Hiker falls to his death from Yosemite's Half Dome

[Coloradomtnman]

CM - the pic loses something when you make it smaller. I liked it better bigger.

JB answered that for ya!

On the cable pic - are you somehow harnessed to it or do you just climb up it? Was it scary but fun at the same time?

I suppose one could wear a harness and clip themselves to the cables, but most people just use them as hand rails.

If I had been climbing the cables with a day pack on it would've been fun. Instead I had just completed a 60 hour climb up the sheer face of Half Dome, was very tired, was wearing a 90 lbs. haulbag which is uncomfortable and awkward as well as heavy, and had a 9 mile hike ahead of me back to the parking lot. I didn't think it was very fun, so it was mostly kinda scary.

 

[xotoxi]

I suppose one could wear a harness and clip themselves to the cables, but most people just use them as hand rails.

If I had been climbing the cables with a day pack on it would've been fun. Instead I had just completed a 60 hour climb up the sheer face of Half Dome, was very tired, was wearing a 90 lbs. haulbag which is uncomfortable and awkward as well as heavy, and had a 9 mile hike ahead of me back to the parking lot. I didn't think it was very fun, so it was mostly kinda scary.

So you're still alive, Coloradomtnman?

Good. We don't want any USMB posters to die.

 

[JBeukema]

That's not true xotox; there are a few trolls about who I wouldn't mind seeing slain...

 

[xotoxi]

That's not true xotox; there are a few trolls about who I wouldn't mind seeing slain...

By slain, I assume you mean banned.

 

[JBeukema]

or that

 

[barry1960]

I have lived near Yosemite most of my life. While there is a lot of environmental talk of limiting access no one is going to shut the park down for one death. With the number of people who visit Yosemite and hike to Half Dome I am surprised that there are not more deaths. IMO the most dangerous part of the half dome hiking would be going over at Nevada Falls as opposed to falling off the Dome.

The story reminded me of hiking half dome 24 years ago. Lightening struck halfdome. Our party got off the trail. Some kids went up in the lightening storm. Four were struck by lightening. Two died. One fell off half dome after being struck. One victim was a 16 year old kid. We put him in a body bag.

Nature can be unforgiving and accidents can happen. Everyone has to take precautions. Still, if we outlaw everything that has any risk, we will arrive at the end of our lives with the realization that we never truly lived.