We made the trip from Little Yosemite Valley, up to Half Dome today. The climb up started mellow, but once we started on Sub Dome just before Half Dome, it became very steep. The final stretch on the Half Dome cables was incredibly steep and I was trying hard to keep my grip on the cables, and the rock underfoot. Our plan was to continue over Clouds Rest and then out via Tuolomne Meadows or Tenaya Lake, but in the end neither myself or Holiday felt like we had the energy for another big climb in one day.

We woke up early and packed up camp to try and get to the cables before most of the day hikers would arrive. I got my first view of Half Dome shortly after leaving camp, and could faintly see two climbers already on the cables.

After 1.3 miles, we left most of our gear at the junction to Half Dome and continued up with just water and snacks. We soon climbed out of the trees and saw the upper valley come into view as well as Sub Dome.

The climb up Sub Dome was possibly the steepest piece of trail I’ve seen since starting in Campo, except maybe, for the off trail scramble up Minaret Creek. It was impressive to see how many people were making it up there, especially since many had come all the way up from Yosemite Valley in the morning. From the top of Sub Dome, the cables came into view and the face of Half Dome was quite confronting. Already, there were at least a dozen people on the cables.

Climbing the cables to Half Dome was challenging, and quite daunting too. The granite underfoot was polished smooth and offered little grip. I held the cables tightly, wrapping my arm around one side to help me grip. The climb up took about half an hour, but when I made it to the top I was rewarded with phenomenal views of Yosemite and the surrounding mountains.

Coming back down the cables was, surprisingly, a lot easier and more comfortable. There were even more people coming up than before, and I stopped at each rung along the way to negotiate passing.

The trip back to camp was pretty quick, but we were both exhausted by the time we got there. Dinner was another fancy one, steak from the Yosemite Village store, perfect food after a hard day.