Hiking Yosemite’s Half Dome

An Incredible Bucket List Experience

This one had been on our bucket list for quite some time. Though we had been to Yosemite a number of times, we hadn’t yet had the opportunity to hike Half Dome. After procuring lottery passes for the cables for the Saturday of Labor Day weekend last March 👏👏👏 (the lottery opens then for the entire season), we knew this was our opportunity.
 
Justin and I drove from the Bay Area to Yosemite on Friday and settled into our lodging at the Curry Village Tent Cabins in time to scout the walk to the trailhead that afternoon, a worthwhile scouting, as we’d begin our hike the next morning in the dark.
 

We were up at 4:30am on Saturday morning, and hit the trailhead by 5am, each armed with headlamps, a gallon of water, food, a few layers of clothing, and work gloves (with *extra grip that we knew we’d need for the cables 😬).

Our hike to half Dome began from Happy Isles via the Mist Trail, which wound by both Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls, as we traversed up and into the canyon. The entire time, we were gaining elevation on our assent to the summit, over 5,000 feet 😳, and the views were spectacular along the way, including many of the Falls, Liberty Cap, Half Dome (from all sides, including the back), and Clouds Rest. 

And what an Incredible opportunity it would turn out to be!

The last mile up to the summit was particularly challenging, as we hiked step after step, rock over rock up Sub Dome, before reaching the notorious “cables.” 😥

The most famous–or infamous–part of the hike is the ascent up the cables. The two metal cables allow hikers to climb the last 400 feet to the summit without rock climbing equipment. Upon our arrival at the base of the cables, we both exclaimed, “Uh, it looks WAY steeper in person than it does in the photos.” 😮
 

We put on our work gloves and got after it, hand over hand, never for a second letting go of the cables. We’d take a rest at each wooden board along the way to take a breath, our legs depleted from the 9 mile hike to the summit, and our arms on fire from pulling ourselves up the cables. I was internally freaking out, and Justin was behind me, cheering me on the entire time.

We arrived at the summit, exhausted, and spent some good time taking in the views of the entire Yosemite Valley and High Sierras.
 
“A Hell Of a View,” NO DOUBT. 🙌
 

The almost 9 mile hike back down Subdome and by Nevada and Vernal Falls back to the base of Yosemite Valley was a HAUL. Our bodies were so tired from the hike, and going downhill was tough, our leg muscles stressed from the climb up. 

It was all we could do to put one foot in front of the other and listen to our music, which cheered us on the entire way down.

We arrived back at Curry Village at 3:30pm, 10 hours after we had departed early that morning. We were so, so tired, and took a nap before heading out to dinner for pizza and a cocktail at the Curry Village Pizza Deck. Pizza has NEVER tasted so good as it did that evening!

18.06 miles round trip 🏃‍♀️🏃
5,204 foot elevation gain 🥾🥾
2 pairs work gloves 🧤🧤
10 hours ⏱
2 headlamps 🔦🔦
1 adventurous couple of crazies 😍😍
Half Dome Bucket List ✔️✔️

The experience of a LIFETIME!

Here’s our GoPro Footage Recap of our Half Dome Hike and Cables Adventure:

Do It Yourself

Embark on your own adventure

We created a guide to help you embark on your own journey without the stress and hassles of planning out every little details.

Simply download our guide and enjoy the ride!

More Like This

You may also like

Let's gooooo!

We are so excited to have you along on our journey!

Follow us also on social media!

Follow along with
Gagnons Gone

Subscribe to get tips and tricks, itineraries, and stories from the road to your inbox weekly