Talk:Half Dome

How many routes?
I revised the text to indicate their are routes on other faces. - Ratagonia

actually there are at least 3 ways to climb half dome; there is an approach up the southwest face called "snake dike". see http://www.supertopo.com/rockclimbing/route.html?r=yohasnak

There are over 22 rock-climbing routes up Half Dome, including Snake Dike (which is a fine climb). Ratagonia 04:55, 21 August 2006 (UTC)

Too many photos?
Given its short length, doesn't it seem that 8 photos are too much for this article? How do people feel about creating a page for Half Dome over at Commons, moving the photos (except for the infobox one) over there, and then providing a link to that page? -- hike395 04:56, July 24, 2005 (UTC)

Or too little text? There's quite a few nice photos, and not much text. If people want to add more (relevant) text, it would be great. Ratagonia 23:18, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

8 photos?!?!?! There are only 5! not too many. Reywas92 12:50, 9 September 2006 (UTC)


 * Note that I moved the photos over to Commons back in July. More photos have crept in since. hike395 22:56, 16 September 2006 (UTC)

When was Half Dome formed?
The article has a red link to "Tenaya Glacier"; would be nice to mention when it's estimated that Half Dome fractured. Was this 40,000 or 400,000 years ago? Tempshill 18:11, 2 February 2006 (UTC)

Sierra logo
The mountain peak was used as inspiration to Sierra Entertainment's logo. Shandris 22:49, 27 April 2006 (UTC)

Well, maybe, but that looks a lot more like Matterhorn. I removed this reference, but added the Sierra Club, which has a clear rendition of Half Dome in it's logo. Ratagonia 23:16, 8 September 2006 (UTC)
 * The logo is very stylized these days, removing the distinctiveness of it being Half Dome. (Sort of like how the Pizza Hut logo is now slanted relative to its original appearance)  If you look back at the logo in the 80s and early 90s, you'll clearly see that it's Half Dome.  Not to mention that they used to manufacture disks with a photo of Half Dome on the label and the creators of the Space Quest series once posed in front of it with a mention of how they were standing in front of the mountain used as the logo.  See http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b241/ATMachine/SQ1VGA/sq4vga10z.png for an example of the logo from an early 90's Sierra game.  72.192.237.134 01:20, 3 January 2007 (UTC) Ismail

Danger
I think the phrase "turned back from intimidation" over "turned back due to fear" is a bit more accurate, to reflect the implicit risk. I did the hike a few days ago and a person fell to their death the previous day (Nov 8th). I also disagree that gloves would be recommended.

I cannot find any reference in the newpapers (via google) or on the NPS Morning Report for a fatality off Half Dome. You sure? I have never heard of a death on the cable route. Have heard of people getting hit by lightening on top (no big surprise). Source? Ratagonia 20:08, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

OK. It has made its way to the Morning Report. As far as I know, this is the first death of this type on the Cable Route (but I don't know much). Being in the world is dangerous. Take out the glove reference if you disagree; I had never heard of it being recommended, and am not sure it would provide additional safety. Ratagonia 19:04, 14 November 2006 (UTC) Correct. You do not need gloves and leaving them on the mountain is nothing else than litering. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.60.12.58 (talk) 02:07, 31 August 2007 (UTC)

I believe there were two other deaths earlier this year, one in March and one in May before the cables were up.

Gloves recommended?
A recommendation requires a citation. Anyone have a citation. I am rather sure that the NPS does not provide gloves, so I took out the reference to gloves at the base of the cable route. In general, some citations in this article would start to bring it up to wiki standards. Ratagonia 17:29, 14 May 2007 (UTC)


 * The recommendation to use gloves is widespread, so I'm sure we can find a source. The pile of gloves at the base is most likely provided by hikers themselves, but its existence is factual. Whterht we can find a reliable source for it is unknown. - ·:· Will Beback ·:·  20:14, 14 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Good job finding a source for the pile of gloves. I changes that to "sometimes", as "usually" might be too optimistic, and is not supported by the source.  A recommendation from the NPS would be best, but from a reputable guidebook or guide web page would also work.  Ratagonia 05:26, 15 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Using Google I found dozens of sites which mention the gloves, but most were forums or self-published sites. While Salon isn't known for its coverage of the Sierra Nevada, it's generally reliable. Certainly the more sources we can bring in the better. - ·:· Will Beback ·:·  05:50, 15 May 2007 (UTC)


 * http://www.yosemite.org/newsroom/clips2006/september/092006.html implies the gloves are consistently there, and among every hiker I've talked to, there's never been a situation where the gloves haven't been there, even when the cables are down early in the season (there was a quite sizable pile this past weekend). Also, technically speaking, when the cables are down you're not allowed to climb.. I don't know if this should be included or not, but I believe it is posted somewhere along the trail. There have also been two recent deaths on the cables, I think when they were down. It was in a local-ish paper... maybe Modesto? 128.12.82.99 19:10, 15 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Thanks - added citation to the actual article in the Fresno Bee, rather than the copy on Yosemite.org. Fresno Bee being a better source than Salon, in regard to Yosemite. Ratagonia 02:36, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

Advice Edits
I removed all edits by Jpowell2, since they were primarily generic hiking advice. I believe the fountain below vernal falls is the last place for water, but I don't have a citation - I moved that bit further up from where it was at the end, but if someone could cite it that would be great. The bit about the trailhead could be interesting, but I couldn't really follow it, and it was run together with other inappropriate material. 71.232.45.29 22:41, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

The glove pile is gone, at least as of 7/14 - signs now tell hikers to pack out their gloves rather than leave them for others. If you want to donate your gloves, ask hikers coming up to the cables if they want them.

Sourcing Statements - Advice about going outside the cables
Statements (advice) about the cable routes (going outside, "easy" without the cables up) may or may not be 'true' - but they certainly need to be sourced. Ratagonia 00:20, 27 August 2007 (UTC)


 * I agree with Ratagonia: the statement he removed is certainly POV (and in fact, may lead to people accidently killing themselves). Needs to be sourced: who said this? hike395 08:49, 27 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Anon editor is saying that Half Dome is class 3 with the cables down, and recommends leaving the cable. This contradicts what I know of the route (from my memory of Secor), which is class 5 when you leave the cables (supported by ). Recommending that people leave the cables without protection seems homicidal: this can only be left in the article with a very reliable source.


 * With the cables down, it may still be class 3, but for a non-reliable source that catalogs the problems of climbing when the cables are down, see . hike395 06:17, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

Summit Post )is a reliable source. It recommends climbing Half Dome with cables down. "1. Go before or after the cables are put up (Before mid-May or after mid-October). The cables are still usable. Just pull yourself up with one of the cables." So it still is a class 3 walk, independent of cables up or down.

At the end it is everyones decision: lining up or walking outside the cables. Both is possible and both is done. Climbing in a long line inside the cables could be more dangerous, particularly if you consider that more than 50% of the "climbers" are far away from sufficiant training and equipment. This people are the real danger on Half Dome. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.60.12.58 (talk) 00:31, August 30, 2007 (UTC)


 * It's enough to say that it is "possible". We shouldn't make any recommendations. The safety is dubious - someone died this year climbing outside the cables. - ·:· Will Beback ·:· 03:09, 30 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Summit Post is a great thing, but it is essentially a wiki and does not meet the requirements of being a reliable source ( see WP:RS ). So, NO!  Ratagonia 03:36, 30 August 2007 (UTC)


 * The anon appears to confuse "grade" and "class" in his edits. ·:· Will Beback  ·:· 19:03, 30 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Oh, yes: very different --- see climbing grade. Going off on a class 5 climb without any equipment will kill you. hike395 05:32, 1 September 2007 (UTC)

Number of deaths: conflicting/missing sources
First of all, the current source (7) for the number of deaths claim is unavailable. The current Wiki article states that:


 * "From 1971 through August 2007, there have been nine fatal falls from the cables, three in 2007..."

The "9 fatal, 3 in 2007" claim is strangely similar to (but inconsistent with) the claim made here:


 * "Since 1971 there have been nine falls, including Nohara, but only three of them were fatal, all within the past year."

There seems to be some confusion as to the correct number. A third figure is given on this page. The page mentions a book, "Off the Wall: Death in Yosemite", which apparently documents all deaths in Yosemite. I don't have access to this book, but if someone does they should use it as a reference. If nothing authoritative is found soon, I suggest we remove the death claims.Matt Gerber (talk) 23:14, 19 December 2007 (UTC)


 * I have the Farrabee book, and it states that there have been three cable fall deaths within its scope (through 2006). I remember when the Mercury News article came out, and confirmed with the Yosemite public affairs rep at the time that the Mercury article was incorrect. I will edit the article accordingly, citing Farrabee. BoKu (|talk) 06:23, 21 June 2009 (UTC)


 * According to Farabee and Ghiglieri, the cable deaths through 2006 were:

Those plus the ones in 2007 and 2009 total five. BoKu (talk) 06:47, 21 June 2009 (UTC)
 * Paul H. Garinger, 1948
 * Michael W. Gerde, 1995
 * Emily Sandall, 2006
 * Do we count falls from climbers up the face itself? this recent death happened, but not on the cables.(mercurywoodrose)66.80.6.163 (talk) 19:42, 1 August 2011 (UTC)

Lacks winter ascents and descents
The page is out of date. It lacks the Lowe Bros (Greg and Jeff) winter ascent of the NW face route. The page also lack citation of the ski descent of the NE side "cable" route. 171.66.170.117 (talk) 19:17, 3 April 2012 (UTC)
 * Information.svg Thank you for your suggestion. When you believe an article needs improvement, please feel free to make those changes. Wikipedia is a wiki, so anyone can edit almost any article by simply following the  link at the top. The Wikipedia community encourages you to be bold in updating pages. Don't worry too much about making honest mistakes—they're likely to be found and corrected quickly. If you're not sure how editing works, check out how to edit a page, or use the sandbox to try out your editing skills.  New contributors are always welcome. You don't even need to log in (although there are many reasons why you might want to). --Walter Siegmund (talk) 21:11, 4 April 2012 (UTC)
 * I would make those changes if I had access to the references in the American Alpine Journal for when, but that was decades ago, and I heard and saw their cousin George's slide show before he did bigger things. I forgot where I read about the ski descent, but I happened to be flying over it in a small plane after it happened. However, some wikipedia editors are starting to get dogmatic (some of them non-climbers and in the Commonwealth (you can tell by their spelling)). The page should also probably have some mention of base jumping (now prohibited) and hang gliding (also prohibited, but I think Lloyd Price hauled a hang glider up there. 143.232.210.150 (talk) 00:15, 24 July 2012 (UTC)

File:Half Dome from Glacier Point, Yosemite NP - Diliff.jpg to appear as POTD
Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Half Dome from Glacier Point, Yosemite NP - Diliff.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on December 30, 2014. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2014-12-30. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page. Thanks! — Crisco 1492 (talk) 13:18, 11 December 2014 (UTC)

Source
Not a particularly important issue, but "Yosemite's Half Dome Rock Just Got Harder to Climb" may be of interest. 220  of  Borg 09:54, 10 July 2015 (UTC)
 * Thanks. Here's another source, "Half Dome Rockfall", with grades and topos. Akseli9 (talk) 10:12, 10 July 2015 (UTC)

Assessment comment
Substituted at 17:00, 29 April 2016 (UTC)

First solo ascent
Wondering why the first solo ascent of Half Dome is not mentioned? This occured in 1966, by Eric Beck, who still lives in Bishop, CA. I know this, because I know Eric Beck. Also, there have been talks by him at the CA Mountaineering Club, and at least one article written about this. (I'm new here; please be gentle!) Suz55tbird (talk) 04:41, 14 March 2021 (UTC)suz55tbird