Advice needed for a beginner hike to Half Dome

I am not a backpacker but I have done my share of day hiking. I plan on hiking half dome this Sept. I am a senior citizen in fairly good condition and continue to train by brisk walking 3 miles daily with some elevation gain and working out at the fitness center twice a week on the treadmill, stair-stepper and the row machine (simulating the cables). My plans are to do it in 2 days, camping out at Little Yosemite Valley the first night and ascending Half Dome the second day. I have done the hike up to Nevada Fall a few years ago with little or no problem but without a backpack. I doubt that I could do the hike carrying more than about 15 pounds. The thought of carrying anything more than a fanny pack doesn’t excite me

The hike to Nevada Fall is about 2000 feet of elevation gain in 3 miles. The first day to Little Yosemite Valley campground is essentially the Nevada Fall hike plus one more mile. The second day to Half Dome will be about 2300 feet of elevation gain in 3 miles but the final altitude will be over 8000 feet. Then the last effort involves 400 feet of cables at 45 degrees. The return hike to the Valley is mostly all downhill, 4000 feet down within 7 miles.

I plan to go with my daughter who joined me a few weeks ago to the top of Angels Landing. She is in far better shape than I. She runs several miles every morning.

I gave some consideration to going with a guide service but they tell me that I would be expected to carry a 35 pound backpack. Their prices vary but fall in the ballpark of $700-1000 per person. For that amount I would expect them to carry everything Instead of spending that sum of money on a guide service, my thinking is that amount could be used to purchase (or rent) some pretty high tech, ultra light weight equipment.

Any advice from the Community would be greatly appreciated.

First of all, get your permit before you make any hard plans. They are hard to get, and without one, you won't get past the ranger at the bottom of the trail.

If you don't want to carry more than 15 pounds, you are going very light. By the time you add a very lightweight pack (3) bag (2) sleeping pad (1) bear canister (2) and maybe a tent (3) you are already at 11 pounds. You'll need to carry some water, clothes, first aid kit, cook kit, and food. Unless you can convince your daughter to carry more weight, my guess is that your pack will be heavier than 15 pounds. The bear canister is required. So is a stove, because you can't have an open fire in the backcountry.

But that shouldn't prevent from doing this trip. Take your time on the first day. You can hike one mile per hour and still be in camp by early afternoon--particularly if you get an early start, which is highly recommended. It cuts down on the heat on the trail, and also the traffic.

You do not need a guide on this trip. There will be hundreds of people doing this same hike, and you won't get lost.

One additional tip---even if you rent this equipment, take it for a test run first, if only in your backyard, so that you have some idea of how it works before you get out there.

I haven't made that hike, nor have I made one like it. Here is a website with some good pictures.

I noticed some people wearing leather gloves to climb the cable. It may help prevent blisters. It seems like it would be a fun hike even if you decided not to make the cable part of the ascent.

Lightweight garden gloves work well (the kind with dots on the palm) - probably the rubberized thin ones would work well too. No need for heavy leather. There used to be a pile at the bottom of the cables, but not sure if the rangers clean that out now.

balzaccom: Thanks for the valuable advice.

I neglected to mention that I do have a confirmed reservation for a back county permit which includes a Half-dome permit.

I might have been optimistic about 15 pounds, but Little Yosemite Valley, where we will be camping, has latched food lockers so bringing a bear canister may not be necessary.

I was considering not cooking although there are communal campfire rings just outside the campground if we choose to do so.

Looking at the REI catalog for ultra lightweight equipment shows that one could theoretically get a tent, sleeping bag and backpack for about 5.5 pounds. A water filter weighs about 11 oz. and 2 quarts of water, 2 lb. Opportunities to refill water bottles occur at a few points along the trail, including the Merced River near the campground.

I was planning on visiting REI prior to the hike and speak to one of their “experts” about selecting equipment.

Maybe 20 pounds would be more realistic.

Thanks for website link. It looks interesting.

Hopefully, some of our ultralight experts will chime in here. I can get down to about 18 pounds for a weekend (including food and a quart of water), but Mouse, Daisy, and a number of others make me look like a beast of burden - and better yet, they are more familiar with the climate and topography you'll be hiking in than I am. (I hike in the eastern forests.)

My guess is that they'll point you in the direction of Tarptents, alcohol stoves, titanium or aluminum pots of 1 quart or less capacity, cook-and-eat-in bag freeze-dried meals (and a cold breakfast and lunch, to minimize fuel needs), sleeping quilts, and perhaps even frameless packs, or lightly framed packs like the ULA brand. Listen to them; those are all good recommendations. If you find those packs' suspensions are too light for your taste, look at the Osprey Talon and Exos series packs, which are still fairly ight, but have a more supportive suspension.

The Sawyer water filter is the lightest I know of, though my own tastes run toward MSR. Both are equally reliable; for your needs, I might lean to Sawyer.

The biggest way to hiking light is avoiding "just-in-case" items like an extra change of clothes, and luxuries like chair kits (you can sit on rocks or the ground for a couple of days) and "camp shoes" (if you can hike in your trail shoes all day, walking 30 or 100 feet at a time between sit-downs is nothing.)

OK, guys - elaborate!

Not cooking for an overnight trip is easy. Peanut butter and tortillas are good. Add nuts, raisins, a little rice bran or wheat germ and sunflower seeds and you have an almost balanced meal. We generally carry a sandwich and eat it a mile up the trail. It's always up in Colorado.

If there is a fire ban, alcohol stoves are banned.

I've bee in little Yosemite Valley and one Jamaican dude carried a lawn chair and a big coat. Take a sandwich and water ad put it in a locker.

Water - do not expect ANY water above the LYV -the water weight could be the biggest item on the second day - leave everything else at LYV(except your 10 essentials of course)

Watch out for huge old deer that are not afraid of you - do not get too close.
Jim

Hi Gershon, thanks for the food tip. One advice that I came across suggests a bagel sandwich, which keeps its shape. Also, Trader Joe’s has some great tasting trail mix.

Jimshaw, yes, water is my biggest concern because you need a lot and it weighs a lot. When I hiked to Nevada Fall with a fanny pack and 2 half-liter bottles, I became dehydrated. I believe LYV is the last reliable source of water (it needs to be filtered).

This page describes a source of water beyond LYV but I doubt that I could find it. Look down the page to item 10. The Little Spring.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Guide-g61000-i14-Yosemite_National_Park_California.html

Ralph, I noticed you stated 2 qts of water as being 2 lbs. - it's actually about 2.1 lbs per quart of cool water. If you need to carry a lot, don't forget to calculate that and get one of the packs like the Osprey that are capable of carrying more weight very comfortably if you seem to be getting heavy. They also are capable of carrying a hydration bladder. I did this trip in the 70's, so my info ain't so current. Both the Osprey my wife carries and my Granite Gear pack can carry 30 lbs. comfortably, but still function as a daypack to summit with. I would be carrying about 20 for this trip with my current gear. My pack, sleeping bag, pad and 2 person tent are under 8 lbs.

On a short hike, it may not be an issue, but bagels take a lot of room. If you need to optimize your volume use, try tortillas or pita bread. They don't have all the spongy holes in them from escaping gasses while they're cooking, so you can get the same calories in less space.

Hi bluefish,

I’ve been hitting the refresh button on my browser, not realizing that I needed to go to page 2 to see more comments

I did notice the discrepancy about the weight of water earlier but didn’t correct it. Very observant on your part.

Thanks for the good info about Osprey packs. I’ll look into that. I currently have an REI Traverse 30 which I purchased a couple of months ago, not realizing that it was essentially a “day pack” and “30” meant 30 liters of volume. I bought it because it was one of few that had a convenient location and method of attaching my trekking poles. I haven’t used it other than a short test walk around my neighborhood. When I return to REI to pick up more equipment, maybe they will let me exchange it.

You mentioned 20 pounds for this trip with your current gear. Would you care to itemize that with descriptions of the gear?

I hadn't thought of that. Maybe a pita pocket would be a good alternative.

Sure - I'll send you a private mail (you'll get a flashing icon up in the black bar, where it says "welcome." Click on it to go to the message. I'm using private mail because we'll be exchanging email addresses.