Day Two:

8:00: Morning Hopes
The day finally came; I woke up with a smile on my face, knowing that today was the day!  I chugged down my breakfast (a granola bar and a cup of hot cocoa) and changed my clothes.  At this point I could not wait any longer.  I had survived an eight mile hike in the dark with a backpack on.  The hike the last night was nothing to enjoy, it was actually total hell.  I wanted to get on with the day and get some dome-action!  
8:20: Preparation:
	Unfortunately, in order to do something and enjoy it you have to wait, wait, and wait until you are about to give up.  That morning we had to prepare for the hike, once again by over packing.  
	“Why are you bringing the whole bag of M&M’s, we are only going to eat a couple.” I asked my mother
	“Go help your dad get some water,” she replied, not showing any interest.
	My father took me to the river to show me how to use the filter.  I had to help him pump the water to fill our bottles so we would be ready for the trip.  I learned that if you do not filter or boil your water from the river you will probably end up with explosive diarrhea; not fun to have when you are not in the comforts of your own home.  
	Back at our site we finished up by grabbing any last-minute items, closing up our tent, and locking up our food and trash.  (There were no trash cans at our camp, how convenient.)  Alas we were ready to go!
8:35: Potty Stop
	After a quick stop at the pit-toilets and a brief read on how they worked, we marched to the trail head about a half-mile from where we made camp.  
	“Don’t fall in,” my father called, joking around as I was doing my business.
	“Too late!” I called back, as if he were to believe me.
8:38: To Halfdome
We finally began our assent up to Halfdome.  The trail started out as a large, widely used sand track.  After a few twists and turns, it began to increase in difficulty as the slope gradually became higher and higher, eventually turning into the infamous switchbacks which everybody knows leads to nowhere.
The trail was no different than the trail we took the night before, a few hours of nothingness.  We passed a natural spring and took a break to admire its beauty, but otherwise it was all the same.
At that point in time there was not a cloud in the sky.  It was bright blue, a perfect contraction for the trees and the granite which took over my view.  It was actually quite hot at that point, the sun was blaring right down on us.  The air was thin so we had to stop for a breather often, but it was still refreshing to not be breathing in the city’s carbon monoxide.