The friend of two teenage hikers who witnessed their deaths while another friend went for help said they had no idea how dangerous the climb was.

All four of the teenage hikers were at one time students at the Christian Faith School in Federal Way.

  Matthew McLinay, 18, talked about the day he and three friends hiked Otter Falls in the central Cascade Mountains Sunday afternoon.

“We were originally just going down the Snoqualmie Trail and maybe reach the end. But we decided to stop there, go up the mountain then come down, you know,” said McLinay.

 He said he, 18-year-old Ben Skagen and the two Lusink brothers, 16-year-old Andrew and 18-year-old Jeffrey, were climbing the mountain before swimming in the lake below.

“ They were being safe. They weren't doing anything stupid.  Jeffrey made it down just fine, but Andrew slipped and then Ben slipped,” said McLinay. 

 The two teens fell 100 feet shortly after 5 p.m.

“They fell into the water. Me and Jeffrey, we got them out. And then we did our best to help care for them and Jeffrey went for help while I stayed with the two of them,” said McLinay.

 Jeffrey ran about 5 miles to the trailhead to get help.  But by the time rescue crews arrived hours later, it was too late.

Matthew said he watched his friends die.

“Yeah, pretty much. Ben, from a distance and Andrew, up close,” said McLinay. “They were great guys. If we hadn’t climbed it they would still be alive, but I guess we just didn’t know it was that dangerous.”

Laurie Lusink and her husband, Rich Lusink, talked about their youngest son, Andrew, outside their Federal Way home Monday.

“Andrew, his whole being was whole,” said Laurie Lusink. “We said, ‘I love you,’ every night. He was happy and just knowing that, that you know, makes it easier."

“Things were cut short. But we definitely shared love,” said Rich Lusink.

The other victim’s aunt said Ben Skagen’s parents were too devastated to talk.

   She said her nephew, like all the teenagers involved, was a devout Christian who loved life.

The teens’ bodies were recovered just before dawn Monday.