The dome is half full

Wow, it's been a while since I've updated... I think Seahang's inactivity has influenced me as well. Now I'm trying to work out in jeans, watch last night's episode of Desperate Housewives, and blog all at the same time so we'll see how it goes...

It was an eventful weekend out in Yosemite as a group of five of us headed out to hike half dome. I had attempted the 17 mile hike before way back at the end of freshman year. At that time, the cables were down, so we weren't able to make it all the way up there. This time would be different!

It was late in the season and very different from when Ruth and I went out on a day trip in May. When we passed through the Mist Trail, there was no mist at all!! Despite that, there were still enough nice waterfalls to keep us going, including the always picturesque trail up to Nevada Falls:



It was long, arduous trip, and my lack of being shape became quickly evident as the group started splintering and I was sauntering through the forest alone:



It was a good thing that I had my friend the camelbak to keep me company and hydrated along the way:



As we got closer, my legs couldn't really handle it anymore. I was limping along and it felt slower than when we were trudging out of the Grand Canyon. Nevertheless, we eventually got close enough that the goal became within site!



Unfortunately, one of the items that remained in the way was those darn cables! It was pretty freaky as it was fairly steep in spots and the going was slow... look at how scary this stuff is!



Evelyn and Daniel sped up the outside of the cables to go up and look for Audrey while Adrian and I sauntered our way up the middle. It got a little embarrassing when the 7 year old girl behind us started going up the side with her mom, leaving us behind in the dust as we struggled to go from wood plank to wood plank behind the masses. But... we eventually made it up there!



We lounged around the top and took some pictures... there was a freaky lookout point where you can hardly see Daniel and I:



The hike down was not nearly as bad as the way up, but it was still a friggin long way. The only thing that kept me going was the allure of food at the end of the day. We brought a nice feast with us that included Smores, corn, vegetables... and steak!



It was a super long hike and I'm still feeling the effects of it. I can't believe I actually made it up there and am grateful to have had the chance to get away for a weekend!

Edit: Roothie's really proud of me for coming home safely and not making out with other girls.