Polovičná kupola

Štvrtý deň sa Polly rozhodla vyliezť na Polovičnú kupolu. Nie po známej trase s lanami na zadnej strane (bola aj tak zatvorená na sezónu), ale vo vzduchu. Severná stena Polovičnej kupoly sa takmer kolmo dvíha z dna údolia. Je to 1 500 metrov hladkého žulového povrchu, ktorý pred 15 000 rokmi vyhladil ľadovec.

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.

Začala na svitaní. Vzlietla z borovicového hája pri Zrkadlovom jazere a pomaly stúpala v špirálach.

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

Vo výške tristo metrov sa pridala k húfu bielokrkých rýchlikov. Bolo ich tam desiatky. Boli to najrýchlejšie malé vtáky, s ktorými Polly kedy letela. Preletovali okolo nej a kričali. Polly bola najpomalší vták vo vzduchu. Rýchlikom to nevadilo.

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.

Vo výške päťsto metrov zosilnel vietor. Žula už bola teplá od slnka. Teplá skala ohrieva vzduch nad sebou. Horúci vzduch stúpa. Stúpajúci vzduch zdvihol Polly. Stúpala v dlhých oblúkoch, nechávajúc skalu robiť prácu.

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.

V polovici cesty sa zastavila na malej rímske. Odtiaľ mohla vidieť trasu s lanami. Kovové laná ležali na holej skale ako dlhá tenká chrbtica. Boli zatvorené na jar. Do júla po nich denne vylezie stovky ľudí.

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.

Na vrchole bola žula plochá. Sto metrov naprieč, mierne naklonená, s niekoľkými malými kôpkami kameňov, kde ľudia označili svoje vrcholy.

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.

Prešla k okraju skokanskej dosky, slávnej previsnutej doske, a pozrela sa dolu. Údolie bolo malá stuha pod ňou. El Capitan bol tak blízko, že mala pocit, že k nemu môže doletieť. Stromy na dne kaňonu vyzerali ako chumáčiky.

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.

Zostala na okraji dlho. Potom sa jemne odrazila z okraja v malom pokojnom ponore a takmer okamžite sa vytiahla, aby sa plavila po oblúku kupoly cestou dolu.

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.