Trail runner Joe Oldendorf broke his ankle while running on Duckabush River Trail in the Olympic National Park on Friday and crawled for hours until he found safety.
Temperatures were below freezing when he was injured, and he feared if he stopped he would get hypothermia.
Oldendorf crawled for seven hours until his phone finally had service and he could call 911.
He was eventually found at 4 a.m., and taken to a nearby hospital.
A runner in Washington state who broke his ankle on a remote trail in a national park crawled for more than 10 hours until rescuers found him over the weekend.
Oldendorf, who was only wearing light running clothes, slipped about 10 miles from the trail head, when temperatures were below freezing.
With no phone service and unable to walk because his tibia had become detached, Oldendorf decided to crawl.
"I wasn't counting on my phone ever working I just figured this is my only chance I'm going to crawl all the way there," he told KIRO, adding that he tied his shoes around his knees to avoid cutting his kneecaps on the forest floor.
By 12:45 a.m., he finally got service and called 911, but fearing he would die of hypothermia if he tried laying down, he kept crawling. In all, he says he crawled more than 10 hours through rocks and snow.
"I don't want my family to hear I died in the wilderness. I think it'd be unbearable," Oldendorf said.
He was finally found at 4 a.m., when rescuers heard him shout from the trail. He was about five or six miles from where he first slipped.
Rescue crews covered him in heat packs and blankets to prevent hypothermia and airlifted him to a nearby hospital.
Oldendorf was released from the hospital on Sunday, and was told his leg would take 12 weeks to heal, he told ABC Seattle affiliate KOMO.
Jefferson Search and Rescue said in a statement: "Trail running is a lightweight endeavor with little clothing and equipment available to a solo runner if something goes wrong. Carrying a charged cell phone and displaying incredible grit and determination to self-rescue likely prevented more serious injury in this case."
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