HIGH SPOTS: A Journal of Mountain Journeys by Andy
Rogers
Half Dome with storm in hot pursuit
From Glacier Point, Yosemite National Park, 1988, by Andy Rogers.
Return to HIGH SPOTS
The Challenge: Half Dome
he hike to the top of Half Dome in
Yosemite National Park will always hold special meaning to me because
it's where I decided to ask Jennifer Smith to marry me. That was 1993
-- my fourth trek to the summit and the first I'd done alone. About
three hours and five miles into the solitary hike I began thinking
about my girlfriend who was back in Athens, Ga. looking after my house
and dog. I started imagining our engagement, marriage and life
together. A mile or two later I had made up my mind.
Well, I asked her four months later and she said yes. Things worked out
about like I had hoped and we got married the next spring. And later
that summer, 1994, we found ourselves buzzing across the California
desert toward Yosemite in my dad's Honda. We made the trek to Half
Dome. I told Jennifer about the plans I had made just a year before. I
think she was impressed. While we sat mystified on top of Half Dome,
our feet dangling over the edge 5,000 feet above the valley floor, we
heard a group of people clapping and realized that another couple had
just gotten engaged.
If you are within a few days of driving to Yosemite, I highly recommend
this trip. The park is over 1,000 square miles, and it contains
hundreds of miles of hiking trails. Accommodations range from the
elegant, world-class and pricey Awahnee Hotel, to the high sierra
primitive campgrounds on Tioga Road. I've only camped in the
campgrounds outside the valley, but some friends have camped in the
tent villages in the valley and say they're o.k. for sleeping (which is
all you'll do in camp if you're a hiker).
When you make it to Yosemite, set aside a full day for a journey to
Half Dome. Take a light lunch and a lot of water -- I recommend 2
quarts per person. My dad recalls the first time we made it to the top
saying we had enough food for an army but not enough water to keep a
bird alive. When you hike in dry air, you sweat but you don't notice it
because all of that sweat evaporates quickly. That's why drier air
feels cooler. But you'll get dehydrated if you don't drink water
constantly.
Preparation is essential
irst of all, I suggest hikers leave on
time or don't go. If you are in decent shape you can make the round
trip in 12 hours. But you'd better leave at the first hint of daylight
to allow for any delays. I usually leave at around 6 a.m. and get back
around 6 p.m. Jennifer and I left around 9 a.m., putting us in the dark
on the return. On our return, we found the switchbacks and steep steps
of the last mile extremely difficult in the dark, especially when I
couldn't take my mind off the bears I kept imagining. That couple who
got engaged on the mountain -- it's a good thing they had a flashlight.
We caught up to those folks and stuck close behind them. Bring a
flashlight.
Believe those signs that say don't go on the mountain if
there are storms anywhere on the horizon. You have to hold onto cables to get up
Half Dome. The cables are steel. Lightning strikes mountaintops. (See
photo above.) You'd be fried.
Let's see. Bears are a minor concern -- don't go near them or agitate
them. Use a long lens. The rocks can be slippery so wear good boots.
There are plenty of things to warn you about, but you're going to get
trail information at the park anyway, so I don't have to go on about
this.
The hike of your life
he trip starts out at the Happy Isles
Nature Center. The signs direct you to the Vernal Falls, Nevada Falls,
Half Dome trail. You'll walk through an avalanche field along a paved
and rock trail to the bridge below Vernal Falls. These waterfalls are
much more spectacular in the spring and early summer. After the bridge
you must decide whether to take the mist trail (shorter but many more
steps to climb) or the regular trail.
The mist trail leads up along the sheer walls cut by glaciers, and as
the name indicates, mist from the falls fills the air making this a
lush area straight out of a childrens book. I suggest taking this trail
up and the other down.
At the top of the falls, the mist trail continues along the Merced River
and up the steps beside Nevada Falls. At about mile three, you join the
main trail beyond the falls. You are now in Little Yosemite Valley, the most
populated of the backcountry camping areas and a good place to see bears.
I've seen two there in five trips. This valley gives you a mile of flat
hiking. Enjoy it while you can because you're about to hike the last four
miles and it's all up.
The trail turns away from the river and up the mountain at about mile
four. Long stretches with switchbacks take you through a rocky, sandy,
sunny area. You'll drink lots of water here. After a mile or two you'll
be rewarded with some shade and cooler hiking as you enter a heavier
forest for another mile or so. Then, as you approach the top of the
mountain, you'll be back in the sun. The sandy trail surface is tiring --
especially on this stretch where the trail can get very steep. This is
the hardest part of the hike, but you'll get a glimpse or two of the back
side of Half Dome inviting you, encouraging you to press on.
At the top of one long, sandy, steep run, you'll come to the top of the
mountain below Half Dome. Finally, you get to walk downhill, but only for
a few yards. You'll wind along the ridgetop through a forest and over to
where the granite mass shoots out of the ground and seems to lead
straight up. This is where the steps begin, and where you'll want to take
a rest.
When you're ready, begin climbing the steps. Some are steep, and toward
the top, you'll feel like you're climbing to the top of the world. As you
step from one rock to the next, you'll see blue sky to your left and
right. This wouldn't be so unusual -- except that you'll be seeing sky
while looking at your feet!
It's about 1/4 mile up the steps. When you get to the top, you'll have to
scale a smooth, steep area of granite. Now is when you will pay if you
don't have good soles under your feet. We saw a child doing this hike
barefoot. I think she, and her grandfather who allowed this, were nutty.
Now, in the saddle of Half Dome, you will look up and see the dreaded
cables. This is where some people turn back and later buy t-shirts that
say "I almost made it to the top."
The cables are waist-high with poles about every 10 feet. A 2x4 rests on the rock between each set of poles,
providing a rest spot. Some (me included) find this rest every 10 feet
quite useful. To make this last 100 yards, you should be supporting your
weight on your feet, carefully placing each foot and securing your grip
before taking the next step. Your hands should be gripping the cables
lightly, only for safety and not for support. This advice is useless. I
think most people see all that blue sky and grind their fingers into the steel. You'll definitely have white
knuckles when you get to the top.
Surprisingly, a fear of heights is not that big of a problem. I have
encountered lots of folks on the cables who were petrified of the height,
but they had hiked eight miles and, by God, they were going to make it to
the top. Determination and a sense of justice have a way of pushing you
to overcome what you thought were limitations. The result is a really
great feeling. Just look at the rock, watch your footing, and don't look
down or out at the sky. You'll make it to the top.
Once you're there you'll believe that something like 11
football fields could fit up there. You won't believe it until you're there. On the west
face, the side that was cut sheer by a glacier, you can sit on the rock
and peer over the edge. You'll be looking about 5,000 feet straight down.
It will be like nothing you've ever experienced.
Don't stay too long. You will descend the eight miles to the valley much
quicker than the climb up, but as I said before, hiking this trail in the
dark is no fun. My usual formula is seven hours up and five down. I
suggest leaving for the valley by 3 p.m.
I believe the cables are easier going down. I know the steps are. The
trails, on the other hand, might be more difficult. Your heart and lungs
don't have as much work to do, but I think your legs have more. Now, my
dad has short legs and a low center of gravity. He can jog down the
mountain and be waiting at the bottom with a chuckle while I'm fighting
the earth's pull, my knees and ankles grinding, my calves and thighs
threatening to give up. The flat stretches of trail are like an oasis when I'm hiking
downhill.
If you've allowed enough time, you'll make it to the top of Nevada Falls
in time to soak up the late afternoon sun and wade in the river. If you
take the main trail instead of the mist trail going down, you'll dodge a
few road apples. The park has mules that carry supplies to the high
sierra campgrounds, and the section of trail from Little Yosemite
Valley to just above the Vernal Falls bridge is shared with the mule
trains.
You'll make it to Happy Isles Nature Center before you know it, and if
you've stuck to your schedule, you'll make it to camp in time for dinner.
When I'm hiking with my dad, we usually drive back to camp and cook a big
dinner and celebrate our accomplishment with a bottle of red wine. More
recently, I've been settling for a hot dog and a beer in Yosemite Village.
If you make this hike, you'll find your own way of celebrating. And you
will have made a great journey that you'll never forget.
For more park information write the Yosemite Association, Box 230, El
Portal, CA 95318.
- Andy Rogers
Copyright ©1995, Andy Rogers. Contact me at andjen@mindspring.com for permission to use any of the contents
of this and linked pages.
Return to HIGH SPOTS