JackR
Reged: 10/10/02
Posts: 976
Loc: North Shore
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I would like to hear from the hikers in the group about doing the one day trip to the top of half dome in Yosemite park. The book says its 17 miles round trip. we would only be carrying a day pack and water. Something tells me it will be really worth the effort to get up there.
Any experiences you might share will be appreciated.
All this is to get in shape for the beach on SBH
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gregb
Unregistered
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We went to yosemite last spring and had a great time with some snow still on the valley floor and the awanhee hotel providing a great base in the valley for day hikes. While I have not done the half dome hike recently, it is well worth the time and effort, the only other hike that surpasses it is the yosemite falls hike from the valley floor up to tuolomne meadows--please do not try it with a fully loaded back pack as this would be considered over-training for st barts.
From my recollection, the hike to the top of half dome should take approximatley 4 1/2 hours while the descent is more like 3 hours. You will see nevada falls on the trail and the view from the top is not one you will ever forget.
If you want a couple of web sites to preview the terrain I can send them to you.
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JackR
Reged: 10/10/02
Posts: 976
Loc: North Shore
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thanks greg the siites would be appreciated.
We are going in Oct and staying at the Ahwanee
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briang
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 7
Loc: Colorado
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Hiking is a major passion of mine and have done numerous hikes in some amazing places - most major US National Parks, all over various mountain ranges (Rockies, Appalachians, Alps), and even a few famous peaks like Mt. Fuji and Long's Peak. What I'm trying to say is this, trust me, I did Half Dome in summer 1997 and it remains the best hike I've ever done. Its not too challenging and its just unbelievably gorgeous. In October, the two waterfalls might be much drier though. 17 miles sounds about right. Its a long hike but not extremely rigorous. I left too late at around 11 am and remember getting back when it was dark, probably after 8:30pm. My warning is this though, the back face is very scary. Very scary. There are individual "steps" that are drilled into the rock and are they're the only way to reach the top. People are going up and down at the same time, it is extremely steep, and most people would chicken out if they hadn't just walked 8 miles to get there. There is a rope railing, but slipping could lead to sliding to your death. If you are scared of heights and think you might chicken out, it might be better to turn around at the top of the second waterfall before the trail ducks into the trees for several miles and switchbacks.
Some more advice - take a flashlight and some of those water purification drops. There is no use lugging too much water up there when you are walking by a river for half the time.
You may want to check out this website to see those "steps" http://www.mindspring.com/~andjen/halfdome.html
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JackR
Reged: 10/10/02
Posts: 976
Loc: North Shore
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Thanksfor the tips. I was thinking of bringing a water purifier along or maybe caches of nalgene boottles to stash for the down trip.. No sense in lugging the water all the way there and back.
When are the cables removed in Oct? Guess we'll have to wait and see. I saw the photos of the cable climb but it was summer and looked crazy
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