Royal Highness: Tribute to a life well-lived

On the 50th anniversary of his historic ascent of Half Dome's Northwest FAce, Royal Robbins, the father of big-wall climbing, tells you to go climb a rock ... and tells you when and how

By ROYAL ROBBINS

last updated: September 11, 2007 05:42:02 AM

A MAN MAKES HIS MARK IN THE MOUNTAINS

Modestan Royal Robbins is the father of American big-wall climbing and an international icon among pioneers of the sport.

A major innovator of techniques for scaling walls in Yosemite National Park such as El Capitan and Half Dome, Robbins helped set a standard of ethics for "clean climbing" -- without pitons or fixed ropes. Occasionally ridiculed for his romantic approach and sometimes embroiled in controversy, Robbins' insistence on a pure style proved to be visionary and pre-dated many climbs in the Himalayas and the speed climbing of the present day.

In the late 1960s, Robbins and his wife, Liz, started an outdoor-apparel business. His name now emblazons attire worn around the world.

Random Ruminations from Royal ...

What would you have done if you hadn't been a climber?

Robbins: "Something dangerous that required a lot of discipline. I didn't aspire to change the world. Climbing was value-free. I'd like to have been on one of the ships with Christopher Columbus."

"When I was a kid, I was hiding behind a wooden sign and my friend was shooting a wooden arrow at it. I thought he had waited too long, so I peeked over the top of the sign. The arrow hit right next to my eye, close enough that I bled. I'm lucky I didn't lose an eye."

"At 15, I knew the outdoors was my destiny. I had read 'High Conquest' by James Ramsey Ullman. He said, 'Climbing is not about climbing. It's about conquering what's unattractive in yourself.' "

"To encourage others is to give a great gift."

"Half Dome makes a pretty good gravestone."

About his quest to become a better speaker and writer ...

"If you're climbing, the worst thing that can happen is you die. When you're speaking or writing, you can make a fool of yourself."

His advice to young people ...

"Believe in yourself even if others don't. And do what you love. It doesn't matter what that is."

external links

• Royal Robbins video

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• Royal Robbins: Highlights Of His High Life

There has been a lot of press lately on hiking to the top of Yosemite's beautiful monolith, Half Dome, much of it focused on crowded conditions on the final section using cables and on several unfortunate accidents that have taken place there.

My goal is to suggest a way of getting to the top of the celebrated peak while avoiding crowds and injury.

I have been to the top of Half Dome often, five times via new routes on the big Northwest Face. In fact, this year, my companions, Mike Sherrick and Jerry Gallwas, and I celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first ascent of the face in June of 1957. I also have climbed the Southwest Face by two routes that were there when I arrived. And I have gone up the cable stairway several times.

I mention these ascents because I want to establish that what follows is born of personal experience, not book-learning.

Let's begin at the beginning ... what we do in advance of the actual ascent.

First, let's deal with the question "Why climb Half Dome"?

The answer is that it's the most prominent peak in Yosemite. After you have climbed it, you can always look back up from the valley and say, "I was there!"

Make no mistake, climbing Half Dome by any route is a genuine accomplishment. It's a 16-mile round trip and a gain (and loss) of nearly 5,000 feet in elevation, starting at about the 4,000 foot level in Yosemite Valley and ending atop the dome at an elevation of 8,842 feet.

That's why you climb Half Dome. It's prominent. It's beautiful. And it's a grueling accomplishment for which you will be forever proud. It perfectly answers that call of the human spirit that urges us to climb mountains. A mountaintop is a symbol, a symbol of challenge we are capable of overcoming if we set our minds and hearts to the task.

PREPARATION

Let's divide this section into four parts: (1) imagining the ascent, (2) setting a date, (3) training and (4) gear.

1. Picture yourself doing it.

It's helpful to get a mental image of what you are proposing and how you are going to do it.

You start early in the morning, with a headlamp to light the way. The trail leads you up to the bridge across the cataract below Vernal Fall. You cross the bridge and climb up beside Vernal. It's steep, with more than 100 stone steps. From the top of Vernal, you follow the path back across another bridge over the Merced River and then up more stone steps to the top of Nevada Fall.

Shortly after reaching the top, the trail forks and you take the left branch to the north. This trail leads slowly up and up through the giant Sierra forest with its sugar pines, red firs and groves of incense ciders to the "shoulder" below the cable leading up the northeast flank of the dome. Here you find more stone steps and climb these, placing one foot above another until you are at the beginning of the cable.

With a hand on each cable, you ascend the final 500 feet to the top of the dome, breathless, but wide-eyed and happy. You've done it! The world lies at your feet.

2. Set a date

I recommend late summer or early fall. Anytime in September and the first half of October usually is good. Unless a storm is coming through (always a possibility), it's a period of usually fine weather. The air is crystal clear, there are no insects, and thunderstorms are less likely. Also, the walk up past Vernal Fall is drier. Spring is very beautiful, with water flowing everywhere, but the weather is more changeable and insects are abundant. The same is mostly true of summer, with the additional challenge of lots and lots of people eager to enjoy Yosemite Valley, and many eager to get to the top of Half Dome.

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