Half Dome Hiker Dies

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Jon Beck

Trad climber

Oceanside

Topic Author's Original Post - May 22, 2018 - 04:56pm PT

Apparently ascending during thunder storm activity?

https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/22/us/yosemite-national-park-half-dome-cables-death/index.html

zBrown

Ice climber

May 22, 2018 - 05:55pm PT

[Click to View YouTube Video]

Mungeclimber

Trad climber

Nothing creative to say

May 22, 2018 - 06:39pm PT

This sucks.

I dislike those cables.

Bad Climber

Trad climber

The Lawless Border Regions

May 23, 2018 - 06:28am PT

I've only been down them, and they spooked me. I backed down the steep parts with a haul bag on and thought: "They let tourons do this? Yikes." Angels' Landing in Zion gave me the same feeling. Whoa. But I'm glad these trails exist. It's good to go out and risk your neck, and non-climbers enjoy it, too. So what was this bloke doing out there in t-storm activity? Darwin at work. RIP, brother.

BAd

Damn this looks high

Trad climber

Idyllwild, CA

May 23, 2018 - 07:00am PT

I’ve been up the cables once with my son and down them 12 times. The only thing that surprises me is that somebody doesn’t die every single day. Sad news but you can’t be up there in a thunderstorm!

healyje

Trad climber

Portland, Oregon

May 23, 2018 - 07:03am PT

Yeah, the cables always seemed like an incredibly bad idea in general.

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

May 23, 2018 - 07:14am PT

Worse than an LA freeway on a Friday afternoon - half the people are nice, half are stoopid,
and the other half are jerks.

10b4me

Social climber

Lida Junction

May 23, 2018 - 08:05am PT

So what was this bloke doing out there in t-storm activity? Darwin at work. RIP, brother.

wondered about that myself. maybe it's a "once in a lifetime deal", and he's got to get it done.

Jon Beck

Trad climber

Oceanside

Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2018 - 08:23am PT

I have only been up the cables once, 25 years ago, cables were on the ground, posts removed as it was late in the season. nobody else on it so it did not seem like a big deal, we had climbing shoes and basically batmanned up.

I am going to hike Angels Landing in two weeks with my 15 yo son, apparently it has killed quite a few people. Not telling his mom about it till we are done.

Adding more cross-boards on half dome would be expensive as two more cables would have to be added, as it is the crossboards are anchored by the posts, about ten feet apart.

20 deaths on half dome, includes lightning strikes and presumably climbers, only 7 deaths on Angels Landing, so it is three times safer?

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

May 23, 2018 - 08:29am PT

Adding crossboards wouldn’t achieve a thing other than encouraging more crankloons.

Fat Dad

Trad climber

Los Angeles, CA

May 23, 2018 - 09:08am PT

The news report is sparse on facts as usual. It says he was up there T-storm activity but doesn't say that's what killed him. Plus if it was some electrical event, wouldn't there be more bodies? Like someone mentioned above, I bet he was outside the cables (which, BTW, is way less polished).

Nevertheless, my condolences to his family and friends.

Don Paul

Social climber

Denver CO

May 23, 2018 - 09:19am PT

One time I was going down the cables after soloing snake dike, it was a massive traffic jam so I walked down next to the cables on the outside, freaking out hundreds of people standing in line. You could chop the cables and climbers could still easily use it as a descent route.

CragRat 4x4

Big Wall climber

Simi Valley Ca

May 23, 2018 - 09:37am PT

Having only gone down the cables (wrapping a post and Rappel the outside), I think if I ever go up ... a harness and lobster claws will be used.

up2top

climber

Phoenix, AZ

May 23, 2018 - 09:54am PT

I went up last year under party cloudy skies and got out of there when rain clouds began to gather. Made it down just as the first drops of rain began to fall. And then the swarm started. Everyone was trying to get down the cables at the same time. Total sh#t-show. I'm stunned more people haven't died descending the cables when it's wet.

the Fet

climber

Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La

May 23, 2018 - 10:10am PT

The cables are the adventure of a lifetime for many people. It's the best day hike in the world IMO. I'm glad so many people get to experience something similar to what rock climbers do, that doesn't take hundreds of dollars worth of gear and months if not years of experience.

The biggest problem is the rock is super polished from years of traffic. Add in some rain and there's significant risk. The cross boards are too far apart to step from one to another so most people must step on polished rock. Additional cross boards would help, but drawbacks are mentioned up thread.

When I need to pass someone I go on the outside of the cables and the amount of friction is hugely different.

Like Angels Landing there is risk. But as long as people are aware of the risk they should have the right to choose if they want to do it, just like rock climbing.

JLP

Social climber

The internet

May 23, 2018 - 10:28am PT

I think more people have been swept down a waterfall, just a few miles earlier on the same trail. What does one do to prevent someone from being swept down a waterfall? Nothing, it was probably for the best. Our planet is overpopulated. There should be more danger, not less.

Trump

climber

May 23, 2018 - 10:30am PT

Shoot sorry to hear.

Angels Landing seemed way different to me. Not nearly the amount of time/distance in a must-not-fall situation with no escape as on half dome.

Having been up the half dome cables a bunch of times, still, sometimes it seems uber-sketchy, sometimes childishly trivial, depending on how my brain is working that day.