Vineyard Misadventure: Long Crawl Out

September 2, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

On May 15, 2017, 18-year-old Noah Messenger took a short walk to a cliffside viewpoint near Maryhill Winery in Washington State, where he worked. He told a coworker he was heading to the orchards and might fall asleep, so to check on him before leaving. That simple miscommunication—the coworker left early and called in sick the next day—set in motion a two-day ordeal that nearly killed him. After slipping and falling 50 feet down a steep, scree-covered slope, Noah shattered his T12 vertebrae and lost the use of his legs. Stranded, injured, and unable to signal for help, he faced a stark choice: wait for a rescue that wasn't coming, or drag himself to safety one inch at a time.

A Fall and a Fatal Misunderstanding

Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.

Read Full Summary →

Free • No credit card required

Listen to Audio Summary Open in App

Never miss an episode of Real Survival Stories

Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

What you'll learn

1 Vineyard Misadventure: Long Crawl Out
2 (01:26) **Setup: Noah's Ordinary Afternoon** - 18-year-old Noah Messenger finishes work at Maryhill Winery and decides to walk to a nearby cliff viewpoint while waiting for his carpool
3 (10:43) **The Fall** - Noah's foot slips on a narrow shale path near the cliff edge, sending him into free fall
4 (16:11) **Landing and First Assessment** - Noah lands on a steep scree slope, unable to move his legs
5 (18:23) **Waiting for Rescue That Never Comes** - Noah waits, expecting help within half an hour as the sun sets
6 (20:57) **First Desperate Attempt to Climb** - Noah tries crawling up the steep slope to make himself more visible
7 (23:19) **The First Night** - Noah curls beside a bush as temperatures drop, wearing only a t-shirt after his shorts were pulled off during the crawl

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

In 2017, Noah Messenger is a teenager working in the lush and luxurious environs of the Maryhill Winery in Washington State. One late sunny afternoon, while happy guests sip the local produce, Noah takes a stroll after his shift. A single misstep changes everything. Within moments he’ll be semi-paralysed, with no phone, no food and no water. All his hopes of survival rest on his colleagues coming to look for him. But as the hours slip by, is help even on its way?…

A Noiser podcast production. Hosted by John Hopkins.

For ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to new episodes, join Noiser+. Click the subscription banner at the top of the feed to get started. Or go to noiser.com/subscriptions

If you have an amazing survival story of your own that you’d like to put forward for the show, let us know. Drop us an email at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices