Hiking - Part 85

 Half Dome, Yosemite

Half Dome is one of the famous sights in Yosemite National Park.

There is actually a trail that goes to the top of Half Dome.  The round trip is 14 to 16 miles (depending on where you start).  It gains 4800 feet of elevation, and it takes 10 to 12 hours, but it can be done in a day.  The last part of the trail, climbing up the bare rock dome, has cables that the Park Service has provided to assist hikers, seen here from above.

And of course, after reaching the top, some hikers could not resist the opportunity to show off.  This photo was labeled "Made it to the top."

This one is called "Butt naked on Half Dome."

This is Matt on Half Dome on Naked Hiking Day, 2009.

Then there are mountain climbers who take up the challenge of climbing Half Dome the hard way.

Jesse Ray Nichols is one of them.  Here he is, partway up the cliff, on a ledge called Thank God Ledge, for which he stripped to become the first naked person on Thank God Ledge.

We end with a view of another climber on Thank God Ledge.  Uh, I think I would say "No thanks, God, I'll find another trail."