The Land of Yosemite

I recently shared a video similar to this one of Southern Utah.  This compilation is footage from Yosemite National Park and it is amazing!  Seriously.




This little video brought back memories of my own visit to Yosemite in 2009.  You see, back in my single life one of my main group of friends were my mission buddies (meaning we served together on our LDS missions in England) who became my adventure buddies (meaning most of the cool adventures I went on during that time were with them).  They are actually still all my friends, we just live in different parts of the world now. Anyway, on this particular trip to Yosemite, my far more athletic friends decided it would be cool to climb the Half Dome.  It was hard! I went back to my old blog and found that post I wrote about that experience and decided to share it.

Me climbing the cables.

Our group at the top!

The Half Dome:  The Peak that Humbled Me                                      May 28, 2009
I would love this entry to be one about me racing up to the top of the mountain, victorious and loving every second of it with great pictures to show for it. And while I did get a few cool pictures this is not a “non-struggle” entry. 

I was nervous about this hike way back in February when my friends told me it was part of our itinerary for Yosemite National Park. It’s a 16 mile hike with a 5,000 feet gain up to 9,000 ft in elevation at the top of the dome. To top it all off, there’s a steep incline with steel cables where you have to pretty much pull yourself up to the top of the dome. I love hiking, but this “extremely strenuous hike” (which is how it is described on the Yosemite website) seemed out of my league, but I went anyway.

We set off at 7am. I was nervous, but my friends were very positive and encouraging. While I’m in ok shape, half of my group was marathon runners making it difficult to keep up. When I would catch up to my group, I could see the concern in their eyes. Being the weakest and knowing it hurt my pride. I can be pretty prideful sometimes. I don’t like holding people back or asking for help. Then my hip started acting up a couple miles in. (I hate telling people I have troubles with my hip because it makes me sound about 6 decades older than I really am. Once again, pride.) 

My friends told me to set the pace, but I knew I was slowing them down. I begged them to just go ahead and that I would meet up with them. I’m too much of a people pleaser and knowing I was a hindrance to all of them was killing me. They finally agreed. 

Up the trail I saw my two friends Jason and Jun conversing. I’m pretty sure I know now what they were talking about…helping me. Jun came back and started hiking with me. I apologized profusely for the slow going. His answers were short and patient, reminding me it wasn’t a race and not to worry about it. When we reached the granite switchbacks which were actually steps chiseled into the rock, I wanted to cry. I could tell my feet were blistered, I hurt and I was very frustrated with myself. I told Jun I didn’t think I could do it. He simply said he wasn’t going to let me give up and to take it slow. I was kind of shocked; in my little life of taking care of myself, it is rare that I have someone telling me not to give up, but it was good feeling. So we continued. We made it to the base of the dome where the cables were and where all of our friends were waiting. At this point, I didn’t want to give up, we were so close to the top. The cables actually weren’t as hard as I thought they would be, mainly because I could use my arms to take the strain off of my legs. I still yelled back at Jun a few times out of pain and fear (it was really steep). He just laughed. And then we made it to the top. I was so happy, but too tired to show it. I seriously didn’t think I could do it and I probably couldn’t have if it wasn’t for a very patient friend. (Thanks Jun.)

Our time on top of the dome was short. After taking a few pictures we saw storm clouds in the distance. Being at the highest point of the park probably isn’t smart during a thunderstorm. We hurried down the cables and were on our way down the mountain. Going down was easier, but I still was limping behind. My friend, Jason, stuck with me during our trek back. The storm was coming fast and we hadn’t put the rain cover on our tent. We were still a few miles away from camp when the hail started and it hurt. Jason was kind enough to give me his jacket. Everyone ran ahead to try and save our camp. I told Jason to go ahead, but he didn’t. We instead had a leisurely walk in the pouring rain while people rushed passed us. (Thanks Jason.) I told Jason if we were on the Oregon Trail, I would have been the first to die. I think he agreed, haha. It really was so beautiful in the rain next to the waterfall; we decided it looked like scene from “Lord of the Rings”. 

Anyway, around 4pm we returned to a very wet camp. Luckily the rain didn’t last long and we spent the rest of the evening standing around the campfire, trying to dry blankets and sleeping bags. There also was a laundry mat in the Yosemite village where we found the dryers very useful.

So what did I learn from this experience? #1-I’m very weak. I may have made it to the top, but still, I felt very humbled by experiencing my limitations. #2-I have very good friends and I’m grateful for them. While I don’t like asking for help and being humbled is not very fun, it is nice in those situations when you do have someone to help you along the way. So there is my closing inspirational thought.