Man crawls 8 hours for rescue

Pretty tough young man! A hiker broke his ankle hiking in WA and crawled 8 hours until he found cell service to call for rescue. The 26 year old was hiking near Olympic National Park when he broke his ankle and couldn't continue. Not much detail in the article but we can safely surmise he wasn't carrying a PLB or didn't deploy one. I'm not sure what if any other safety gear he had. Depending on how bad he broke it he may have been able to use a SAM splint and trekking poles if they were available, hastening his rescue.

But it appears he made it out okay regardless.

That’s very impressive!

A SAM splint, all by itself, would not properly stabilize a messed up ankle. I use that term because in the field its really hard to distinguish between a broken and a sprained foot. in either case, it is best not to put weight on it.

Certainly must not have been a fun experience.

Yeah, I dunno if he shattered it, etc. Trekking poles aren't the same as crutches either. Ultimately he survived so that's a win.