Half Dome 1, Josh 0
July 6th, 2007
“It’s not that I’m scared, I’m just really tired,” one big burly guy said to another. The second looked at the peak of Half Dome, the largest granite monolith in the world, and agreed that he too was indeed too fatigued after the eight-mile hike from the floor of Yosemite Valley to finish the trail.
They probably were tired after the four-hour hike, but that’s not the reason they didn’t finish. They didn’t finish because they, much like myself, were scared stiff by the last few hundred feet of the trail.
A great view on the approach to Half Dome, about a mile from the foot of the granite wall.
Depending on the route you take, the famous Half Dome trail in Yosemite National Park is about 17 miles round trip with more than 4,000 feet in elevation gain. The trail is relatively gentle, barring a couple major elevation gains around the Nevada and Vernal Falls, until the abrupt granite wall at the end. There you’re greeted by a series of cables to pull yourself up the face.
People, only specks in the distance, scrambling up the first ridge of the granite face.
Scott bounds up the the scary part of the trail, which is pretty well hidden until you hike past the first ridge. Many people at the base of the granite face were talking about the tourist killed when he fell on June 16, just days before our visit.
I feel a little defeated by the adventure Monday. Maybe in another life my irrational fear will be of dogs, crowds or escalators. But until then, I will have to live with my inability to conquer the Dome.
For a better sense of what it looks like, check out this video. It’s a little cheesy but the kids look like they’re having a great time and they captured parts of the trail very well.
