El Capitan – News Stories About El Capitan - Page 1

Jun 11, 2025 7:47 AM CDT

Feds Ban Large Banners at Yosemite

New rule targets protest banners after high-profile displays on El Capitan

(Newser) - Yosemite National Park's iconic El Capitan has become an unlikely protest stage over the past year, with activists unfurling large banners from its granite walls to address issues ranging from the Israel-Hamas war to the Trump administration's policies . But federal officials say no more. As of May...

Atop El Capitan, a
'Signal of Dire Distress'

Feb 25, 2025 7:41 AM CST

Atop El Capitan, a 'Signal of Dire Distress'

Frustrated staffers at Yosemite hang upside-down American flag to protest Trump workforce cuts

(Newser) - An upside-down American flag is meant as "a signal of dire distress" —and that's exactly what visitors found at California's Yosemite National Park over the weekend. It seems staffers upset about the Trump administration taking a hatchet to the federal workforce draped a giant flag from...

'Stop the Genocide' Banner
Unfurled on El Capitan

Jun 19, 2024 8:09 AM CDT

'Stop the Genocide' Banner Unfurled on El Capitan

Climbers With Palestine group says of Yosemite protest: 'We need to stop killing people, today'

(Newser) - Pro-Palestinian protests over the Israel-Hamas war that have proliferated on college campuses have now made their way into the national parks. SFGate reports that four climbers stopped partway up Yosemite's El Capitan on Monday—not to rest, but to unfurl a 25-by-15-foot banner in the colors of the Palestinian...

Boy Shows Why 'Adventure' Really Is His Middle Name

Story of Boy, 8, 'Climbing'
El Capitan Raises Eyebrows

Story of Boy, 8, 'Climbing' El Capitan Raises Eyebrows

Experts say Sam Baker didn't technically 'climb' California rock formation

(Newser) - Update: Some veteran rock climbers are speaking out after Sam Adventure Baker's ascent of El Capitan made headlines last week, the Daily Beast reports. Experts tell the San Francisco Chronicle that the 8-year-old and his father used a technique known as "jugging," in which they used ascenders—...

His Climb of
El Capitan Is
Legendary. Now
His Mom's Is Too

Oct 29, 2021 7:47 AM CDT

His Climb of El Capitan Is Legendary. Now His Mom's Is Too

Alex Honnold's mother, Dierdre Wolownick, is the oldest woman to ascend Yosemite peak

(Newser) - "Alex didn't think I could do it." That was Dierdre Wolownick yesterday, in a blog post describing her latest feat—climbing El Capitan at the age of 70. As for Alex, who is he, and why does Wolownick care what he thinks? He's professional rock-climber Alex...

She Was Badly
Hurt in Her Last
Shot at El Capitan.
Now, Success

Nov 9, 2020 10:15 AM CST

She Was Badly Hurt in Her Last Shot at El Capitan. Now, Success

Emily Harrington becomes first woman to free-climb Yosemite rock formation in less than 24 hours

(Newser) - Last November, Emily Harrington got banged up pretty badly after she fell from El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, in an attempt to become the first woman to free-climb the rock formation in less than 24 hours following the tough "Golden Gate" route. Better news this time around: The...

Free Solo Star Helps Save El Capitan Climber

She Was Climbing
El Capitan When She Fell

She Was Climbing El Capitan When She Fell

Emily Harrington is 'banged up but gonna be OK'

(Newser) - A top rock climber is thankful to be alive after falling from El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. "I took a bad fall and pin balled a bit then somehow hit the rope [with] my neck," Emily Harrington wrote Monday on Instagram, sharing a photo of her resting...