If tennis shoes are to be used they should be put on at this point. The tool-box nearby contains ropes and safety belts for the use of the public, but the ascent is perfectly safe without them.
From here an 800-foot double cable railing with iron posts every ten feet leads to the top. On the steep slopes are footholds, and at one place a fifty-foot ladder carries us over the most dangerous part of the ascent. Turning to the right at the top of the cableway we follow the monuments across the surprisingly flat summit to the brink of the great northeast face, where we find an overhanging shelf of granite. The panorama at all sides is inexpressibly grand, but some of the valley features suffer by being dwarfed in the great distances below.
The descent should be started not later than 3 to 4 p.m. in order to reach Yosemite before dark.
TRAIL TRIP 15
YOSEMITE TO GLACIER POINT via THE LEDGE TRAIL
(2.5 miles. Average 4 hours climb)
Next to Half Dome, the Ledge Trail is the most thrilling of Yosemite climbs. The ascent was formerly quite dangerous, but in 1918 a safe foot-trail was constructed. The record ascent is fifty-three minutes, but this is a steep, hard, 3200-foot climb and will take the average individual three to five hours.
The trail starts from the Happy Isles Road, turning southward just east of the new Le Conte Lodge. It climbs the talus slope above Camp Curry and turns westward up a steep ledge. As the trail mounts to view-commanding heights there are many unusual and impressive glimpses into the depths below. Reaching a steep canyon, the trail turns sharply to the left and climbs beside a small creek. The water is polluted and to drink it is dangerous. Near the top, the trail gradually becomes less and less steep and finally crosses the canyon rim only a few feet distant from Glacier Point and the Overhanging Rock. Glacier Point Hotel is about 200 yards southward.