Editing Half Dome (section)

==Hiking the Cable Route==
[[Image:Half Dome--cables.jpeg|thumb|Hikers use cables to ascend Half Dome]]
The Half Dome Cable Route hike runs from the valley floor to the top of the dome in {{convert|8.2|mi|km|0|abbr=on}} (via the Mist Trail), with {{convert|4800|ft|m|-1|abbr=on}} of elevation gain. The length and difficulty of the trail used to keep it less crowded than other park trails, but trail traffic grew to as many as 1,000 people a day, and about 50,000 per year, before a permit system was introduced in 2010.<ref name="merc">{{cite news|title=Death of Sunnyvale hiker on Half Dome called unusual|author-last1=Skipitares|author-first1=Connie|work=San Jose Mercury News|date=2007-06-19|url=http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_6180679?source=most_emailed}}</ref><ref name="MSNBC">{{cite web | url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna31348114 | title = Hiker falls to death from Yosemite's Half Dome | website = [[NBC News]] | date = 14 June 2009 }}</ref><ref name="hdpermits2010">{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm|work=Yosemite National Park|title=Half Dome Permits|publisher=U.S. National Park Service|date=2010-01-31|archive-date=2010-02-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100202062129/http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> The hike can be done from the valley floor in a single long day, but many people break it up by camping overnight in [[Little Yosemite Valley]]. The trail climbs past [[Vernal Fall]] and [[Nevada Fall]], then continues into Little Yosemite Valley, then north to the base of the northeast ridge of Half Dome itself.

The final {{convert|400|ft|m|-1|abbr=on}} ascent is steeply up the rock between two steel cables used as handholds.<ref name="NPS cable route">{{cite web|title=Half Dome Day Hike|url=http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm|work=Yosemite National Park|publisher=National Park Service|access-date=2007-08-12}}</ref> The cables are fixed with bolts in the rock and raised onto a series of metal poles in late May. The poles do not anchor the cables. The cables are taken down from the poles for the winter in early October, but they are still fixed to the rock surface and can be used. The National Park Service recommends against climbing the route when the cables are down, or when the surface of the rock is wet and slippery.<ref name="NPS cable route"/> The ''Cable Route'' is rated [[Grade (climbing)#Yosemite Decimal System|class 3]], while the same face away from the cables is rated class 5.<ref>{{cite book|last=Secor|first=R.J.|title=The High Sierra: Peaks, Passes, and Trails|year=1999|edition=2nd|publisher=The Mountaineers|page=391|isbn=0-89886-313-9}}</ref>

[[Image:HalfDomeTraffic.jpeg|thumb|upright|The ''Cable Route'' gets crowded on the weekends]]
The Cable Route can be crowded. Since 2010, all hikers who intend to ascend the Cable Route must first obtain permits when the cables are up between May and October.<ref name="hdpermits">{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm|title=Yosemite National Park: Half Dome Permits|publisher=National Park Service|access-date=2011-08-20}}</ref> Permits are limited to 300 per day, and {{as of|2022|lc=y}}, more than 70,000 applications were received in the pre-season and daily permit lotteries.<ref>{{cite web |title=Half Dome Permit Lottery Statistics - Yosemite National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermitsapps.htm |website=www.nps.gov |publisher=U.S. National Park Service |access-date=15 November 2023 |language=en |date=9 June 2023}}</ref> Permits are checked by a ranger on the trail. Hikers without permits are not allowed to hike beyond the base of the sub-dome or to the bottom of the cables. Hikers caught bypassing the rangers to visit either the sub-dome or main dome without a permit face fines of up to $5,000, and/or 6 months in jail.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/02/yosemite-half-dome-permits.html|title=Yosemite will require permits for Half Dome hikes, starting in May|newspaper=LA Times|access-date=14 December 2010|date=February 1, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329100701/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/02/yosemite-half-dome-permits.html|archive-date=29 March 2010}}</ref>

Backpackers with an appropriate wilderness permit can receive a Half Dome permit when they pick up their wilderness permit with no additional reservation required. Rock climbers who reach the top of Half Dome without entering the subdome area can descend on the Half Dome Trail without a permit.<ref name=hdpermits/>

The top of Half Dome is a large, flat area where climbers can relax and enjoy their accomplishment. The summit offers views of the surrounding areas, including Little Yosemite Valley and the Valley Floor. A notable location to one side of Half Dome is the "Diving Board", where [[Ansel Adams]] took his photograph ''[[Monolith, the Face of Half Dome]]'' on April 10, 1927. Often confused with "the Visor," a small overhanging ledge at the summit, the Diving Board is on the shoulder of Half Dome.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.nps.gov/yose/historyculture/ansel-adams.htm | title = NPS: Ansel Adams in Yosemite National Park }}</ref>

The Cable Route was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 2012.<ref>{{cite web |date=September 7, 2012 |title=Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 8/27/12 Through 8/31/12 |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/listings/20120907.htm |access-date=September 19, 2013 |publisher=[[National Park Service]]}}</ref>

=== Incidents and risks ===
{{As of|2024}}, there have been 10 confirmed deaths on the cable section since they were erected in 1919.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=Legal |date=2023-05-02 |title=Deaths in Yosemite National Park |url=https://www.randsinjurylaw.com/deaths-in-yosemite-national-park/#:~:text=There%20have%20been%2010%20deaths%20on%20the%20infamous%20cable%20section%20of%20the%20Half%20Dome%20trail%20since%20it%20was%20installed%20in%201919 |access-date=2025-03-31 |website=R & S Injury Law |language=en-US}}</ref> The latest fatality occurred on July 13, 2024.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mojadad |first1=Ida |title=Experienced 20-year-old hiker slips to her death at Yosemite's Half Dome |url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/california/article/experienced-20-year-old-hiker-slips-death-half-19592656.php |website=San Francisco Chronicle|date=24 July 2024 }}</ref>{{As of when|date=April 2025|reason=latest fatality as of when?}} In August 2024, there were calls to double the number of wooden rungs on the climb, to increase safety.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dolan |first1=Jack |title=After a young woman falls to her death in Yosemite, Half Dome's risks are on everyone's mind |url=https://news.yahoo.com/news/young-woman-falls-her-death-100006306.html |access-date=9 August 2024 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=August 8, 2024}}</ref> Most accidents occur when the rock is wet, and climbers are advised to check the weather before attempting the summit.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moye |first=Jayme |date=Jul 30, 2024 |title=Should Yosemite Close the Half Dome Cables? We Asked Alex Honnold. |url=https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/yosemite-half-dome-cables/ |website=Outside}}</ref>

[[Cloud-to-ground lightning|Lightning strikes]] can be a risk while on or near the summit. On July 27, 1985, five hikers were struck by lightning, resulting in two fatalities.<ref>{{cite news | title=Lightning at Yosemite's Half Dome Kills 2 Climbers; 3 Hurt|date=July 29, 1985|work=Los Angeles Times }}</ref>