A rock climber who fell an estimated 400 feet while descending a steep gully in Washington's North Cascades mountains survived the fall that killed his three companions, hiked to his car in the dark and then drove to a pay phone to call for help, authorities said Tuesday.
The surviving climber, who has not been publicly identified, extricated himself from a tangle of ropes, helmets and other equipment after the accident and made the trek despite suffering internal bleeding and head trauma, Okanogan County Undersheriff Dave Yarnell said.
