The Californian teen walked off the edge of a 120-foot cliff face in front of his horrified father.
It was June 10 when Zane Wach set off on a hiking trip with his dad, Ryan Wach.
They were set to climb Mount Whitney, situated in the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
The 14-year-old boy, from California, had hiking experience, and was an active distance runner.
He also competed in triathlons, and was a frequent swimmer.
All in all, a pretty active person, who was in great ‘shape,’ according to his dad.
However, things took a turn for the worst on their way up the enormous mountain, as the dad noted that Zane was experiencing symptoms of altitude sickness.
They had already completed the toughest part of the hike at this point in time, so Ryan decided the pair would take a slightly easier trail for their descent to the car.
It was at this point that his son’s symptoms started to worsen, and he began hallucinating.
Speaking to The Independent, he said: “He knew he was hallucinating.
“He said he saw things like snowmen and Kermit the Frog.”
But Zane seemed to pick up for a while.
About an hour later, his symptoms began to worsen again, which proved to be concerning for the dad.
“My best guess is a combination of exhaustion, sleep deprivation, probably some dehydration, and lasting effects from the altitude sickness,” he noted.
“But he essentially started to doubt reality.”
Zane began to make some weird claims, like the two had already completed the hike multiple times.
Ryan said: “He told me he couldn’t tell if he was dreaming or not, and he would shake his head in disbelief, like, ‘This is not real.’
“Like he was in the movie ‘Inception’ or something.”
A group of hikers that saw the struggling pair called for the search and rescue team to get Zane down from the mountain.
But things suddenly went from bad to worse.
Ryan recalled: “He almost seemed like he was sleepwalking.
“He started dragging his feet and stopped in his tracks.”
The young boy began making erratic movements towards the edge of the cliff face, before his dad swiftly pulled him back.
The became overwhelmed with emotion, tearing up and briefly letting go of his son.
He said: “I had to wipe away tears, I was holding my hands to my eyes, and he walked off again.”
Reflecting on the tragic moment, Ryan stated: “This time, I didn’t hear it until he was about at the edge, and when I went to reach for him, he was 10 feet away from me. I couldn’t get him, and he walked off the edge.”
It’s been estimated that Zane fell a total of 120 feet down the slope before he hit the ground, before his dad rushed down the slope to find him.
But it was six hours before the County Search & Rescue team were able to get him down from the mountain.
Doctors at the hospital admitted that the 14-year-old was lucky to be alive, but is in a medically induced coma, with severe head trauma, as well as a broken ankle, finger and pelvis.
