Wow, Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California

This photo was from 6/16, descending the cables on Half Dome, Yosemite, CA, an iconic hike for many, and the highlight of my trip.

As you see, there is a line of people waiting to go down, a traffic jam between people going up and down the same path along the cables. Shortly after taking this photo, decided to go down on the outside of the ropes, really the only way to avoid the traffic jam.

Today, I just realized that about 1 hour after I took this photo, a man fell from almost the same spot.

I cannot imagine how scary that would have been to experience. When he fell, there would have been a huge crowd of people at the summit, on the ropes, and on the bottom waiting to climb, hundreds of witnesses, powerless to help. Many of the same people I saw milling around waiting were probably still there and witnessed the fall. While descending down the trail, still on a high from the climb up, I remember seeing a park ranger hiking quickly up the trail, I distinctly remember feeling sorry for him hiking the steep trail so fast, with a heavy pack, sweating in full park uniform on a hot day. Now I realize I was feeling sorry for the wrong man.

Two couples got engaged on the summit while I was up there. People celebrated birthdays, accomplishments, some just enjoyed the views. But unfortunately, one man had a far different experience, and hundreds carry far different memories of the beautiful day. Horrifying.