Mark's 2005 Photo Album - Yosemite Part 1 - The Climb up Half Dome

My friends Gareth and Nick and I climbed one of the most popular hikes in the country - the 16 mile Half Dome!  We were lucky to have a perfect clear day to do it, and these pictures tell the story.

Above, we catch our first glimpse of the summit.  We're still bright and cheery here...

...then comes our first glimpse of the steel cables bolted into the face of the ~45 degree final ascent.  "You've got to be kidding" was one of the many thoughts going through my brain at that point...

Left: Gareth assures us it's a snap.  Right, yours truly with great views and sore wrists at the summit.

Left: I look down as I begin descent of same 45 degree face.  I was expecting to be scared s***less going down, but it was actually much easier than going up.  And right: I act like a tourist and pose for an "I MADE IT!!!" shot.  There were still 7.5 miles of down to go, but I hardly noticed them...

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