A Wicked Awesome Feat

So while I was slavin' away at work on Friday, Joe was out enjoying the great outdoors with a buddy from work at Yosemite. They decided that they would drive up, hike up Half Dome, and drive back home all in one day. Like all goodly planned things, it didn't exactly happen that way. But nevertheless, they had a great time. When I saw the pictures the next day of their hike, I had to post them because one: they're pretty cool, and two: I'm really proud of Joe. Now, he did this hike once before by himself, so, obviously, I knew he could do it. But it's a lot different when you go with other people. And this hike is not to be sneezed at. It is massive, and tough. You had better have the right gear and mental toughness otherwise, you're in trouble with a capital "T". This is no little walk in the woods - it is a pretty big endeavor. Granted, you're rewarded at every point along the way by absolutely amazing views, but this is not for the faint of heart. Depending on the pace you go at, it's a 6-8 hour trek, that really becomes a climb at the end straight up the granite back with just cables to help you, so you're pretty much hugging the rock, trying to scoot up and not think about what would happen if you tumbled and took a fall. It wouldn't be pretty. I don't think I'll ever be able to do it, because of my fear of heights, so I'll just stick to the Yosemite falls and Vernal falls hikes. Guess I'll just have to live vicariously through Joe...



Almost to the top. See how high up you are?

There he is, reaching the summit...I love how the setting sun looks. I know that technically this picture is a little too dark, but dang it, this is my blog, and I have the artistic license here, OK?

I know this isn't Joe's favorite picture of the bunch, but I like it, especially for those of you who have never been to Yosemite, this gives you some scope for just how high and big it really is. The valley floor of Yosemite is below him, plus you get to see how he is sitting right on the top of the curve of it. My feet and pits start to sweat when I look at this picture, because there he is, swinging his legs off it. If it were me, no way would you have gotten me to the edge, and I would probably be face down clinging to the rock crying my eyes out, and dreading the trip down, cursing whoever it was that talked me into doing it in the first place. Not Joe. He looks completely carefree and at home on the little ledge, right?

Here's the winner shot of the batch in my opinion. The lighting is gorgeous. A man and his mountain. Gotta love it. He told me as he tumbled into bed upon arriving wearily home in the wee small hours, that despite the screaming sore muscles, total physical and mental exhaustion it is worth it. So I'm sure that he'll be right back up there again. And, just in case anyone out there has forgotten...

YESSSSS!!!!!