12:16: The Ranger
After about three and a half hours of hiking we finally got to the base of Halfdome, the turning point. Once we stepped foot on the carved rock up ahead, there would be no turning back. That marked the beginning of our climb, our simple hike was over.
From the views we got from the trail and from standing at that point I began to understand what was going to happen, my adrenaline started pumping and I was jumping up and down from the excitement. This was no child’s rock; this was “man’s country”. It was like stepping foot on a rollercoaster. We were looking at the chain that would take us up and up and up till we got to the final drop the cables, in this case. It was going to be a long ride!
After turning in our permits to the ranger down below, he warned us of a threatening storm.
“20 percent chance of a thunderstorm folks,” he said
That was good enough for me. There was not a single cloud in the sky! We all had a good laugh about the storm that was brewing over our heads. Of course, we continued. The ranger said there was nothing to worry about.
12:21: The Subdome
It makes you feel really good when you accomplish something big, doesn’t it? The subdome wasn’t even close to what we were going to experience, but they were a start. We began by taking a carved stairway back and forth, slowly zigzagging up the rocks at a steep angle, practically climbing on our hands and knees. As we got higher and higher up the dome as we neared Halfdome, the stairs disappeared and we were forced to find our own path to the top of the bluff. Using our newly developed navigational skills, we kept climbing up and up, higher and higher as the top became closer and closer. It wasn’t difficult, but a lot of loose rocks made it very dangerous.
As I neared the top, I could just see the peak of Halfdome raising 8,842 feet above sea level. The higher and higher I raised the more of its east side I could see. Eventually I could see the entire climbing face and the cables in full view. They looked excruciating; I can hardly use words to describe them. I knew that as soon as my parents made it atop the bluff we would be on our way; we would be one of the people who were slowly making their way up the 60 degree climb up Halfdome.
“Hurry up you guys,” I yelled “, you already made it. We’re here!”
“Just sit down and wait. You can’t rush or you will get seriously hurt” they replied.
