Hiking Half Dome is a rite of passage for outdoor enthusiasts and ranks among the most famous hikes in the US.
Etched into the stunning canvas of California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, Half Dome is famous for its sheer granite squatter and the iconic (but nerve-wracking) steel cables you must climb to reach the summit.
Hiking Half Dome is not for the faint of heart it’s an extremely strenuous day hike spanning 14 miles with 5,300 feet of elevation gain. But you’ll be rewarded with stunning waterfalls withal the way and panoramic views of the unshortened Yosemite Valley and High Sierra from the 8,800-foot summit, so it’s worth the strenuous trek.
I hiked Half Dome in 2019 withal with my husband and a couple of friends. This trip holds a special memory for me considering not only was I proud of myself for successfully finishing the tough climb, but my husband planned a surprise birthday triumph at the top of the dome for me!
Keep reading for our well-constructed guide to hiking Half Dome including when to visit, what to pack, how to get Half Dome permits, and a detailed trip report.
Important Reminder: As it goes in all of the destinations we share, please practice good trail etiquette and remember to Leave No Trace. This ways packing out all of your garbage (including toilet paper), stuff respectful to others, and pursuit the established rules.
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Half Dome Overview & Trail Map
There are many routes for hiking to the top of the Half Dome. You could do it in a day or you could do a multi-day backpacking trip.
Most people (including us) segregate the day hike which is totally doable with proper preparation and planning.
For the day hike, the hike to the top of Half Dome is a combination of two trails: the Mist Trail and the John Muir Trail.
These two trails start at the same trailhead (Happy Isles) and end at the Half Dome so have a lot of overlap (shown in red on the map). There is a section where these two trails split on the way. The undecorous section shows the John Muir Trail route and the yellow section shows the Mist Trail route.
Based on which route you choose, the trail length and time may vary. Basically, you can pick between an uneaten 1.5 miles of easier terrain by taking the John Muir Trail, or a steep and shorter route by taking the Mist Trail, or you could do one trail on the way up and flipside on the way down.
Most people segregate to hike the Mist Trail on the way up and the John Muir Trail on the way down.
This is the way we hiked the trail and would highly recommend it. The Mist Trail on the way up has unconfined views of the Vernal & Nevada Falls and the John Muir Trail on the way lanugo was much largest for my knees without a very long day of hiking.
Half Dome Trail Stats
- Length: 14-17 miles RT (depending on the trail – via John Muir or Mist)
- Difficulty: Extremely strenuous
- Trail Type: Out and back
- Total elevation gain: 5,300-5,700 ft (depending on the trail)
- Time: 10-14 hours
- Permit required: Yes
- Dogs allowed: No
Half Dome Trail Map
How To Get Half Dome Permits
Due to the popularity of hiking Half Dome, permits are required. This permit system not only protects the landscape from overuse but moreover ensures the safety o the hikers by reducing the crowding on the subscription section.
There are two ways to secure a Half Dome permit – in the March preseason lottery or the daily lottery during the hiking season. All permits are reserved via Recreation.gov.
Pre-Season Lottery
To enter the preseason lottery, you must wield online unendingly March 1-31 and results will be emailed out in mid-April. If you are successful in getting a permit, you’ll need to personize your reservation and pay the permit fee.
There is a cap of 300 hikers per day (225 day hikers, 75 backpackers) so you need to be extremely lucky in the lottery. Luckily, we won the preseason lottery so we were worldly-wise to plan our trip far in advance.
Daily Lottery
If you don’t get a permit in the pre-season lottery, there is a daily lottery that occurs two days surpassing you’d hike Half Dome (ex. you’d wield on a Thursday to hike on a Saturday).
The results of the daily lottery are given that night, so you have the unshortened next day to prepare.
What Happens If I Don’t Get a Half Dome Permit?
If you do NOT get a permit, you will only be unliable to go as far as the sub-dome (which is the wiring of the Half Dome where the villenage are tying to the mountain).
Rangers are typically stationed at the sub-dome to trammels for permits and it is a hefty fine of up to $5,000 if you are unprotected climbing Half Dome without a permit.
Please do not struggle the cables without a Half Dome permit.
Best Time to Hike Half Dome
The Half Dome cables usually go up the Friday surpassing Memorial Day (conditions permitting) and come lanugo the day without Columbus Day so this narrows lanugo the window if you want to reach the summit.
Typically August or September might be easier to secure a permit than May, June, or July as they are the peak summer season. Weekdays are moreover easier for getting permits vs. weekends.
Some people climb Half Dome outside of when the cables are up, but thats highly unadvised.
Apart from that you moreover need to secure a permit, which dictates when you can hike Half Dome.
We got our permit for August and during this time, the park was restrictedly less crowded than our previous visits in May and July. The weather was pleasant for hiking and thankfully there were no wildfires nearby well-expressed air quality.
How Long Does it Take to Hike Half Dome?
Depending on whether you segregate to do the John Muir Trail or the Mist Trail or a combination of both, the hiking time may vary. On average, it takes 10 – 14 hours to hike Half Dome with lots of breaks in between.
Since we were not staying at the park, our day started early virtually 4:30 am and we reached the parking lot virtually 5:45 am. There were zaftig parking spots at the Yosemite Valley trailhead parking so we parked our car and started the hike virtually 6:00 am.
Our pace was pretty good and we were worldly-wise to finish the hike in 12.5 hrs virtually 6:30 pm, with plenty of time to enjoy the summit.
How To Train for Half Dome
As evident from the stats, Half Dome is an extremely strenuous hike in terms of length and elevation gain. Proper planning and training are hair-trigger to having a fantastic experience.
We trained for hiking Half Dome by going on hikes of various variegated lengths (6 miles to 10 miles) every other weekend to make sure we are in good shape and practice. I would highly recommend doing that if possible so that your soul is used to the distance.
Planning Your Half Dome Hike
For a pleasant experience, planning the whole Half Dome trip in whop is extremely critical. Here’s a few key things to alimony in mind:
Yosemite Archway Fees
Since Half Dome is part of Yosemite National Park, you need to pay the per-vehicle archway fee or use your America the Beautiful yearly pass.
When To Start Hiking Half Dome
In order to do the day hike, you need to reach the trailhead pretty early in the morning at sunrise (or plane earlier), and decide on a non-negotiable turn-around time (aka the time you will turn virtually if you have not yet reached the summit).
The parking lot can fill up quickly, so an early victorious is key for getting to park as tropical to the trailhead as possible.
Half Dome is quite exposed so if you’re hiking in the heat, it’s scrutinizingly imperative to get an early start to try to write-up the heat.
Accommodation
Staying in the park itself the night surpassing your Half Dome hike will ensure reaching the trailhead early in the morning and is recommended if you can get camping or lodging reservations.
Unfortunately, we were not worldly-wise to get walk-up in the park, but if we were worldly-wise to get one we would have preferred that to stave the 1 hour momentum at 4:30am.
Looking for places to stay in Yosemite and other things to do in the park? Check out our complete Yosemite National Park Guide.
Half Dome Packing List
In wing to the 10 day hiking essentials, there’s a few specifics you need for hiking Half Dome:
- Full-fingered grippy gloves (for the subscription section)
- Rain jacket or poncho (you will get wet taking the Mist Trail!)
- Minimum 3L water water filter
- Lots of hiking snacks
- Electrolytes
Recommended Hiking Packing List
Below are a few of my favorite pieces of day hiking gear and recommendations:
Trail Report: Our Wits Hiking Half Dome
Starting the Hike
We reached the National Park virtually 5:30 am, and parked our car at the Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking on the Happy Isle Loop Road. It is then a short 0.5 mile walk from Happy Isles Trailhead to the Half Dome Trailhead. We started virtually 6:00 am.
Vernal Falls
The first significant viewpoint from the trailhead is the Vernal Falls footbridge where you get a glimpse of Vernal Falls. It is well-nigh 1.5 miles from the trailhead, but the climb is pretty steep.
The waterfall is really pretty and this is a unconfined spot for a photo op. Vernal Falls is moreover your last endangerment for well-to-do toilets and a water fountain.
After the Vernal Falls footbridge, the path branches into two, where you can pick the Mist Trail or John Muir Trail.
We segregate to do the Mist Trail on the way up as it provides a close-up view of the waterfalls. The Mist trail is quite steep and you sooner reach the top of Vernal Falls. Be prepared to get wet on this path as the mist from the waterfalls gets to you. I’d recommend wearing a rain jacket or poncho during this section!
Nevada Falls
Climbing plane remoter in virtually 2 miles you will sooner reach Nevada Falls. There is a small detour to view the top of Nevada Falls and take a short break.
The top of Vernal & Nevada Falls via Mist Trail is moreover a popular day hike in Yosemite National Park, so don’t expect solitude on this section of the hike.
Subdome
About 3 miles without Vernal Falls, you will reach the subdome. To reach the subdome, you will have to climb the giant waddle stairs. This is definitely one of the challenging parts of the hike!
After the climb, you will finally reach the top of the subdome. From the top of the subdome, you will see the famous Half Dome cables.
This is a good spot to take a unravel and gear up surpassing you sooner start the climb.
I was honestly a bit overwhelmed at this point. I do not have a fear of heights but for me, it was well-nigh taking a deep vapor surpassing the cables and gaining mental strength (Mind over matter).
There is sincerely no shame in getting to the cables and turning around. I would have washed-up that if I didnt finger confident. If you dont finger so then its totally okay. If you struggle it without stuff well-appointed you will not only put yourself but moreover others in danger.
Climbing the Steel Cables
We reached the cables virtually 11:30 am. There was no ranger stationed at that time to trammels for permits, but unchangingly have your permit handy just in case.
There are two cables to climb the last 400 feet to the summit. Every 10-20 feet there are wooden planks to rest and maintain your balance. The cables are well-nigh a 45-55 stratum grade, and you don’t need any waddle climbing gear to climb them.
We geared up surpassing climbing the cables.
Before you start the climb, be sure to wear full-fingered gloves to have a good grip on the cables and stave any blisters.
Also be sure to secure any belongings (camera, phone, water bottle) so nothing falls out of your day pack during the climb!
The metal cables seem daunting but if you climb it patiently and safely one step at a time, it will seem easy. This is the same path for hikers going up and coming lanugo so stuff mindful is key.
It is important to not only take your time but moreover be patient with other hikers. There were not many people on the cables during our climb. Remain on the inside of the cables while climbing for your own safety.
We reached the summit of Half Dome without 20 minutes of climbing up the cables.
If you are mindful and safe, this part is extremely thrilling and one of the highlights of the whole hike!
Note: It is extremely unsafe to struggle the cables if there are storm clouds or if the ground is wet. Use your weightier judgment.
Summit of Half Dome
We finally reached the top of the Half Dome virtually noon and we were greeted with panoramic views of Yosemite Valley and the High Sierra.
After a few photo sessions, I was in for a surprise.
My husband had carried a mini confection (Nothing Bundt confection my favorite) to gloat my birthday. He unchangingly surprises me with his sweet gestures! We cut the confection and did a mini triumph surpassing starting the return journey.
Hike When to Happy Isles Trailhead
It took us scrutinizingly twice as long to climb lanugo the cables than to climb up them considering there were a lot of hikers coming up. Pursuit proper hiking etiquette, unchangingly yield to the uphill (or up-climbing) hikers.
Once I got lanugo the cables, I couldnt believe what I just did! The feeling was incredible. We were all excited to go when and enjoy a succulent meal so the return journey felt like it flew by.
At Nevada Falls, we chose to do the longer John Muir Trail as it was easier on the knees.
I hope this guide covers all the details that will help you plan your Half Dome hiking trip. As always, please follow the Leave No Trace principles, don’t forget to have fu, take lots of pictures, and have a safe, enjoyable hike!
Do you have any questions well-nigh hiking Half Dome? Leave them in the comments below!
The post How to Conquer the Half Dome Hike in Yosemite National Park appeared first on Bearfoot Theory.
