The ascent of Half Dome

It's one of America's most popular hikes. It's a life-lister. It's climbing for laypeople, hiking for the family, an accessible accomplishment for the American public.

And still a must-do hike for avid hikers. This route is no joke, stretching from the Yosemite Valley floor at around 4,000' up to the crown of the granite mound at 8,836' over an 8-mile trek. The trail is incredibly well-kept, with wide walkways and clear switchbacks. It's unblazed, but relatively easy to follow. The first part shoots straight up Yosemite Valley, past Vernal and Nevada falls, into Little Yosemite Valley. After two waterfalls, there's a bit of a flat section which allows for a breather, but then it's back to climbing. Half Dome itself towers above the trail for the rest of the hike. Switchbacks and hills and more climbing lead to the shoulder of Half Dome, then it's the sub-dome of exposed granite, and the fabled cables up onto Half Dome itself.


There is now a permit system in place for weekend ascents, and since it was a Sunday, we needed permits. They were completely booked, and probably had been for weeks. We tried to pick up any returns at the trailhead, but they were long out. We started up anyway. Would they really turn us back after 8 miles and 4,000' of elevation gain? Maybe we could sneak around the permit station.

Luckily, at Nevada Falls, we ran into a group of interns from NASA, descending after a midnight climb. They had 14 permits, and didn't use a single one of them, since they climbed Half Dome in time to see the sun rise. They happily handed over 4 to us, and we were in! We just had 6 miles more to go.


After a relentless uphill climb, one of the longest in duration I've ever experienced, we were at the sub-dome. We handed in our permits to the single ranger who sat by the trail, reading his book (in a surprisingly good place to stop anyone from sneaking around him...) and started up. The cables offered a nice respite on tired legs, since the cables allowed you to haul yourself up using your arms. We left our packs at the bottom.


And after a 1,360' climb up the prominence of Half Dome, we were at the top. Wow.


And that was only half way. We still had to descend, over a twisting 8-mile trail. Good thing it was only early afternoon.