6 min
Overview
Here’s a quiz for you (and no Google. We’ll know. We see you): 1. What is the second tallest peak on the planet? 2. What’s the second tallest peak in the Sierra Nevada? 3. What’s the second tallest peak in Africa? 4. What’s the second tallest peak in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. Give up? I did. I don’t know any of those things without the internet whispering into my ear. How about you? If you don’t know either, don’t trouble yourself. We seem to have a powerful hunger for the superlatives and the famous name, but once we move past that, our knowledge and our corresponding desire to tackle anything that doesn’t come in first seems to fall off a figurative cliff as deep as Tenaya Canyon. (See the end of the article for the answers). This tendency is no different with Yosemite National Park’s signature landmark, Half Dome. Every year, up to 225 people per day – limited only by a permit system – attempt to summit the top of the dome by way of a notoriously sketchy cable system after a monstrously steep and crowded hike. Yosemite Valley itself is often more congested than Uncle Vito’s cardiovascular system. And, as necessary as the permit system is for controlling overuse, I don’t think anybody jumps for joy at the thought of more red tape in their lives. This isn’t to say that Half Dome isn’t a great and worthy experience. It is, however, an example of our love affair with the superlatives. This is a lot of trouble to go through to climb a mountain, especially in a place that is so loaded with mind-blowing viewpoints that you can spray half a dozen of them with a good sneeze. Fortunately, with a minimal amount of effort, leave crowded Yosemite Valley, follow a trail from a gorgeous subalpine lake through dense forest, and attain the summit of a peak whose views are every bit as, if not more spectacular than Half Dome. You can do this without a permit, without a permit fee, without having to wait in any kind of line, and with a minute fraction of the 225 or so of your closest friends with whom
Trail Stats
20.6 km
853 m
3027 m
2482 m
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