Yosemite Half Dome Climber Falls to death - any thoughts/comments?

[RamboLiberal]

A 26-year-old San Ramon woman plummeted 600 feet to her death Sunday while climbing the perilous summit cables on Yosemite National Park's Half Dome amid stormy, wet weather.

It was the 14th fatality this year in the sprawling wilderness full of towering cliffs and thundering waterfalls. Hayley LaFlamme, her sister and two friends had reached the top of the colossal escarpment and were just past the midpoint of the descent around noon when LaFlamme apparently slipped and lost her grip on the cables. She slid and tumbled down the nearly vertical granite slope to the rocks below. Search teams recovered her body later that day.

Park officials said a ranger at the base of the dome was checking the required hiking permits and warning visitors to avoid the treacherous climb, which is so steep in the last 400 feet that hikers must haul themselves up along thick metal cables to the summit.

LaFlamme and her companions were among about two dozen people who decided Sunday to brave the slick granite, which had been pounded by thunderstorms that morning. It wasn't clear Monday how many of the 20 or so other hikers on the world-famous outcropping, which rises 8,800 feet above sea level, witnessed the fall.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/01/BAL71KI1HM.DTL#ixzz1TsyNr0zP



Just the photos put butterflys in my stomach. Foolish for amateurs to do when wet? Should park close it down during bad conditions? I know you can't if people already on the cables.

[treestar]

1. I know we're supposed to admire their bravery

But I can't help but think such projects are foolish and not worth the risk.

[hobbit709]

2. climbing sheer vertical wet rock-what could possibly go wrong.

[Lance_Boyle]

3. Died doing what she loved.

We should all be so fortunate, aside from the smashing to death on rocks part. Personally, I love to sleep...

And no, I don't think it should be closed regardless of conditions. Buzzwords aside, personal responsibility for personal safety is the way to go in this context.

[Maru Kitteh]

23. "personally, I love to sleep...."

:rofl: putting in a request, are we?

[ProgressiveProfessor]

4. Her call, her choice

She did not choose wisely

[Journeyman]

5. You'd think an enterprising park service, strapped for cash as it is. . .

would rent some sort of tether to inexperienced climbers, so those who are a little queasy at the climb or unsure of their abilities could strap themselves to the cable and in an emergency not fall too far.

[TwilightGardener]

7. Meh, if you're in any way inexperienced OR queasy about the climb, you shouldn't do it at all.

Offering people help in climbing = more people climbing who shouldn't be. I'm surprised they have metal cables. Boy, must be fun to hang on to those for dear life in a thunderstorm, lightning bolts coming down around you.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

17. I was surprised to see, in the pictures, kids in jeans and back-packs..

This isn't really a climb in the sense of climbing with ropes and carabiners. It's a hike. A dangerous hike.

It must be a nightmare when someone freezes in front of your.

[TwilightGardener]

20. Yes, the pics are scary. Average people in regular clothes, hanging on

literally for dear life--all because the cables are there. They should stop encouraging this nonsense, really. If you want to climb it, you should do it like a pro, with your own equipment. Giving average people something to hang onto makes it look like part of a hike, as you say, or a tourist attraction.

[Brickbat]

6. I don't admire them when they succeed, and I don't mourn them when they die beyond "that's too bad."

They know the risks and should know their own limitations. No one thinks they're going to be the ones who die, just like no one thinks they're going to be the one to die in a car accident.

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Why not close the dome trails/climbs when it's wet?

[KurtNYC]

12. that might be construed as the parks service declaring it "safe"

when they open it. I used to work at the ski resort on the back side of Yosemite. 6 skiers died there in the average year but everybody who skis waives their right to sue for what happens on the mountain. IF a chairlift breaks they can sue but what they do skiing or snowboarding is between them, gravity and God.

[GreenPartyVoter]

18. Hmmm. That's food for thought. Thanks.

[Xithras]

30. Not possible.

First, when it's raining, there are FAR more dangerous trails in Yosemite than Half Dome. The Upper Yosemite Falls Trail hugs some sheer sections of the valley wall, and has claimed multiple lives over the years. The Four Mile Trail, with its steep switchbacks and crumbling granite, is dangerous in DRY weather...it's almost suicidal in the pouring rain. The backcountry also has dozens of other trail sections that are extremely hazardous when they're wet, and nearly EVERY trail has sections that promise serious injury to the unwary when they're slick. Remember, Yosemite sits on a foundation of smooth, glacier polished granite, and most of the trails cross that granite at some point or another.

Hikers are expected to support themselves when hiking in Yosemite (and most national parks, for that matter), and should only expect direct outside assitance in a serious emergency. Part of "supporting yourself" is recognizing and avoiding hazardous conditions that put your life in peril. Climbing a slick granite face is ALWAYS a "hazardous condition".

Yosemite, like many of our national parks, is beautiful, but can be very dangerous for the unwary. The rangers themselves will tell people (and the signs at the trailheads echo) to stick to the valley floor and admire the sights from a distance if you don't know how to handle yourself in the backcountry. And yes...Half Dome is considered backcountry.

[GreenPartyVoter]

34. I think I would have to take the Rangers' advice in my own case! I think that where I live they do

close parts of the parks, national and state, when the trails are wet or damaged. Ditto with some of the lookout areas that are by the ocean. Unfortunately, it never fails that there are people who go down to watch the cool storm surf who get swept away. :(

[muriel_volestrangler]

9. Looks like it's effectively a via ferrata

and so anyone doing it should either be confident enough in their own ability and stamina that the risk of a fatal fall doesn't concern them (or is part of the reason they're doing it like that); or they should have the appropriate equipment - eg what's listed here: http://www.needlesports.com/catalogue/content.aspx?con_id=d7376987-c60a-437e-a15a-9c9e00a6a466 (and that is more than 'gloves').

[WI_DEM]

10. thoughts? kind of stupid to have braved the elements

[shraby]

11. Why put the cables there in the first place if it's that

dangerous? Sounds like the ultimate in stupidity for the park to put them there.
They know if the cables are there, people will use them in whatever kind of weather.

[Retrograde]

39. Maybe people were smarter a century ago?

The cables have been there since the early 1900s. Are people more willing these days to take risks, or do they think that the world is inherently a safe place?

While you can see Half Dome from the Yosemite Valley floor, it's a nine mile hike just to get to the base where the cables are. Presumably that weeds out the casual hikers and the people who make it that far, and get the required permits, know what they're doing. There's only so many times people can be warned about the wilderness; unfortunately, many think they're smarter than average, or maybe they think that because they saw it in a movie they can do something, but nature generally wins in the end.

I don't think this particular hiker was doing anything particularly dumb (unlike the three who were swept over Vernal falls last month. Maybe she thought the weather would clear (it can change quickly in the mountains), or that she would be down before things got bad, or she was stronger than she was. It was her choice.

[KurtNYC]

13. I just can't figure out

how Obama is to blame for this.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

14. I clicked through the pictures.

Those aren't "climbers" as in carabiners and other safety equipment. They are hikers. There are pictures of young kids and adults wearing jeans and back-packs.

Yikes. Seems foolish to allow any Tom, Dick or Harry to climb.

[Xithras]

25. The pix are deceptive. It's not that steep.

The last bit of the climb is about as steep as the staircase in the average home, and there are sections of the main trail in the valley behind Half Dome that are actually steeper.

The climb simply seems steep because the rock is so smooth. Many of the trails in Yosemite originally had steep sections with cables to aid visitors, but in the 1930's the CCC upgraded the trail system in Yosemite and carved staircases out of the rock, eliminating the need for most of them. After some debate, they decided NOT to carve steps into the side of Half Dome.

When it's dry, the side of Half Dome can be ascended by someone wearing only hiking boots, so long as they take their time. The cables exist primarily as a safety feature, to make it a bit easier on most people. The rock is very smooth, and without the cables there's nothing to grab on to. In spite of that, when the cables get too backed up, there are still people who climb the side of Half Dome outside of the cables. AFAIK, none of them has ever died....though it's still a pretty stupid thing to do (it's like driving without a seatbelt...most of the time you're fine, but one mistake and you're screwed).

[Name removed]

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[pipi_k]

16. Climbing something because "it's there"...

I never did understand it.

Maybe because I'm not much of a risk taker...who knows.



So anyway, yeah...she died doing something she loved.

Meanwhile, her friends and family have to deal with her loss the rest of their lives.

I wonder if people who do things like that ever stop to think beyond their own need to do stupid shit.

[closeupready]

37. Remember that student from Stanford who did "extreme" mountain climbing, and duh, she

fell to her death. That was so pointless and stupid, I just couldn't wrap my head around why she did something so utterly stupid, except that maybe she got "high" off of taking "extreme" risks. Okay, but then when you fall and kill yourself, you are going to leave a lot of angry loved ones. :mad:

[enough]

19. Really, click through and look at the rest of the pictures. This is not what you think of when

you think of "climbing Half Dome." This is some sort of mass weekend warrior activity.

[Xithras]

21. I've been up those cables, to the top of Half Dome, several times.

Only an idiot does it in the rain. The rangers will tell you that, and there are big signs all over the place that tell you the same thing.

The real problem is that the weather in Yosemite is notoriously fickle. In the dead of summer, you can start a hike under clear morning skies, be slogging through monsoonal rain two hours later, and finish the afternoon baking under a clear 100 degree sky. The park straddles the ridge of the Sierra's and the weather is often unpredictable.

That fickle weather leads to an unhappy reality for many hikers. You wake up at the break of dawn, check the Yosemite weather report, and see that it's clear. You strap on your boots, hit the Happy Isles trailhead at 7:30 in the morning under crystal clear skies, and spend the next 6-7 hours walking uphill. An hour before reaching your destination, after already climbing a couple thousand vertical feet, the sky clouds over in a matter of minutes, lightning starts to flash, and the sky opens up. Some turn back at this point, but many know that you can often wait these storms out, so you continue the slog to the base of the cables, hoping for a break in the weather and some sunshine to dry the rock. 30 minutes later, you find yourselves at the base of the cables...but it's still raining. Smart hikers, at this point, turn around and go home. But you are TIRED hikers, who just spent six or seven hours pulling yourselves up a narrow and twisting trail. And the peak is RIGHT THERE. You can SEE IT. The cables are almost empty because of the weather, so you can be on top in 10 minutes. Sure, it's a little risky, but what are the odds? We've gone this far, so we'll just tackle this last little section, hop up to the top for a few minutes to take in the view, and come right back down. It'll be fine.......

That scenario has played out on the side of Half Dome an uncountable number of times. 99% of the time, the hikers make it up and down without a problem...but for the 1% who don't, it's a bad way to die.

[Maru Kitteh]

22. More deaths happen on the descent of any climb. It's a dangerous pursuit. Climbing through storms

is really stupid. I feel very sorry for her friends and family but when it comes down to it, she rolled those dice.

The park system already does so much to attempt to keep fools from killing themselves. They cannot hold every entrant's hand all the way through their visit and make every decision for them. People bear some portion of responsibility for themselves, as they should.

[LWolf]

24. My son did that climb a couple of years ago

during a thunderstorm.

He survived, but his ears are STILL blistered from the dressing down I gave him for such blatant idiocy.

He was 32, and it's been years since I pulled the mom card on him, but he was begging for that one.

[Cleita]

26. National parks and wilderness lands have lots of

dangerous venues. Unfortunately, when you go into them, you have to use your common sense because you are on your own. There really aren't enough workers around to prevent stupid although they try.

[bigwillq]

27. Don't tell my sister.

Her boyfriend, who is a Boy Scout TroopMaster, are with the scouts on a trip out West. I think they're supposed to do the Half Dome.
She's a nervous wreck.

[The Straight Story]

28. Their body, their choice

:)

[Taverner]

29. Wow...from my home town too...

Climbing is a risky activity.

They know the risks, they buy the ticket

[Gormy Cuss]

32. The last two people to die on Half Dome were from San Ramon.

How's that for a weird coincidence?

[Taverner]

33. Wow...well San Ramon has a jock fetish that I have never seen elsewhere

Kids are raised on sports, not as spectators, but as players.

Let me put it this way: a Cheer Coach with a good record can make over $150K per year...

[laruemtt]

31. i just finished reading

Over the Edge - Death in the Grand Canyon because we plan to go hiking in it this coming spring. 99.9% of the deaths have been due to stupidity and poor planning on the part of the hikers or river runners. hubby's currently doing an internship at Lake Mead gathering and interpreting data regarding deaths at Lake Mead. Same thing. People can be really fool-hardy. You can't prevent it. You can educate as you can, but that's about it.

[closeupready]

35. I sort of feel about her like about Amy Winehouse - sad that someone died, but

you took great risks - you knew death was a possibility. It happened, and for the most part, you helped bring it on, so my sorrow is very mitigated by your self-destructiveness.

But I would still offer my condolences to her family and friends. :cry:

[devilgrrl]

36. Use precaution if you must climb slippery rocks.

eom

[ljm2002]

38. The Park Service warns people...

...not to make this climb when it is wet or even when there is threat of rain. They chose to do it anyway. Oops.

I have nothing but sympathy for those who knew and loved her, and I certainly would not wish this on anyone, even someone who attempted something ill-advised as in this case. Hopefully it serves as a warning for others who might consider making this climb under other than optimal conditions: you are taking your life in your hands, even more than you are anyway when making a strenuous and dangerous climb like this.

And the park rangers who must retrieve the broken and mangled body -- it must be painful for them as well.

[mnhtnbb]

40. Survival of the fittest.

Some people just don't get being careful.