Photo:Getty
Getty
A 93-year-old California man just summited Yosemite’s Half Dome thanks in part to his son and granddaughter.
Everett Kalin, of Oakland, Calif., successfully completed the strenuous hike in three days last week, becoming one of the oldest, if not the oldest, person ever to climb the iconic piece of rock, according toSFGate.
“I didn’t fully realize how tricky it would be, especially at my age,” Everett told the outlet about the effort, which starts out with a difficult subdome ascent — without cables — in which son Jon, 57, and granddaughter Sidney, 19, held on to him for support.
“He’s stubborn as a mule. When he sets his mind to something, he’s going to do it,” Jon told the newspaper. “He kept proving me wrong every step of the way."
“When you hit your 90s, you think, ‘What would be some things I’d like to do?’” added the nonagenarian. “I guess Half Dome was the thing that most popped into my mind.”
Known as an extremely difficult hike, the steep trail covers about 16 miles,according to the park’s website.
Hikers gain 4,800 feet of elevation, passing highlights including Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall before steel cable handrails and wooden planks help them across the mountain’s granite domes, per the website.
“I was pleasantly surprised that when I got up there, I did not feel like I was huffing and puffing so much. As we went up, it felt pretty good,” Everett told the outlet.
Added John, “It was spectacular for the three generations of us to be together enjoying it all at once.”
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“I just feel so very grateful to the people that made it possible,” the former theology professor, who has no idea what his next adventure will be, told SFGate. “I’m actually feeling great."
source: people.com
