Acknowledgments

Half Dome Challenge has been a chronicle of my journey up a mountain and into better health, and of the many interesting things that happened along the way.  As with all journeys, there have been many people and organizations along the way who encouraged and supported me in this endeavor.  I would like to thank the following people and organizations:

• God, for creating such a stupendous natural wonder for all of us to enjoy.
• My parents, without whom I would not be here.
• My husband Duane, for beginning this journey with me and walking by my side almost all of the way.  If not for his support, none of this would have happened.
• Team in Training, for getting me started and giving me the information and education necessary to be successful.  This very worthy organization raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
• Deb Batton, the coach who encouraged me to keep trying, even when I didn't make the "cut".
• Chris Swartout, who also believed in me, who joined me on many conditioning hikes and who provided much backpacking wisdom and the opportunity to backpack in style with him and his family.
• REI, especially for taking back three pairs of boots until I finally found the right ones.  My feet thank you!  Their fantastic customer service and knowledge about gear puts them a gigantic step ahead of their competition.
• Rick Deutsch (aka Mr. Half Dome), who is always a font of information and wisdom about hiking the Half Dome trail.

Not a Walk in the Park

We were appalled to hear that Bay Area hiker Manoj Kumar fell to his death on Saturday June 13, on the steepest cable section of Half Dome. He was descending at 3:40 p.m. in rain and hail. He fell when about halfway (200ft) to the bottom of the cables.

Besides being very steep, more than 45 degrees in places, the granite here is worn smooth from many decades of hikers using the one path. The smoothened granite is treacherously slick when wet. Some people climb outside of the pair of cable handholds rather than in between them, for better traction or to skip around slower people. It is not yet reported whether the fallen hiker was inside or outside, or whether he was using hiking boots appropriate for granite or just rubber-soled shoes. It is not yet known whether he was alone or in some group.

Six rangers went up via helicopter and took many hours to safely bring down 41 other scared, trapped, cold hikers from the summit and cables.

Ascending this final part of Half Dome is very dangerous when raining, from both traction and lightning strikes. Some reports say that the sky overhead was still cloud-free when these people ascended in mid-afternoon; the arriving clouds were hidden from view by the mountain itself. We don't yet know whether Kumar and others were suckered in, or just chose badly.

Our 'Mr. Half Dome', local author and Half Dome expert Rick Deutsch, was atop Half Dome earlier that day on his 24th trip there. As he came down, he told some arriving hikers about the clouds he saw and advised them to turn back. There are plenty of warning signs posted here and at the beginning of the trail, but there is nothing to stop those who disregard warnings. It is too remote from camps and too expensive, to have a ranger permanently posted there to watch for problems and turn people back.

Duane's office mate safely ascended Half Dome with her husband a couple of weekends ago. But she has a friend whose husband was among the 41 hikers stuck on the summit this fatal evening. Small world.

A few weeks earlier, a woman hiker fell somewhere on the Half Dome trail and had serious but nonfatal injuries.

Two days after Kumar's fall, a worker at Yosemite fell to his death off of a different high cliff elsewhere in Yosemite. This was apparently a recreational hike on his time off.

Team In Training aims to keep its Half Dome event as safe as possible. Each group of twelve participant hikers is accompanied by two experienced professional guides. The ascent is planned before midday, when weather is usually best and the cables are uncongested. Everyone will have good gloves, good boots with sticky soles, and stay inside the cables. If there is any chance of rain, all will turn back and not do the summit. For the regular trails, we are advised to always stop walking when looking up and around.

Christina and I originally planned to do the cables while tethered to them with D-rings. This would stop any fall within 10 feet or so. At his lecture, Mr. Deutsch recommended against this for most people. Messing with it distracts from keeping two good hands on at all times. Now I'm not so sure. It would be useful to have this with and ready, in case of worsened conditions.

We now expect to be assigned to the Panorama Trail instead of Half Dome for our June 20th event day. So we don't have to face these dangers and fears now. It will matter, if and when we return to hike Half Dome someday on our own.

Rick Deutsch: Mr. Half Dome

Tonight instead of our usual Tuesday evening workout at Foothill College, we met at Trailsloggers in Campbell for a talk by "Mr. Half Dome" otherwise known as Rick Deutsch.

Rick has climbed Half Dome 23 times and is planning to do it again this summer - 3 more times. He is probably the world's expert on hiking Half Dome and has written THE definitive guide to the hike: One Best Hike: Yosemite’s Half Dome, published by Wilderness Press and available from Amazon.com.

Of course, we were really interested in hearing about the various parts of the trail, as well as his tips and hints about hiking Half Dome, so we were all ears! Rick talked about the different parts of the trail, including where to find water. While it is possible to carry all of the water you will need, it's too heavy. Rick is definitely a minimalist. He prefers to carry only a fanny pack with two one-liter bottles of water and a filter pump, so that he can get the rest of his water along the way. For food, he carries about 8 energy bars. I can definitely see the advantage of only having a fanny pack. It forces you to pare down to the bare essentials and carry less weight. He doesn't bother with a jacket, since you'll only need it in the morning and will only have to carry it the rest of the way. I had already figured that I was going to ditch my jacket. I'll be cold for the first 15 minutes, but I'll heat up once I get moving. When I get to the wet spots on the Mist Trail, I'll have my rain poncho. That should be good enough.

Most of us wanted to hear about the final, cable section of the hike and that was certainly interesting. More interesting, however, was learning about "subdome," the series of switchbacks comprised of granite steps, not unlike those earlier on the Mist trail up to Nevada Falls. Nearly everyone who has hiked Half Dome thinks subdome is the most difficult portion of the hike. The granite steps seem to go on forever and you are above the tree line which means that you are exposed to the heat of the sun. If you leave early in the morning and hike fast, you will get there around 11:00 am to 12:00 pm. If you don't follow this advice, you'll arrive during the heat of the day and you'll be wiped out by the time you get to the cables - and have to deal with a "caterpillar" line of people going up. Best to arrive early!

The presentation was great and packed with lots of interesting information and, of course, great photos of Half Dome. It was really great to meet Rick, who is so enthusiastic. I bought his book, which he autographed for us. We picked up a few more items while at Trailsloggers. I looked for a replacement hat, but didn't find one that was suitable.