Snake Dike Beta

The following is a reprint of my very lengthy reply to some questions I received about climbing Snake Dike on Half Dome (with some editing from its original form). Please remember that these are nothing more than the recollections and recommendations of a mediocre climber and should be only be used by competent climbers capable of assessing the accuracy of the information presented and appropriately using it at their own risk. Snake Dike is certainly a dangerous climb with many very lengthy runouts and minimal gear. Don't get on it if you aren't sure of what you are getting into. I climbed this route in 1991. I can't speak to any changes to the route since then.

. . . glad to answer your questions. These are all just my opinions, so take them for what they are worth.

Snake Dike is one great route! It should be the way all climbers reach the top of the Dome (as opposed to the cables).

Having said that, you do need to know that the "crux" is the first pitch. You've got a 5.7 runout on pure friction and it is scary since a fall might be a grounder after you bounce down the wall. Once you get to the good crack, it's casual. Pitch two [or three if using the original belays in the Reid topo] has some more 5.7 friction, but it is much less scary since there is no ground fall potential. The upper pitches are quite runout. I recall that pitch four or five is almost a rope length and has one spot at mid-pitch to clip to a bolt. That's around 70-80 foot runouts. However, the climbing is very easy at this point and you can feel solid (as long as your mind doesn't go on you).

Yes, you really only need nuts and runners (quickdraws for the bolts and shoulder length runners for belays). As I recall, I did use a big hex right off of the first belay stance (optional higher belay), but it is not necessary. Small to medium stoppers will work great. I got so used to running it out that I didn't bother placing them even when I could (a couple of spots near the top of the climb).

I recommend the higher belays for both pitch one and two. That way you don't have to set up a nut belay at the end of one. If you do this, you can start with your belayer low until you get past the 5.7 friction and to a good stance. Then have your belayer move up high enough for you to get to the bolts at the dotted #1. If you have a long rope you may not need to do this. I believe the "straight rope don't clip" on the Reid topo in "Yosemite Select" is for the purpose of reducing the potential for a bad pendulum fall for the second or reducing rope drag if you use the solid circle belays (or maybe even rope length problems?). I'm not really sure since I used the alternate belays and clipped in there.

A party of four will be a problem. We tried a party of five, and three rapped off after pitch one. The problem is that the higher belays are stance belays and it gets crowded really fast. It is ideally a two person climb, leapfrogging leads or having a single leader. You could consider going as two teams, but that adds at least one rope (the lead party would still need two ropes in case of a forced rap). The speed of the climb is very much related to time at the belays. Since there is no gear to place while climbing, it goes really fast. I led the whole climb as well with my sister as my partner. It is a much more mental than physical climb.

I would recommend getting a back country permit for Little Yosemite and staying the night. Basically from LY, you hike toward the south corner of the dome, keeping Liberty Cap and Mount Broderick on your left. You then scramble up the talus and loose stuff to the start of the climb. If you get to LY early in the day, just hike over to the south corner and see where you will be heading the next day. That first part of the hike is actually quite level. Going directly from the big valley to the climb really cuts down on your margin for error. Bear boxes are in LY; none elsewhere. And there are bears who will find your food and tear your gear apart to get it! (My sister-in-law wishes she had remembered that cookie she put in the top of her pack.)

A few more suggestions for what they are worth:

• Take a headlamp. We ended up descending in pitch darkness; no moon, no stars, no fun.
• Take rain gear. If you get wet, you are in a heap of trouble.
• The class 2 friction to the summit after pitch 8 is still steep and tiring and you wonder if you will ever get there.
• The spring on the descent trail should be running. It's not very far down into the woods. Check with a Half Dome hiker to verify it is running if it has been a dry season.
• Equipping each person with two shoulder length runners girth hitched to their harness and with a locking biner attached to each (runner) can reduce your belay times. When someone arrives at the belay, they just clip in and lock up. When leaving the belay, they can just clip the biners to their harness and be off.
• Since the belay bolts are 3/8 inchers, go ahead the clip into one, or better yet both, when starting to lead a pitch. If you fall (heaven forbid!), it won't be directly onto the second's harness.
• Consider a short cordelette, 10-12 feet, to extend the belay vertically. There is no reasonable way to have four people clipped directly to two bolts.
• If using the dashed belays on #1 and 2, think about this option. Leader climbs from 1 to 2. The second (who should be the second most solid climber) climbs the same route, removing all the gear while trailing a rope back to the third climber. The third (and subsequent) climber goes straight up from 1 to 2, avoiding the traverses altogether (see the topo). This reduces time and the dangers of a pendulum fall. My sister who is a 5.7 climber was able to climb through the small "overhang" halfway up without too much trouble. You could haul someone in as well if they weren't able to get over that one spot. If you have the third climb the traverses, the second must leave the gear and clip a trailer rope through the draws in order to provide protection against the pendulums for the third climber. This will be true for a fourth climber as well who would actually be the one to clean the gear.
• If climbing with four, use three ropes and keep the whole team connected. Watch for rope tangle though. Don't assume you will be able to lower a rope back to someone at a lower belay.
• Two ropes are needed for a rappel. If rappelling from the dashed #1 belay, your ropes may not reach the ground.
• "Yosemite Select" and "Yosemite Free Climbs" by Don Reid have a picture of the route along with the topo and useful information about the approach.
• And finally, it will probably take longer than you plan.

Have fun, climb safe, pray often,
Ron