vessel damage and found full feeling and no lightheadedness.
Calm self-rescue instead of waiting for helicopter
Cifaldi’s medical training guided his next move, not panic or fear. He and his friends used a satellite communicator to alert authorities but chose not to wait on the mountain for helicopter extraction. He later explained that he judged the injury as not immediately life-threatening and knew air rescue from a remote peak could cost tens of thousands of dollars. With the pole left in place, which matches common trauma guidance to avoid sudden bleeding, he decided they would walk themselves out.
His friend’s description on a support page echoed that calm approach, noting “no bleeding, full feeling, no lightheadedness, nothing vital hit, and the pole stable in place.” Together, the group turned around and retraced their route down the rugged trail they had just climbed. Over six and a half hours, they covered more than 10 miles back to the trailhead, staying focused on slow, steady movement, watching for changes in his breathing or bleeding as they descended.
Hours with the pole in place, then careful hospital removal
When they reached the trailhead, local responders took Cifaldi to a nearby clinic for initial care and imaging. His friends then drove him about two hours to a larger hospital in Billings, the closest facility ready to remove the metal pole safely. All told, the trekking pole stayed in his body for roughly eight to nine hours from the moment of the fall until surgeons removed it. Doctors carefully backed the pole out, avoiding damage to nearby organs and blood vessels.
Trending Photo: American hiker fell on a Granite Peak mountain, got impaled and somehow walked more than 10 miles downhill for over 6h30m to find a hospital, to avoid paying hefty helicopter evacuation fee, which can cost $30,000–$50,000 in Montana. David Cifaldi is a Nurse. pic.twitter.com/XF9OQ8uleI
— Trending Explained (@TrendingEx) July 28, 2026
Surgeons and staff later said the pole had narrowly missed vital structures, which helped explain why he could walk so far without collapse. Cifaldi is now recovering at home in Billings, with follow-up wound care and the possibility of more treatment if needed. He has called the event “just kind of a freak thing,” stressing how basic safety, situational awareness, and level-headed thinking made the difference between tragedy and a story of survival.
Why this survival story matters for everyday hikers
Doctors and wilderness experts point out that dramatic impalement stories often turn on one key rule: do not pull the object out in the field if the injured person is stable. The pole can actually slow bleeding by pressing on damaged tissue, buying critical time until surgeons can see exactly what was hit. In Cifaldi’s case, the choice to keep the pole in place, watch his breathing and bleeding, and move under his own power followed that principle and likely helped him survive.
For hikers across the West, where outdoor rescue can be slow and expensive, his story is a reminder of both the risks and the rewards of backcountry adventure. Granite Peak is steep, rocky, and far from quick help, which makes smart planning, first aid knowledge, and communication tools like satellite messengers more important than ever. Cifaldi’s calm response shows how basic training and common sense can turn a terrifying injury into a walk to safety instead of a desperate wait for rescue.
