The Half Dome winter rescue of December 2016 followed two slides down an icy slope. Snow patches stopped the runner before rescuers brought him down.
The first slide stopped after about twenty feet. A hollow filled with snow caught the man, leaving him with one foothold and nothing useful to hold.
Then he shifted his weight. The second slide carried him approximately two hundred feet before another patch of snow stopped him.
The Half Dome winter rescue of December 28, 2016, began as a trail run. Yosemite’s account uses the pseudonyms James and Christine for the two participants, both experienced in mountain activities.
Half Dome winter rescue: The summit was only halfway
They left Happy Isles at 8 a.m. with small packs, headlamps and light jackets. After passing a closure gate on the Mist Trail, they continued past Vernal and Nevada Falls toward Half Dome.
The summer cable route was not in its summer configuration. The supporting posts and wooden footholds had been removed for winter. Cables lay on the rock, and much of the route disappeared beneath loose snow.
A solo hiker carrying traction equipment and a cable tether assessed the beginning and turned back. Christine also suggested retreating. James continued upward.
At a difficult-looking section, Christine turned around. James borrowed her phone and reached the summit. Descending, he selected a different line that had appeared easier from above. As the slope steepened, he could not regain the route he knew.
After the first slide, Christine could see and hear him from the base of the cable section. They recognized that she could not reach him without putting herself at risk. At 3 p.m., he called 911.
The last flight before darkness
The second slide occurred while rescue arrangements were under way. James escaped obvious injury but was cold. An attempt to traverse away revealed ice beneath the snow, so he stopped.
A California Highway Patrol helicopter reached Yosemite at 4:30 p.m. There was just enough daylight to locate him and place two rescuers near the cables before flying had to stop.
Using crampons, the rescuers climbed above him. In darkness and freezing temperatures, they established anchors and lowered one rescuer to his position. Once secured to a rope, James could move back toward safe ground with assistance.
The four walked to Yosemite Valley, arriving at 10 p.m.
Reaching the summit had not completed the dangerous part. From below, the route had looked like a climb toward a goal. From above, it became a series of decisions about surfaces that could no longer be trusted. Two unrelated patches of snow interrupted the descent before rescuers could give him a dependable way to stop.
Sources and reporting
Researched reporting: an original narrative based on the published records linked below.
