Amusing Planet posted a blog with GREAT pictures about Half Dome and the joys of hiking to the top.
From the article:
The trail starts with a 13.7 km hike, followed by a rigorous 3.2 km approach including several hundred feet of granite stairs. The final 400-foot ascent up the peak’s steep but somewhat rounded east face is ascended with the aid of a pair of post-mounted braided steel cables raised on posts that lead to the breath-taking summit. This cable route was constructed close to the Anderson route in 1919 by the Sierra Club for visitors who have no rock climbing ability or equipment. Following the Half Dome Cables Trail is a unique experience, and it has become one of the most popular hikes in Yosemite National Park. As many as 1,000 hikers per day have sometimes climbed the dome on a summer weekend, and about 50,000 hikers climb it every year.
Redwood trees in Southern California? I had heard that there was a grove of Sequoia sempervirens somewhere in Orange County, but had never been able to figure out where.
I’ll be the first to say that I’m not a fan of mountain bikes shooting down hiking trails. While there are certainly some mountain bikers who are cognizant of others, the vast majority of mountain bikers I’ve encountered have been rude, unsafe cyclists who don’t seem to be in control of their equipment; I’ve seen far more accidents involving bikers running into hikers than the other way around.
Dick Hagerty, an Oakdale real estate developer active in community nonprofits, has written an excellent community column in the Modesto Bee about getting outdoors and hiking the Sierras.
Marek Warszawski wrote in the Fresno Bee about two great hikes in Yosemite: Four-Mile and Panorama Trail.