Sep 15, 2008 
11 of us hiked Half Dome this weekend. It was Haig, Karineh, Eddy, Kim, Marc, Laila, John, Jim, Bert and myself. We started on the trail around 6:15 and ended at various times later. John, Karineh and I ended around 10 1/2 hours later.
The hike starts with a gradual climb on a concrete path. It was still dark at this point. Eventually it leads to a water fountain and sink. A great place to fill up any water (it tastes great!). From here start the stairs go up and up past the two sets of water falls. The stairs are uneven, tilted and make for interesting walking. The first set of falls are Vernal Falls then Nevada Falls. There wasn’t much water running at this time in the season but it was still pretty. All the way to Half Dome the trail varies from stairs, sandy cobblestones, switchbacks and even a flattened sandy area up by the campsites (past the waterfalls). There is some shade for sun reprieve and even a little more easy going hiking but that doesn’t last longer than 30 minutes to an hour. The rest of the trip is pretty much up in one form or another. Which is what makes it fun. 
The trick with Half Dome, which alot of people are learning, is to start very early. A 4-5 am start is not unheard of, and if you want to avoid the heat of the day and the throng of people, it’s the best way to go. The other trick to make sure you bring enough water and food for the day, but not to over do it. I always end up bringing too much water (around a gallon this time) and I end up paying for it by a heavy bag. But I usually give away a 1/2 litre to people I see on the trail because they just don’t bring enough. Full fingered gloves are helpful in avoiding blisters on your fingers. I brought half fingered weight lifting gloves this time but I got blisters from the cables on the way up and down. The cables can be difficult if you don’t plan it right. Take it slow and steady breaking on the planks or posts when you can. Going hand over hand will help maximize strength and allow people to go past you on their way down if they going down the inside of the cables. If you can handle it, going down the outside of the chain on the way down, seems easier and oddly safer to me. Again two hands always on the chain and keeping view of what’s infront. Butt first works for me, but for John he walked more forward. It was a long hike back but we made with not too many aches and pains. I think it would be lovely to skip the dome once and just do the falls to hang out at them and enjoy their nice cool water. Maybe next time.
We stayed at Cedar Park Lodge in El Portal and picked up pizza from Yosemite View Lodge/Pizza shop. (I’ll add the name when I find it).
John, Joe and I swung by James Lick Observatory on the way home because we tried a new windier way home (which will probably be the last time we do that. It started promising and after 2-3 hours of it, well that was just too much!
Thanks all for coming on the trip and I’ll add links to everyones photos when I get them.
-Corinne
Check out my photos
1 Comment 