El Capitan

Last weekend I went to Yosemite with a few friends. The trip was thrown together at the last minute, and done with the goal of hiking up El Capitan. One of my friends is training to climb Kili this December, and we figured this would be good training. In the end, I'd put the hike as slightly harder than a single day Half Dome trip, but less difficult than Mt Whitney or the 34 mile days I've done in the San Gabriels. The trip went as follows: drive to Yosemite Friday afternoon, camp at Camp 4, hike El Capitan Saturday, and drive back Sunday afternoon.

Some highlights:

* Laying in the grass watching the bright Milky Way belt, and hearing stories of Perseus and Andromeda as told by one of the guys who joined us.

* Climbing to the tip top of Eagle's Peak and seeing the breath-taking panorama of glacier torn Yosemite and its surrounding mountains.

* Eating lunch at the top of El Capitan, giddy from the climb, and meeting a couple hikers there who also work at Google Mountain View.

* Laying comfortably in our 6 man tent listening to climbers talk about chimneys, cracks, 2 finger jam holds, and their hands getting mauled by bad rock.

Some lowlights:

* Searching for food in Yosemite Valley which was largely shut down for the season.

* Having knee pain set in around mile 16 during our descent. Apparently my bike wreck last week did more damage than I thought.

* Realizing that we hadn't brought bowls or spoons for the cereal.

Next time I will do a little more prep, including making sure to bring stuff for a fire and perhaps a cooked meal. The trip brought back so many memories of my Pacific Crest Trail adventure, and I am resolved to do that entire trip at some point.

Here are some pictures:



On top of El Cap!


A not so wet Yosemite Falls

7500 ft - A mere shadow of elevations to come