How We Won the Yosemite Half Dome Lottery Hiking Permit

Our plans for September 13, 2023 had been set in stone since April 11, 2023 when the National Park service announced the pre-season Yosemite Half Dome Lottery permit winners (300 daily) for the 2023 summer in Yosemite National Park. The odds of landing this pre-season lottery permit is just 2%.

These are the parameters I entered that led to my Yosemite Half Dome Lottery Permit success on my second application.

• I entered the morning the permit application opened.
  (Recreation.gov said this doesn’t matter though, you just have to enter within the set time frame, March 1-31.)
• My hiking party was small – just two people.
  (You’re allowed up to 6.)
• I selected an entire week-long span of time, after peak summer season.
  (You’re allowed to pick 7 dates.)

My awarded permit was for a Wednesday, which is one of the least desired days. The reason I chose an entire week is because there is a small window of time that we travel in the fall, which is after oats harvest and before Wisconsin fall color. To increase chances, apply for more weekdays.

The risks to waiting until past peak season includes wildfire smoke and low waterfall levels. However, the cables will definitely be up as the snow will certainly be melted which is a risk in the spring/early summer.

Note: A permit is only required while the cables are up in the summer (but that’s probably when you would want to go anyways) and costs $10 per person.

With all this said, make sure you know you are FULLY capable of SAFELY completing this hike BEFORE you apply for a permit. We met several people who should NOT have been up there and they ultimately jeopardized the experience for others. Please don’t be that person, it’s okay to not do this hike. There’s so many great ones in this park.

Go to Recreation.gov to learn all the official permit details. In addition to the pre-season lottery, there are additional permits you can apply for that are released just 2 days in advance of hiking. This is a great option for locals, but obviously won’t work for those needing to travel a distance to get to Yosemite.

So, now you’ve been awarded a Yosemite Half Dome Lottery Permit, let’s talk about the hike!

We had never been to Yosemite before despite it being high on the list. It’s one of America’s most popular parks (for good reason) and between the Covid pandemic popularity and the logistics to staying in the mountainous area, we got lucky that this was the year we got to go. Most of the extensive restorative road work inside the park (like the road to Glacier Point) is complete and they no longer require an entrance reservation to get in. Plus, there were no wildfires/smoke in the area and last winter’s heavy snowfall ensured the waterfalls were still flowing despite it being late in the season.

The Half Dome Hike took an entire day of our 3-day visit to Yosemite and it was incredible!

Hike Stats

Trailhead: Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking Lot 37°44’05.5″N 119°33’59.3″W
Cost: $35 one-week Yosemite National Park Pass OR invest in the $80 America the Beautiful National Park Annual Pass AND $10 per person reservation fee for permit on Recreation.gov
Length: 16.5 miles out & back
Elevation gain: 5,305 feet with 400 feet of cable to the summit at a grade of 45-55%.
Time: 13 hours
Official website: Yosemite National Park

A Little About Our Half Dome Hike Experience

We parked at the Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking lot at 5:30am. There was plenty of parking space left, but it was already quite busy considering it was still dark out. We joined the trail and while it wasn’t overly busy, as we are fast uphill hikers, we steadily passed others.

The hike itself is diverse – you get to feel the mist as you pass two major waterfalls; Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. Then you walk along a crystal clear river and up through a forest of enormous pines until you reach the sheer granite rock that’s been smoothed by glaciers. The incline makes it a tough hike that’s not for everyone, especially if you don’t have a head for heights for the cables, but overall was easier than we expected compared to other hikes we have attempted.

Once we got to the base of the sub-dome, hikers without a permit could not proceed and we entered the exposed, steep climb up to the base of the cables. We arrived at the cables at 9:30am and only a handful of early birds were making their way down. We began our climb which thankfully went slow but steady. At the top, we were greeted by an enthusiastic group cheering and handing out high-fives celebrating the accomplishment. We then spent nearly 2 hour on the top of Half Dome. The weather was perfect and we soaked it in.

Note: You will have cell phone service at the top and we found it quite amusing to listen to excited young adults, calling their parents and friends to tell them where they were.

A Word about the Yosemite Half Dome Cables

The cable experience on the way down was not fun. There were a lot of underprepared, panicking, and impatient people leading to a dangerous situation including some people choosing to leave the cableway while others had to sit down to catch their panicked breath. I cannot iterate enough, it’s okay to NOT do the Half Dome Cable hike especially if you are nervous about heights. Even if it’s a personal goal of yours, I urge you to think of the others you will undoubtedly affect along the way.

Yosemite Is So Much More than Just the Half Dome Hike

Besides, this Yosemite Half Dome Hike may be an iconic experience, but I actually don’t consider it the most beautiful in the park. And, while it was pretty amazing while we were standing at the top, that was actually the easy part. It was the arduous hike down that was the real challenge. It got hot, we were tired, and the continual downhill starts to grind on you, especially when the John Muir Trail switchbacks became crowded near the end.

So, while the Yosemite Half Dome hike was the primary driver for our visit, it was hardly the most beautiful. The view from Glacier Point in the morning light was impressive, as was Tunnel View and Olmsted Point. We stood at the top of the cliffs and as close to the edge as we dared at Taft Point, then looked straight up at the face of El Capitan and it’s big wall climbers from the base. We strolled through the valley gazing up at waterfalls, explored a grove of impressive Sequoias, and exited via the seriously magical Tioga Pass.

Three days in this park was just the right amount of time, obviously I highly recommend planning a visit, even if long hikes are not your thing. Check out our full 10 Day Road Trip Itinerary for further California trip planning inspiration. There’s so much beauty here. John Muir said it best: “But no temple made with hands can compare with Yosemite. Every rock in its wall seems to glow with life.”

Have you ever been to Yosemite before? Has it also been on your list? Is it now? Do you have questions about the hike? Feel free to leave your questions and comments below.

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