Some stories leave you speechless, and Charlene Kirby’s story is one of them.

It’s a rare combination of grit, determination, and the unshakable will to survive.

If you’ve ever wondered how strong the human spirit really is—especially later in life—Charlene’s journey proves that strength has no age limit.

A routine day turns into a life-or-death test​

Charlene Kirby, a 75-year-old retired nurse and paramedic, was tending to her remote Colorado property on June 7.

Located between Vail and Steamboat Springs in the small community of McCoy, the land offers solitude—but not safety in an emergency.

That day, Charlene was hitching a trailer to her side-by-side utility vehicle to haul away brush. When it struggled to make it over a hill, she unloaded some debris to lighten the load.


But as she tried again, the vehicle rolled backward, jackknifing the trailer. In the chaos, she fell.

She instantly knew she’d broken her femur—the strongest bone in the body—and she was completely alone.

Charlene screamed, hoping someone might hear. But her property is remote, and no one was nearby. She knew lying there wasn’t safe.

As a medical professional, she also knew the risks of moving with a broken femur—especially the threat of severing the femoral artery. Still, she had no choice.

“I was laying on my backside, and I thought, “Well, I can't lay here,” she recalled. Her goal was to reach her house and call 911 from the basement phone. So she began to crawl.

Crawling like an inchworm—for 14 hours​

Charlene didn’t use an army crawl. “No, I think it was more like the inchworm,” she said.

Inch by inch, she pulled herself across gravel, dirt, and brush for 14 hours, from 7 PM on June 7 until 9 AM, June 8, the next morning.

As night fell and temperatures dropped, she worried about going into shock or developing hypothermia.

She pulled a sweatshirt over her head and kept crawling. Her mantra: “You can do one more inch. Nope, do one more inch.”

When her son found her the next morning, Charlene was completely covered in dirt.

“I had dirt in my nose, in my ears, on my teeth, in my hair, all down the front of me,” she said.

According to Charlene, her oldest son told her, “Mom, when they turned you over to put you in the ambulance, your belly was full of dirt and gravel, and you had a big old rock right in your belly button.”

Charlene laughed: “I wish somebody had taken a picture, actually, because I have no idea how bad I looked.”

A long recovery—and a wedding to attend​

Charlene was taken to the hospital, where she underwent surgery on her femur and hip, followed by rehabilitation. She returned home nearly a month later.

The reason she’d been working outside to begin with? She wanted her property to look its best for her grandson’s wedding.

When her doctor told her, “You’ll be at the wedding. You just won’t be dancing,” Charlene jokingly replied, “Watch me.”

This wasn’t just survival—it was a masterclass in strength. If you’re working outside or in a remote area, let someone know.

Carry a whistle, satellite communicator, or emergency alert device if you’re going off-grid.

Read next:

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• What went wrong on the Greyhound? Deadly crash in Tennessee shocks the nation

Have you ever faced an unexpected crisis? How do you stay safe while living independently or off the grid? Do you carry safety gear or have routines for checking in with loved ones? Drop your stories and tips in the comments.