(GoRealNewsNow.com) – A father-daughter hike that began as a bucket list adventure for an Arizona college student ended tragically when she fell to her death from Yosemite’s famous Half Dome.
20-year-old Grace Rohloff and her father, Jonathan Rohloff, were making their way down the cables at Yosemite’s summit when Grace slipped and fell. The hike to Half Dome, a challenging 14- to 16-mile round trip, requires hikers to get permits in advance.
Jonathan Rohloff shared their final moments at the top, where they took in the breathtaking views and expressed their gratitude before starting the descent.
“A black cloud was rolling in like gangbusters,” Rohloff said. “I said: ‘We have to get down now, because we can’t be up here with any rain. It rolled in literally out of nowhere.’”
As they descended, Grace lost her footing on a slippery part of the rock.
“She was between the wooden blocks and slipped to the ground, and it just happened very fast. She slid down the side of the mountain,” her father explained.
The final stretch of the hike, known as the cables, is notorious for its difficulty. Climbers use two metal cables to ascend the last 400 feet to the summit without rock climbing gear.
Moreover, Rohloff mentioned that the sky was clear when they started their ascent from Buckeye, but a thunderclap was heard shortly after they reached Half Dome’s base.
The father recalled that about three-quarters of the way down the cables, Grace lost her balance and slid down the mountain.
“It happened so fast,” he said. “I tried to reach my hand up, but she was already gone.”
While rescuers arrived with a helicopter in three hours, Rohloff and a park ranger waited through severe winds, rain, and hail
He said rescue workers informed him of Grace’s death, and the park ranger stayed with him to help him down the mountain.
“I know that’s her job, but [the park ranger] went way above and beyond to make a human connection with me,” he added.
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