Zane Wach Reflects On Life After 120-Foot Cliff Fall

Zane Wach has endured a hardship that few people ever have to face and even fewer survive. And he is only 14. The young teen who fell 120 feet from Mount Whitney, California, months ago, is now opening up about his incredible road to recovery, as a family. In June, what started out as a hike ended in tragedy when Zane, fighting altitude sickness and confusion, walked inadvertently off the side of the mountain.

His father, Ryan Wach, can still remember the terrifying moment with chilling recall. As Zane tripped and hallucinated, imagining snowmen in the distance and comparing lakes to "Kermit the Frog and his friends," Ryan could do nothing to keep him from stepping into the abyss. "I just screamed," Ryan admitted. "I was certain he had died." Yet incredibly, Zane lived through the fall, landing on solid granite. He was severely hurt and trapped on the mountain with his father for six hours until search and rescue teams finally came.

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From there, he was airlifted over 240 miles away to a pediatric trauma center in Las Vegas, where he began to fight for his life in earnest. The road to recovery has been no cakewalk. Zane had to retrain himself to do simple things that most people take for granted, such as walking, talking, and even eating. Months in the hospital turned into months in the hospital, but finally, he was discharged. Today, he says he feels "great," although standing still is still painful. But his stubborn survival has also become a sign of hope.

The memory of that day will be indelibly etched in Ryan's mind, as will be the thankfulness for his son's survival. Instead of tragedy, the story has become one of determination, family fortitude, and the strength of the human spirit. Zane still has a long way to go, but his improvement is nothing short of a miracle. He is recovering little by little, showing that recovery is possible, even after the most precipitous literal and metaphorical descents. The Wach family's story is a testament to the unpredictability of nature, the treachery of high-altitude hiking, and, most of all, the strength of the human body and spirit. For Zane, each day is not just another day of getting better, but also another opportunity to live, develop, and inspire.