Man hikes out of mountains to get help after getting impaled by a trekking pole

David Cifaldi impaled himself on a trekking pole while attempting to climb Montana’s highest summit BILLINGS: David Cifaldi and his two hiking companions were crossing Montana's ominous Froze-to-Death Plateau and approaching the top of the state's highest peak when their adventure took a bizarre and dangerous turn: Cifaldi slipped and impaled himself on his trekking pole as he fell.The 44-inch steel-tipped pole passed through the flesh beneath Cifaldi's left arm, missing any vital organs, and protruded from his back. After conferring with his friends - and considering the high cost of a helicopter rescue - Cifaldi knew who would save him: himself."I was like, 'We've got to get off this mountain.' And they're both like, 'I don't know about that,'" Cifaldi said of his friends' reaction. "I was confident it was outside my chest wall. It was a flesh wound."The 32-year-old nurse, who works at a hospital in Billings, Montana, did a self-assessment. He was alert. There was little pain or blood. And the pole wasn't moving. The group used a satellite-based communication device, a Garmin inReach, to contact local authorities and inform them of their plan to self-rescue.Then they started hiki...