Guest Poster: Cory
Wednesday June 13th I picked up John at the SMF Airport
to begin yet another adventure. This time the destination was Yosemite National
Park with the goal of hiking to the top of Half Dome. We drove the three hours
to Yosemite lakes campground with relatively no issues. We experienced a slight overheating of the
car on the grade leading up to the park which we abated by rolling down the
windows and shutting off the A/C.
After arriving at the campground and tussling with the
ineptitude of a young worker, we finally got checked in but were directed to the
wrong part of the campground. After righting this wrong, we found a great spot
past the Yurtz by the stream. It was
tucked between a lot of trees, nice and flat and perfect for camping. We set up
our tents and cooking area, prepped for dinner.
After a carb loaded dinner of hamburger rice we reviewed the plan for
the next day…a day that will live in infamy, for me.
3:30am Thursday morning saw John and me waking up and
prepping for the hike. After a quick
breakfast of bananas, bagels and cream cheese, we did final packing of food for
the hike. We each loaded up with water (I took 4 liters) and split the food
between us. We packed Baby Bell cheese,
turkey jerky, pita bread, three kinds of trail mix and Clif bars. A quick jaunt
into the park (50 minutes) and we were parked and ready for the adventure. We hit the trail at 5:40am with a few other
hikers. We opted to take the shorter
mist trail which wound past Vernal Falls and then some sharp switch backs to
the top of Nevada Falls. Vernal falls
was flowing in full force and mist blowing as promised. The Mist trail consisted almost entirely of
stairs carved from the rock; thank heavens for the stair machine exercising. At
the top of Vernal there is a wide open flat area that during other parts of the
day is usually jammed with people but during this early time there were maybe
five groups. We stayed just long enough to look over the edge of the falls and
for John to take some pictures. The next section was up to the top of Nevada
falls. This fall, like Vernal, was flowing strong and steady. The trail was
quite steep with switchbacks and stairs all the way up to a spot with the last
bivy and where the John Muir trail intersects with the Mist trail. We took a
short break here for a little caloric intake and water.
Pushing forward we had a relaxing stroll through Little
Yosemite Valley until we reached the two mile until Half Dome marker. This area is where in my previous attempt
ended due to pure exhaustion. I must say that similar thoughts started running
through my head, but with encouragement from John, we pressed forward. The
trail at this point has sweeping switchbacks that rise hundreds of feet and
finally cresting and dropping onto a plateau leading up to the “Half Dome
Stairs”. Posted like a Centurion was an armed Park Ranger checking
permits. After a quick check in he gave
us some last minute instructions, that it looked like some clouds were starting
to blow in and we should be careful on the granite as it becomes treacherous and
sometimes fatal when wet. At this point I have pretty much spent all my energy,
but needed to push forward. The stairs
were killer, each one a little harder than the next. My pace was slow going and
eventually the stairs ended and the slick granite started. After a while the trail crested then dipped
and then back up to the cables. At this
point the tank is on empty and I see the cables looming before me. I urged John to continue on without me and
when I was ready I would make my attempt. Deep down though, I was so beat that
I wanted to stay where I was. Staring at the cables I thought to myself that
the chances were slim that I would every try this again or make it this far for
that matter. With resolve made I donned my half finger gloves, which would
later prove to be a mistake as the blisters that would form were above where
the glove ended. I started up the cables, the first 30ft or so were at a low 45
degree angle. After that the angle straightened to something between 60 and 70
degrees. Luckily there was a piece of 2x4 every ten feet that we could rest
on. The trek was slow going but orderly
as a couple people would come down and then I would go up. It took about an hour to reach the summit right
about the time that John was about to start making his way down. If I thought I
was tired before, I was dead wrong. I
think the combination of 4800ft elevation gain and the hours of hiking thus far
were too much for me and I collapsed exhausted on a rock. Now the view from up there was amazing but as
John would later comment, “I was grumpy” and couldn’t fully enjoy it. I was
surprised at how much space there is up there, approximately 17 football
fields. After a short rest I felt as though I just needed to get off the
mountain, maybe it was the altitude, maybe exhaustion, but either way, I was
done and headed back to the cables for my decent. The trip back down seemed quicker, but
definitely more strenuous on the old joints.
If it hadn’t been for the trekking poles, I am pretty sure I would have
blown out a knee or something. John and
I decided to go back down via the John Muir trail as it was a different scenic
route that we had not already done. It was refreshing to walk under the run off
from one of the water sources higher up and a beautiful green forested view. Although it was easier to hike the switchbacks
of the Muir trail, the extra length was almost torturous. The major hurtle I
had coming down the mountain was conserving my water and by the third
switchback I had all but run out of water.
I met a few young hikers who had camped in Little Yosemite Valley and
had some water to spare. With the
replenishment of some water I was able to make my last dash for the bottom and
the water station. Upon arrival I
dropped my gear and head straight for the water, quickly imbibing a liter and a
half. After a brief respite, concluded our
hike 14 hours after it began, back at the car.
After a quick change of shoes, and some brief discussion as
to what we should do for dinner, we opted for the easy road and drove to curry
village where we split a pizza and exchanged memories from the trail. After
dinner we headed back to camp and the comfort of our tents and bags. In all
honesty, with how fatigued I was, I could have fallen asleep on a rock and been
just fine.
