Dinner was vegan mac and cheese with chickpeas, followed by an early bedtime. We started at 6 a.m. from Curry Village, enjoying cool temps and a quiet Mist Trail. Our game plan was simple: jog the flats, power hike the climbs, and run the downhills — moving in a way that felt fun, not forced.
The first hour delivered 2,000 feet of gain, waterfalls cascading beside us despite a dry summer. By Little Yosemite Valley, we’d passed dozens of groups and still felt strong.
At the base of the Subdome, a ranger gave us the briefing: another 30 minutes to the Subdome summit, then another 30 on the cables. We stashed our poles and gripped the steel. The 400-foot cable section is only three feet wide, steepening to over 45 degrees with slick granite and exposure thousands of feet above the Valley. Wooden planks at each post offered short rests, but the real challenge was weaving through uphill and downhill traffic.
We moved steadily and, thanks to light crowds, topped out in under 15 minutes. Just over three hours from the Valley floor, we stood on Half Dome’s summit, joining a group of hikers perched on the 4,000-foot cliff edge with PB&Js in hand.