Halvkuppelen

På den fjerde dagen bestemte Polly seg for å klatre Halvkuppelen. Ikke på den berømte kabelruten opp baksiden (den var uansett stengt for sesongen), men i luften. Halvkuppelens nordside stiger nesten rett opp fra dalbunnen. Det er 1500 meter med glatt granitt, polert av en isbre for 15 000 år siden.

On the fourth day, Polly decided to climb Half Dome. Not on the famous cable route up the back (it was closed for the season anyway), but in the air. Half Dome's north face rises almost straight up from the valley floor. It is 1,500 metres of smooth granite, polished by a glacier 15,000 years ago.

Hun startet ved daggry. Hun fløy fra en furulund nær Speilsjøen og klatret sakte i spiraler.

She started at first light. She flew from a pine grove near Mirror Lake and climbed slowly in spirals.

Tre hundre meter opp møtte hun en flokk hvitstrupesvaler. Det var dusinvis av dem. De var de raskeste småfuglene Polly noen gang hadde fløyet med. De suste og skrek forbi henne. Polly var den tregeste fuglen i luften. Svalene så ikke ut til å bry seg.

At three hundred metres up, she joined a flock of white-throated swifts. There were dozens of them. They were the fastest small bird Polly had ever flown with. They flashed and screamed past her. Polly was the slowest bird in the air. The swifts did not seem to mind.

Vinden tok seg opp ved fem hundre meter. Granitten var allerede varm fra solen. Varm stein varmer luften over seg. Varm luft stiger. Stigende luft løftet Polly. Hun klatret i lange buer, lot steinen gjøre jobben.

The wind picked up at five hundred metres. The granite was already warm from the sun. Warm rock heats the air above it. Hot air rises. Rising air lifted Polly. She climbed in long arcs, letting the rock do the work.

Halvveis opp hvilte hun på en liten avsats. Derfra kunne hun se kabelruten. Metallkablene lå langs den bare steinen som en lang, tynn rygg. De var stengt for våren. I juli ville hundrevis av mennesker klatre dem hver dag.

Halfway up, she rested on a small ledge. From there she could see the cable route. The metal cables lay along the bare rock like a long thin spine. They were closed for spring. By July, hundreds of people a day would climb them.

På toppen var granitten flat. Hundre meter på tvers, litt skrå, med noen små steinhauger der mennesker hadde markert sine topper.

At the top, the granite was flat. A hundred metres across, slightly tilted, with a few small piles of stones where humans had marked their summits.

Hun gikk til kanten av stupebrettet, den berømte overhengende platen, og så ned. Dalen var et lite bånd nedenfor. El Capitan var så nær at hun følte hun kunne fly til den. Trærne på dalbunnen så ut som dun.

She walked to the edge of the diving board, the famous overhanging slab, and looked down. The valley was a small ribbon below. El Capitan was so close she felt she could fly to it. The trees on the canyon floor looked like fuzz.

Hun ble ved kanten lenge. Så skjøv hun seg fra kanten i et lite, rolig stup og trakk seg nesten umiddelbart opp for å sveve langs kuppelens kurve på vei ned.

She stayed at the edge a long time. Then she pushed off the lip in a small calm dive and pulled up almost immediately to glide along the curve of the dome on the way down.