Our team, directed by Climbing Ranger Cameron King, hiked along Mirror Lake and soon cut off onto the climber’s trail leading to the base of Half Dome’s iconic Northwest Face, a trail infamously known as the “Death Slabs”. Half Dome sat an ancient guardian in the distance, a stone sliced perfectly in half, now peaking 5,000 feet above the valley floor. For a few hundred feet we moved over easy terrain and reached the first fixed line, where the slope abruptly bowed upwards in steep slabs. The Death Slabs marks one of the steepest approaches in Yosemite Valley. Just over a mile long with almost 3,000 feet of elevation gain. This day, however, we weren’t toiling atop these precipitous slabs to climb the face or summit. It was late September, during Yosemite’s annual Facelift cleanup. The Yosemite Management Team gathered in the cool morning with ropes, trash bags, empty haul bags and backpacks, to clean up hundreds of pounds of trash accumulated on the slabs and around the Cables Route, a sought after hike that sees over ten thousand visitors each season.
Nick ascends an abandoned line to remove it from the base of the Regular Northwest Face on Half Dome
The massive rock fall in July left behind a trail of rubble before discharging on the valley floor. On the approach, micro dust glistened in the faint morning light; dark slabs were speckled from pocket-sized shards shooting off of larger rocks. Stray climbing gear, water bottles, and tin cans scattered broken along the base. A fixed line hung abandoned for months on pitch one of the Regular Northwest Face route. Despite the low traffic Half Dome’s face had seen because of this rock fall, a surprising amount of trash was collected. Our team cleaned up the garbage, retrieved the fixed line, and continued on towards the grander objective.
At the base of the cables route, we fixed ropes one hundred meters off each side. One team rappelled with trash bags while others cleaned up along the trail. Within ten minutes trash bags were overflowing with plastic water bottles, Nalgene’s, hats, clothing, Camel Back mouthpieces, wrappers, selfie-sticks, and trekking poles. Jane, a Climber Steward, fished up a brand-new customized pocketknife. Our biggest find undoubtedly remained gloves of every type, color, size, and shape.
At the base of the cables route, we fixed ropes one hundred meters off each side. One team rappelled with trash bags while others cleaned up along the trail.
The Cables Route is a revered, strenuous hike sought after by outdoor enthusiasts worldwide. Between three and four hundred permits are given daily. Many are turned away. The ones who are granted their golden ticket hike over seven miles uphill on the John Muir Trail before reaching the Cables Route. Although the Cables Route is only 400 feet, many turn around here for various reasons. This short section lines the final slab finish to the summit, where one crosses the threshold into the alpine, 8,800 feet above sea level, and enjoys the panoramic views overlapping the valley floor to the high Sierras. A 45-degree slope is equipped with metal cables for safer passage should one lose their footing on the slick and glossy granite. It is recommended for hikers to bring gloves for ascent and descent of the cables. Every season travelers leave their gloves at the base, supposing this helps future visitors who aren’t prepared. Unfortunately, this leads to thousands of gloves littered throughout the sub dome area, and creating a technical cleanup, with ropes and climbing gear, mandatory. Every season volunteers and employees carry down hundreds of pounds of gloves but it is a never-ending battle.
Jane coils ropes at the base of the cables with Little Yosemite Valley in the background
By the afternoon, our team was slowing down; drained from the steep approach and continual running up and down rigorous slabs. As the bags continued to fill with trash, hikers stopped and made conversation, thanking us for our work and reveling in their experience summiting the dome. They admired our effort to preserve wilderness, to keep the experience intimate and pristine. Many volunteered to help pack trash out seven miles down the John Muir Trail. Without the help of others, our small group of six would have struggled with so much added weight. Together, our team and community commenced the long descent with trash bursting from backpacks, bags, and pockets.
Whether one is hiking the Cables Route for the first time, or a seasoned climber summiting the face, the plethora of connections with the landscape on this iconic dome are cherished and revered for a lifetime. An increasing amount of visitors arrive each season and it can be difficult to keep this area wild. However, with a community who takes responsibility and understands the impact we have, Yosemite can continue to be a sanctuary, a pristine wilderness for visitors worldwide to experience a unique landscape and natural beauty.
Without the help of others, our small group of six would have struggled with so much added weight.
The Yosemite Climbing Management Team wants to thank the volunteers at Facelift, to Mammut for supplying ropes for this and other vertical cleanups, and those unaffiliated who stepped up and lent a helping hand.