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comment by mk
mk  ·  1906 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: UTAH TRIP REPORT or: How I Learned Not To Hike Alone by Breaking My Leg

I'm glad you got out safely! That's definitely a memory you won't lose to time.

Those are some clean breaks. I am curious about the details. How far was the drop from the boulder? How deep was the water?





kingmudsy  ·  1906 days ago  ·  link  ·  

wasoxygen asked the same questions, so I'll answer it all here :)

    How high was the jump? How deep was the water, could you see the bottom?

The jump itself couldn't have been more than 10ft, which is why I wasn't more scared than I was (and because I'd seen other people do it...but hadn't paid close enough attention). Stupid of me to not realize that's still a very dangerous height.

I didn't really include this detail because I didn't think it'd make the story any better, but technically if I had jumped a little closer to the boulder/waterfall, I would've been fine. The water where I was aiming came up to my shoulders, and the water where I landed came up to my knees. The reason I broke at such a height is because my body was prepared for a much, much different landing.

First and foremost, I SHOULDN'T HAVE JUMPED. Having said that, assuming I HAD to jump, I would've been fine had I prepared for landing in shallower water. Like I've said elsewhere, it was just pure recklessness and a willingness to follow others when they seem confident enough without using my own damned head.

Honestly...I feel even dumber writing this all out. goobster, if you want to see how much of a dumbass I really am this about sums it up

mk  ·  1905 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    Honestly...I feel even dumber writing this all out.

Don’t. We all have momentary lapses. Just an hour ago I turned a sprinkler on that was pointed at my face.

goobster  ·  1904 days ago  ·  link  ·  

That is a funny mental image! (And something I have never ever personally done to myself. Ever. Nope. Never. Never happened.)

kingmudsy  ·  1905 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Fair enough. Truth be told, a mistake like this couldn't have come at a better time. I'm hurt right now, but I'll heal :)