That ranger at Yosemite told me to skip the Half Dome cables if I had bad shoes

Wish I'd listened. I went up anyway in worn trail runners and nearly slid off the wet granite near the top. If you're going in early season when it's damp, take his advice seriously or bring real sticky rubber.

2 comments

2 Comments

blair5974d ago

Respect the park rangers and all, but I think this is one where you gotta take some personal responsibility. The cables are a steep class 3 scramble, not a sheer cliff. If your shoes were that bad, you probably would have been slipping on the flat sections too. I've done it in approach shoes with moderate grip and been fine, just took my time and used the cables for balance. Early season wet rock is slick no matter what you wear, so the bigger lesson is checking conditions and your own comfort level before heading up. Not everyone needs sticky rubber to get down safely.

sarah_hart3d ago

Half the people doing that hike are in worn-out sneakers or boots with no tread at all, @blair597, and they make it down just fine because they take it slow and careful. You're acting like this is some epic mountaineering feat when it's really just a rocky path with some cables.